Quick Glance:

Belfast breezed through Round 1 and really haven’t had to shift into high gear for half a season, thanks to the huge lead they built in the English Channel Division. But it will suddenly get much harder for them in Round 2 against Connor McDavid and the #3 team in the league. Helsinki got past Stockholm in a fast-paced series that featured 5 games in which the winner scored 5 or more goals. But Helsinki goalie Andres De La Garma has proven vulnerable lately. Of the 18 goalies who played in the first round, his save percentage (.866) ranked 17th. Belfast’s Braden Holtby, on the other hand, was superb against Tallinn, certainly looking much younger than his age (38).

Goalies: (in playoffs):

• Belfast – Braden Holtby, 2.40 GAA, .915 save pct.
• Helsinki – Andres De La Garma, 3.50 GAA, .866 save pct.

Top Plus/Minus players (in playoffs):

• Belfast – Michael Bunting and 5 others, +5
• Helsinki – Logan Couture and Alexei Bereglazov, +4

Expert Panel Predictions:

• Commissioner Chuck: Helsinki in 6 games. This is another series that seems very difficult to pick. Both teams have crack top lines capable of scoring 2 or 3 goals in any game they play. They both also have bottom 9 forwards who you better not ignore. I think the difference is in the defense corps. Both groups think offense before they think defense, but I think the Jokerit blueliners have the edge here. In particular, Jacob Moverare. The 29-year-old Swede averaged a point per game in the playoffs last year with Oslo and he’s doing the same in this year’s playoffs for Helsinki. He could be the player who swings this series Helsinki’s way.
• Rose: Belfast in 6 games. Nathan MacKinnon, Mitch Marner and David Pastrnak can’t beat Helsinki all by themselves, but I think they will get enough help to finish the job. Some of that help might be help of the unintentional kind. By that, I mean the goaltending of Andres De La Garma of Helsinki. Watching him play last round, I saw more holes in his game than I see in the commissioner’s underwear. Don’t think the worst, please. Chuck has me doing his laundry because, he says, ‘I’m very busy,’ even though I’m the one who’s secretary, treasurer and lunch preparer in the office. He needs time to think, he says.