marc-andre fleury

For just second time in NHL history, the Stanley Cup final feature teams that have never won a Stanley Cup game. The Vegas Golden Knights are a first-year team, and the Washington Capitals were swept in their only previous Cup final.

And then there were ones - three of them. Three NHL division winners - the Washington Capitals (Metropolitan), Vegas Golden Knights (Pacific) and Tampa Bay Lightning (Atlantic) - are in the Stanley Cup final four, joined by the Winnipeg Jets.

In the Stanley Cup playoffs, it isn't so much about how the West was won as it is about who will win the West. You can make a legitimate case for all four of the remaining teams being the last one left standing. The Nashville Predators were last spring's finalist, while the San Jose Sharks were there a year earlier. And you can't discount the Winnipeg Jets or Vegas Golden Knights.

The first-year Las Vegas Knights aren't your father's expansion team. Given the opportunity to select several veteran players during the NHL expansion draft, the Golden Knights have melded into an instant contender, and currently lead the NHL's Western Conference standings at the NHL All-Star break, shattering all records for a first-year NHL franchise. The Golden Knights are the talk of the hockey and sports world.

One goal per game won't cut it at any stage of the NHL season, let alone in the Eastern Conference final. As this set switches locales to Ottawa, the Pittsburgh Penguins must find ways to get the puck past Senators goalie Craig Anderson.

Is it deja vu all over again? Last spring, the Pittsburgh Penguins bounced the Washington Capitals in the second round of the playoffs. The Pens are one victory away from repeating the beating and bouncing the Presidents' Trophy winners.

It's the NHL's version of must-see TV - Sid versus Ovie. But as the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins battle the Cup favorite Washington Capitals, there's much more at stake than bragging rights between the two superstars.

It's been a breakout season for the Columbus Blue Jackets but they struggled down the stretch and dropped their playoff opener to the Pittsburgh Penguins. This is a must-win situation for them if they don't want it to be all over quickly.