Stanley Cup Playoffs 2026: Picks, predictions for every second-round series with conference finals looming

Only four teams will be left standing after the second round, and here are our expert predictions for each series winner.

Note: All second-round picks were submitted prior to Game 1 between the Carolina Hurricanes and Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, which Carolina won 3-1.

2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs second-round picks

(1) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers

Nivison: After picking against both of these teams in the first round, I have to pick one to reach the Eastern Conference Final. Once again, I'm reluctant to pull the trigger and pick the Hurricanes, even if I shouldn't be. The second line featuring Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake was outstanding. More importantly, Frederik Andersen shook off his regular season struggles to post 5.22 goals saved above average, which leads all playoff goalies. The main concern with this Carolina team is about its lack of true offensive firepower, and an impressive first-round sweep did nothing to diminsh that.

The top line -- which features all three of the Canes' best offensive weapons in Seth Jarvis, Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov -- was outscored 1-0 at five-on-five against the Senators. To make matters worse, that trio didn't even control 33% of the expected goals share, per Natural Stat Trick. Just as they did against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round, the Flyers could cause serious problems for the Hurricanes with their defense. Additionally, rookie Porter Martone has injected some much-needed offensive life into the Philadelphia roster, and Dan Vladar was every bit as good as Andersen in goal. This will be another slugfest of a series, and the Flyers will continue their magical run. Pick -- Flyers def. Hurricanes 4-3

Baumgartner: The Flyers pulled off a minor upset in the first round, taking a 3-0 lead against a veteran Penguins team before closing out the series in Game 6. Philadelphia was able to spread the wealth offensively with 14 different players scoring at least a goal in round 1. Rookie Porter Martone made his presence known, scoring twice against their cross-state rivals, including the game-winner in Game 1. Goaltender Dan Vladar was Philadelphia's MVP, posting a remarkable 1.61 goals-against-average across the six games, capped by a 42-save shutout in the series clinching win.

The Hurricanes didn't have much trouble in the opening round of the playoffs, sweeping the Senators to reach the second round for the sixth consecutive season. 34-year-old Taylor Hall led Carolina in scoring with seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) and 23-year-old Logan Stankoven had a team-high four goals. Similar to Vladar's standout performance in the crease for Philadelphia, Frederik Andersen stood on his head for Carolina, leading all goaltenders this postseason with a 1.10 goals-against-average and .955 save percentage. I won't sleep on the Flyers ability after their performance in round 1, however, the Hurricanes are arguably the most complete team in the Eastern Conference and showed that when they swept Ottawa. I'm not fading them yet. Pick -- Hurricanes def. Flyers 4-2

(1) Buffalo Sabres vs. (3) Montreal Canadiens

Nivison: First of all, this series will be must-see TV, if for no other reason than the atmosphere in each building. It also helps that this is a battle of two evenly-matched teams with a spot in the conference final on the line. The x-factor in this series may be how each team's top line performs, especially since they're trending in different directions after the first round.

The Canadiens' star trio of Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky was great in the regular season, but they struggled mightily against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Those three posted an expected goals share of 43.9% and a goal differential of minus-4 at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick. In Buffalo, Peyton Krebs, Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson were outstanding against the Boston Bruins. Not only did they post a five-on-five expected goals share of 56.6%, but they got the results with a plus-6 goal differential. On the one hand, it's impressive that Montreal got past Tampa Bay without its top line firing on all cylinders. On the other -- if that continues against the Sabres -- the Canadiens will be playing with fire. Considering there is so little daylight between these squads from the net outward, I'll ride with hot hand(s) in a long series. Pick -- Sabres def. Canadiens 4-3

Baumgartner: The Sabres failed to disappoint in their first playoff appearance since 2011, knocking out the Boston Bruins in six games for their first series win since 2007. Goaltender Alex Lyon was exceptional after taking over the net in relief of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen during Game 2. Lyon, who had a 2.77 goals-against-average in 36 regular season games, allowed just five goals in four games against Boston. There were no passengers for Buffalo in round 1. Their top players showed up, like forwards Alex Tuch (4 goals, 7 points), Tage Thompson (2 goals, 7 points), Peyton Krebs (2 goals, 6 points), and defensemen Bowen Byram (3 goals, 5 points) and Rasmus Dahlin (1 goal, 4 points).

I correctly predicted Montreal and Tampa would need seven games before finding a winner. However, I was wrong in favoring a veteran Lightning team that entered the series with three straight first-round exits over a Canadiens squad on the upswing.  Jakub Dobes was clutch in net down the stretch, stopping 28 of 29 shots faced in the series decider to become just the fifth rookie goaltender in Canadiens history to win a Game 7, a feat accomplished only by all-time greats Jacques Plante, Ken Dryden, Patrick Roy and Carey Price. Forwards Nick Suzuki and Cole Caulfield scored just one goal respectively against Tampa, but it's only a matter of time before the Habs' star players take over a game. Montreal already slayed one of the Cup favorites, I think they get it done again vs Buffalo. Pick -- Canadiens def. Sabres 4-3

(1) Colorado Avalanche vs. (3) Minnesota Wild

Note: Colorado beat Minnesota on Sunday night in Game 1, 9-6.

Nivison: For the first time since 2015, the Wild have reached the second round of the playoffs, snapping a streak of eight consecutive first-round losses. Will they reach their first Western Conference Final since 2003? Maybe, but it will take a Herculean effort. The Avalanche looked like the Presidents' Trophy winners in their clean first-round sweep of the Los Angeles Kings. Colorado allowed just five goals while finding different ways to beat one of the NHL's best defensive teams. The Kings actually gave the Avalanche a decent preview of what they'll see in the second round, except Minnesota is a much bigger threat offensively.

The Wild -- particularly Quinn Hughes and Brock Faber -- defended the Stars exceptionally well. Dallas was limited to four five-on-five goals over the course of six games, and Jesper Wallstedt was impeccable in goal for the Wild. All that said, the Avalanche will present two major problems for Minnesota. The first is center depth. Roope Hintz missed the entire series for the Stars, and that leveled the playing field down the middle, but Colorado has a huge postional edge there. The Avalanche have been rolling with Nathan MacKinnon, Brock Nelson, Nazem Kadri and Jack Drury as their centers. The Wild simply can't match that, even if Ryan Hartman and Joel Eriksson Ek are playing well. The second issue for Minnesota is that its penalty kill was a sieve against Dallas. The Wild killed off just 60% of the power plays they face, and while the Avs' power play hasn't exactly been humming this season, there are enough weapons on the ice to do major damage. Center depth and special teams carry Colorado to the conference finals. Pick -- Avalanche def. Wild 4-2

Baumgartner: The Wild-Stars series is what we expected from two of the West's top teams. For the most part, the games were fairly close and high-scoring. Minnesota got the better end of Dallas, taking out the team that made three straight Western Conference Finals in six games. Rookie goaltender Jesper Wallstedt, who was the No. 2 goalie most of the regular season, was surprisingly given the crease over fellow countryman Filip Gustavsson. The risky decision paid off; Wallstedt was very good in net for the Wild. The biggest takeaway for me in round 1 was Minnesota's star players showing up when it mattered most. Matt Boldy (6 goals, 3 assists), Kirill Kaprizov (2 goals, 7 assists), Quinn Hughes (2 goals, 6 assists) and Brock Faber (3 goals, 3 assists) were on their game all series.

On the other hand, Colorado had to sit back and wait for their second-round opponent after sweeping the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings kept the first two games to within a goal, but they missed their chance to steal a game from the Presidents' Trophy winning Avalanche. Colorado is a team with few flaws, if any. Offensive contributions are across the board and plentiful. Their defensemen, highlighted by Cale Makar and Devon Toews, play a 200-foot game, making life easier for goaltender Scott Wedgewood – who gave up just five goals in the first round. Minnesota could be the toughest opponent Colorado gets all postseason, but I'm sticking with my Avalanche to win the Cup prediction. Pick -- Avalanche def. Wild 4-2

(1) Golden Knights vs. (3) Anaheim Ducks

Nivison: This series is going to be a battle of wills. The Ducks want to create as much offense as possible, even if it turns the game into a track meet. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights are determined not to give an inch in their own zone. That's reflected in the numbers from the first round. Anaheim generated expected goals at the third-highest rate, and Vegas allowed expected goals against at the lowest rate. So, which team will get its way?

I'm inclined to lean toward the Golden Knights because their top four defensemen -- Shea Theodore, Noah Hanifin, Rasmus Andersson and Brayden McNabb -- are among the best in the league. They just did a pretty good job containing a Utah Mammoth offense that's loaded with skill and speed. It was good practice for what they're about to see from the Ducks. The great equalizer could be goaltending. Carter Hart was somewhat of a liability against Utah, and players like Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson could give him fits in this series. Unfortunately for Anaheim, Lukas Dostal was even worse from a statistcal perspective, allowing 5.64 goals above average in six games. Vegas smothers Anaheims' offense and makes reaches the Western Conference Final in relatively short order. Pick -- Golden Knights def. Ducks 4-1

Baumgartner: No matter how disappointing the Edmonton Oilers were in the regular season, the Ducks were dealt the difficult task of playing a team led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in the first round of the playoffs. Instead of wavering in the presence of star power, Anaheim forced Edmonton to play their game, ultimately taking down the back-to-back Stanley Cup finalists in six games. The Ducks' youngsters like Cutter Gauthier, 22, Leo Carlsson, 21, and Jackson LaCombe, 25, were all top contributors in the opening round, while veterans Alex Killorn (2-time Stanley Cup champion), Mikael Granlund (960 NHL games), Chris Kreider (129 postseason games) and Troy Terry (8 years in NHL) also found themselves atop the scoresheet.

The Golden Knights won three straight games against the Utah Mammoth, overcoming a 2-1 series deficit to advance to the second round for the third time in four years. Vegas showed resilience in a tight series, winning back-to-back overtime games – Game 5 in double overtime – despite suboptimal goaltending from Carter Hart. Anaheim got past two of the league's top players in the first round; they'll once again have to face firepower up front, with Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner already showing their impact early this postseason. If the Golden Knights get sufficient goaltending, I give them the edge. Pick -- Golden Knights def. Ducks 4-3