The first installment of theScore's NHL Playoffs Power Rankings was put together by NHL editor Craig Hagerman.

1. San Jose Sharks

The Sharks did it all in the first round en route to their series sweep of the Anaheim Ducks. The club averaged four goals per game, highlighted by a crushing 8-1 win in Game 3.

San Jose has five players averaging a point per game in the playoffs, while Martin Jones has put up a save percentage of .970, second in the postseason only to Marc-Andre Fleury.

2. Winnipeg Jets

Excepting a 6-2 smackdown in Game 3 to the Minnesota Wild, the Jets cruised to their first series win in franchise history. In fact, it was after this game that Connor Hellebuyck took his play to another level, turning in two consecutive shutouts to close out the series.

The Jets are also averaging the best shot differential in the playoffs, while Adam Lowry was the only series regular who failed to record at least a point. Facing a potent offense and an elite goalie, the Nashville Predators have their hands full in Round 2.

3. Vegas Golden Knights

Fleury didn't need to prove anything more to the people of Las Vegas regarding his value to the team, but he made sure to anyway. The 33-year-old put up two shutouts in four games and allowed just three goals in the four-game sweep of the Kings.

The rest of the team could use a few more goals than they put up in Round 1, but that likely has more to do with the Kings' goaltending than it does the Golden Knights' offense.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins certainly look up to the task of competing for a third straight Stanley Cup.

The club finished the first round having registered just shy of five goals per game. Sidney Crosby looks to be in Conn Smythe Trophy form with 13 points in six games while Jake Guentzel, on the back of a four-goal output in Game 6, has equaled that tally.

5. Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning didn't steamroll the Devils in the first round, but they did make short work of them, needing just five games.

Nikita Kucherov continues to do his thing offensively, with five goals and 10 points in Round 1, and Andrei Vasilevskiy, who admitted to feeling fatigued toward the end of the season, appears no worse for wear, posting a 2.01 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage.

6. Nashville Predators

The Avalanche gave Nashville a bit of a scare in the opening round, but when it came down to it, the Predators flexed their muscles and hammered Colorado in Game 6.

Pekka Rinne proved to be human through the first five games, but with a shutout in the sixth, he's helped calm the nerves. The hope now is it's that version of Rinne we see in Round 2.

7. Washington Capitals

After dropping the first two games of their opening series to the Blue Jackets at home, the Capitals reeled off four straight wins to advance to the second round for the fourth consecutive year.

Of course, they are now poised to take on their playoff nemesis in the Penguins, but perhaps the desire to finally exercise their playoff demons will propel them past the reigning Cup champs. If John Carlson, Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Nicklas Backstrom can continue their blistering pace - the quartet combined for 33 points in Round 1 - that's a distinct possibility.

8. Boston Bruins

When the Bruins lost a game to the Maple Leafs in the first round, it was tight, but when they won, it was generally in commanding fashion.

The top line of Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak, and Patrice Bergeron further proved they are the best line in the NHL today, and that if you don't keep them in check, they'll make you pay. Meanwhile, David Krejci, Torey Krug, and Jake DeBrusk combined for 24 points; the Bruins are no one-trick pony.

9. Toronto Maple Leafs

It wasn't 4-1-in-the-third-period painful, but the Maple Leafs' third-period unraveling in Game 7 that saw them give up a 4-3 lead en route to a 7-4 defeat to the Bruins certainly sunk Toronto fans.

That being said, Toronto put some doubt into a strong Boston team by coming back from a 3-1 deficit to force Game 7.

10. Colorado Avalanche

It didn't end the way the Avalanche wanted, but they took the Presidents' Trophy winners to six games after needing the penultimate night of the regular season to nail down a playoff spot.

Considering the club finished with the worst full-season record in the salary cap era just one year ago, this season was most definitely a success for the Avs.

11. Columbus Blue Jackets

The Blue Jackets appeared destined for a different playoff fate after finally drawing an opponent other than the Penguins.

Unfortunately, after taking the first two games on the road, the same old problem arose: Sergei Bobrovsky struggled in the playoffs. He finished the series with a 3.18 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage. The fact those are better marks than his career playoff averages says it all.

12. Philadelphia Flyers

When the Flyers won against the Penguins, they looked great. When they lost, they looked pitiful.

They gave up nearly five goals a game (28 in six contests) and managed a success rate of just 9.5 percent on the power play. That's not a winning formula.

13. New Jersey Devils

The Devils didn't make things easy for the Lightning, which is an achievement in itself.

However, the fact was unless Taylor Hall scored 12 goals in the series, New Jersey didn't stand much of a chance against the top club in the Eastern Conference.

14. Minnesota Wild

The Wild are ranked ahead of a couple teams here because they actually managed to win a game, and did so in commanding fashion.

They defeated the Jets in Game 3 by a 6-2 margin, but that was all the life they had. They laid a massive egg in the first period of Game 5, and that about says it all.

15. Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks averaged one goal per game and four against, and you just can't do that.

Of course, taking an average of seven penalties a game doesn't help your chances either.

16. Los Angeles Kings

It's surprising Jonathan Quick was able to skate off the ice of his own accord night in and night out after carrying the Kings throughout the entire playoffs.

He did all he could, but in the end, it's physically impossible to win a playoff series when you only score three goals.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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It's playoff time, folks. To get you prepared, we break down each of the Eastern Conference's second-round series. (Advanced stats at 5-on-5 courtesy: Corsica)

Lightning 1A vs. Bruins 2A

The Lightning will come into this series as the more rested team after making quick work of the New Jersey Devils in Round 1. But after coming off an emotional high from a wild Game 7 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, don't take the Bruins lightly. In fact, the Bruins owned the Lightning during the regular season after walking away with the W in three of their four meetings.

The matchup should be highlighted by a battle between two of the best lines in hockey: Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak versus Kucherov-Stamkos-Miller. The Bruins' trio combined for 30 points in Round 1, while the Lightning's top three had 20 points in its five-game series with the Devils.

Game 1 begins Saturday at 3 p.m. ET at Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay

Capitals 1M vs. Penguins 2M

What would a second round be without the Capitals and Penguins going head to head?

The Capitals will be looking for revenge after being eliminated by their Metropolitan rivals the past two postseasons. And, of course, the spotlight will once again shine brightest on the renewed showdown between the teams' respective captains. While Crosby (10 goals, 22 points) historically comes out on top in terms of series wins, Ovechkin (12 goals, 26 points) has statistically fared better between the two in their 20 playoff contests against one another.

Game 1 begins Thursday at 7 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena in Washington

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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After the Bruins initially seemed poised to wrap up their first-round matchup with the Maple Leafs in four, Toronto clawed its way back to force a winner-take-all Game 7 on Wednesday night in Boston.

This series has been similar to the first-round meeting between these two clubs in 2013, with the Bruins taking a 3-1 stranglehold once again, only to see the Leafs even things up in Game 6. Maple Leafs fans are painfully aware of how that series ended, but a new year brings new hope.

Leafs-Bruins is the only opening-round series to go the full seven games in 2018, with the winner set to face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round. Here are the three keys to Game 7:

Can Toronto contain Boston's top line?

The biggest key for the Maple Leafs is the same one that's been true all series long: Contain the Bruins' top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, and David Pastrnak.

The three laid waste to the Maple Leafs in the first two games of the series, putting up a combined 20 points. After six games, the trio has combined for 23 points and a whopping 64 shots. However, as seen below, the Maple Leafs managed to contain the Bruins' top line in Games 3, 5, and 6 - and, not surprisingly, skated off with the W in those contests:

On the flip side, Bergeron, Marchand, and Pastrnak need to rekindle some of their magic from Games 1 and 2 if the Bruins hope to advance beyond Wednesday.

Andersen vs. Rask

After getting off to what seemed like a very uneven start to the series, the Maple Leafs - spearheaded by Frederik Andersen - have evened out the battle in the crease.

Both goalies have three wins - Andersen has one fewer loss due to the time of his pull in Game 2 - and each have been yanked at one point in the series. Rask, however, has allowed two fewer goals across 19 extra minutes.

Andersen has one-upped Rask during the last four games, however, having put up a .936 save percentage and a 2.28 goals-against average, compared to the Boston netminder's marks of .894 and 3.18, respectively.

But with this series down to just one game, and potentially one goal, whichever team moves onto Round 2 will be largely contingent on who stands larger in the crease.

Discipline

After the Maple Leafs nearly gave up their 4-1 lead to the Bruins in Game 5 on the back of a parade of penalties, Mike Babcock preached the importance of discipline ahead of Game 6

"Stay out of the penalty box. We were in there, if I'm not mistaken, six times (in Game 5)," Babcock said. "The game was going perfect and then there was a parade to the box. Stay out of the penalty box."

The Bruins' power play is currently firing at a success rate of 31.6 percent, good enough for the second-best mark in the postseason. That means the Maple Leafs, in response, are icing the second-worst penalty kill.

The Bruins have capitalized on six of their 19 power plays. And of those six goals, two have stood up as game-winners.

What's more concerning for the Maple Leafs is that they've taken 16 of those 19 penalties in games played in Boston, and all six of the Bruins' power-play goals have come at TD Garden.

It's also important to point out that the Maple Leafs' power play has been no slouch, either. With a 23.1 percent success rate, Toronto's power play is tied for the fifth-best efficiency and it's been even better on the road, firing at a 25 percent clip.

With that being said, James van Riemsdyk has been the only Maple Leaf to score a power-play goal in this series (he has three), so now's the time for Toronto to get a little more from its special teams.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are doing more tweaking ahead of their second straight do-or-die game against the Boston Bruins.

Toronto trails the best-of-seven series 3-2 after winning a thrilling Game 5 in Boston, but despite the victory on Saturday, head coach Mike Babcock made some changes to the forward lines, which could be seen at Monday's morning skate.

Center Nazem Kadri was reinserted into the second line alongside Mitch Marner and Patrick Marleau. Tomas Plekanec, who had served on the second line, was moved between Andreas Johnsson and William Nylander.

It's expected that Kadri, Marner, and Marleau will be tasked with shutting down the Bruins' top unit of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, and David Pastrnak, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Kadri had an assist and four shots in his return from a three-game suspension on Saturday. Game 6 goes Monday night in Toronto.

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Bill Peters will be named head coach of the Calgary Flames at a press conference on Monday afternoon, according to Sportsnet's John Shannon.

The 51-year-old looks likely to join the team after exercising his option to opt out of the coaching job with the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday, and would become the Flames' 17th head coach.

Peters had been with Carolina for the past four seasons, where he accumulated a record of 137-138-53 in 328 games. He never finished higher than sixth in the Hurricanes' division, while also failing to make the playoffs in all four years.

This year, the Hurricanes finished 10th in the Eastern Conference with 83 points, 14 points out of the final wild-card spot. Meanwhile, the Flames finished 11th in the West, 11 points off the final playoff spot.

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The Winnipeg Jets rode a four-goal first period to a 5-0 victory in Game 5 against the Minnesota Wild to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

Related: Jets chase Dubnyk with 4 first-period goals

The series served as a giant stepping stone for the franchise, who not only won their first ever playoff game, but also their first ever series. Prior to this season the franchise's only other two playoff matchups resulted in 4-0 series loses.

The first came when the Atlanta Thrashers were swept in 2007 by the New York Rangers and the latter came in 2015 when the Jets lost four straight to the Anaheim Ducks.

Meanwhile, it marks the first time a Winnipeg Jets team has won a playoff series since 1987 when the Jets - now the Arizona Coyotes - defeated the Calgary Flames in six games.

The Jets will now await the winner of the series between the Nashville Predators and the Colorado Avalanche.

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The Winnipeg Jets rode a four-goal first period to a 5-0 victory in Game 5 against the Minnesota Wild to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

Related: Jets chase Dubnyk with 4 first-period goals

The series served as a giant stepping stone for the franchise, who not only won their first ever playoff game, but also their first ever series. Prior to this season the franchise's only other two playoff matchups resulted in 4-0 series loses.

The first came when the Atlanta Thrashers were swept in 2007 by the New York Rangers and the latter came in 2015 when the Jets lost four straight to the Anaheim Ducks.

Meanwhile, it marks the first time a Winnipeg Jets team has won a playoff series since 1987 when the Jets - now the Arizona Coyotes - defeated the Calgary Flames in six games.

The Jets will now await the winner of the series between the Nashville Predators and the Colorado Avalanche.

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Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers will not play in Game 5 against the Minnesota Wild, the team announced.

The omission comes after Ehlers was noticeably absent from the pregame warmup. The 22-year-old has two assists in four games, but played 14:05 in Game 4 without recording a shot on net.

Veteran Matt Hendricks draws into the lineup in his place. This marks Hendricks' first taste of playoff hockey since the 2012-13 season when he was a member of the Washington Capitals, and his first game action since Mar. 12.

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The Philadelphia Flyers will turn to Michal Neuvirth in a must-win Game 5 against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night, the team announced.

The move comes after Brian Elliott, who started the previous four games, was pulled for the second time in Game 4 after giving up three goals on 17 shots.

Neuvirth's lone appearance in these playoffs came in relief in Game 4, when he made 11 saves on 13 shots in just under 32 minutes.

The team also announced that forward Sean Couturier is back in the lineup after missing Game 4 due to a lower-body injury suffered in practice Tuesday.

The Flyers trail the series 3-1.

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Boston Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron, Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar, and Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier were named finalists for the 2017-18 Selke Trophy as the league's most defensive forward on Wednesday, the NHL announced.

Bergeron earns another nomination with four career Selke wins already on his resume. Despite being limited to 64 games this season, the 32-year-old finished sixth in faceoff percentage with a mark of 57.3 percent

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