Wyshynski's Stanley Cup Bracket Is Here, and the 2026 Playoffs Are Deliciously Weird
The Stanley Cup playoffs are live, and honestly? They're a trip. The Florida Panthers, back-to-back champs, didn't even make it. The Buffalo Sabres, who haven't sniffed the postseason since "Fast Five" was in theaters, are in. The Toronto Maple Leafs, who had made nine straight playoffs, are out. The Utah Mammoth, a franchise that didn't exist three years ago, are in. This is why the Stanley Cup tournament is the greatest postseason in all of sports: you genuinely have no idea what's coming next.
Why Nobody Can Predict This Thing
That's what makes trying to pick every series a little ridiculous, right? A bad bounce, a goalie getting hot at the right time, a rookie stepping up when nobody expected it. Any of those things can flip an entire series on its head in a heartbeat. So yeah, ESPN's Greg Wyshynski is taking his shot at predicting the entire bracket from opening round all the way through the Stanley Cup Final. He's fully aware this might not age well, but hey, someone's gotta do it.
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Here's the matchup that jumps out: A1 Buffalo Sabres taking on WC1 Boston Bruins. And this is wild to even type, but the real question hanging over the first-place Sabres entering the playoffs is a lack of postseason experience for most of their roster. Yeah, Alex Tuch can talk about his lengthy playoff runs with the Golden Knights all he wants, but nothing actually prepares you for how the game changes when the stakes get this high. The experience gap matters less here than it might against other Eastern Conference teams, though. Boston might actually ice a line of Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, and James Hagens with zero playoff appearances combined between them. The Sabres can lean on their home-ice advantage and youthful energy to keep rolling, because Wyshynski doesn't think the Bruins have enough to knock them off. Sure, if you squint hard, this becomes a real series. Jeremy Swayman was easily a top-five goalie this season with 28.8 goals saved above expected. David Pastrnak had 100 points, and Morgan Geekie lit it up with 39 goals. But it's not enough.
The unpredictability is coming. Get ready.
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