Greg Wyshynski's Full 2026 Stanley Cup Bracket: Buffalo Over Boston, and Everything Gets Weird From There
The 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs are officially here, and Greg Wyshynski has dropped his complete predictions for the entire bracket. And yeah, the landscape looks absolutely bonkers right now.
The Florida Panthers, back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, aren't making the dance. The Buffalo Sabres, who haven't sniffed the playoffs since "Fast Five" was in theaters, are the No. 1 seed in the East. The Toronto Maple Leafs, who ran nine straight playoff appearances, are home watching like the rest of us. Meanwhile, the Utah Mammoth, a franchise that didn't even exist three years ago, are in. That's the Stanley Cup tournament for you: the unpredictability is what makes it the greatest postseason in sports. One bad bounce, one hot goalie, and an entire series flips on its head.
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👉 Claim Your Free $10 at KalshiBuffalo's Experience Gap Won't Matter Against Boston
Wyshynski's pick for the Eastern Conference first round: Buffalo Sabres over Boston Bruins. The biggest question hanging over the first-place Sabres? Most of their roster has never played meaningful playoff hockey. Alex Tuch can talk all he wants about his Vegas runs, but playoff hockey is a completely different animal. Against Boston, though? That experience gap doesn't scare Wyshynski. The Bruins might roll out a line of Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, and James Hagens that have zero playoff appearances combined.
Look, Boston has some serious weapons. Jeremy Swayman was a top-five goalie this season with 28.8 goals saved above expected. David Pastrnak put up 100 points. Morgan Geekie scored 39 goals. Pavel Zacha's line with Casey Mittelstadt and Viktor Arvidsson looked like they found something down the stretch. A veteran defense led by Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, and Nikita Zadorov could theoretically slow Buffalo's attack.
Here's the problem: the Bruins just don't defend well enough. They're 26th in the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes since the Olympic break. Their expected goals percentage for the season sat at 46.7%. That's not winning hockey. Wyshynski thinks Buffalo's home-ice advantage and youthful energy power them through. Buffalo in six.
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