PRIMEPUCKS™ 2015 FIRST ROUND PLAYOFF REVIEW The 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs are beginning shortly and PrimePucks™ is taking a look at what they predict will happen in the first round and beyond. MINNESOTA vs. ST. LOUIS St. Louis is my pick to represent the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup Finals, but they will have their hands full with the resurgent Minnesota Wild. "Left for dead" midway through the season, the acquisition of veteran goalie Devan Dubnyk proved to be the main catalyst behind their surge into the playoffs. Since becoming the starter, the Wild went 28-9-3 while allowing two or less goals in 29 of 39 games. A staunch defense led by Ryan Suter will make it tough for the formidable Blues' offense to score consistently. Premier snipers Zach Parise and Thomas Vanek will lead the Wild scoring party, but do they have enough to match the highly balanced firepower of St Louis which went down the stretch without Vladimir Tarasenko and Alexander Steen but still managed to finish the regular season on fire. Speaking of Tarasenko, he is the ultimate x-factor in this opening series, given that his game changing talent unleashed is the a weapon that the team has lacked in recent years. Combined with the development of future star Jaden Schwartz and the trade for Paul Stastny, these guys will be tough to beat. Jake Allen will probably get the nod for Brian Elliott in goal but he should be able to ride his hot offense and elite D to a hard fought series win. It's looking like 7 games, this will serve the Blues well as they possibly face Chicago in the next round. Load up on your Blues as they are my pick to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. Your premium picks are Vladimir Tarasenko, David Backes, Kevin shattenkirk, and Alex Pietrangelo. I would gamble on Jake Allen as a late widcard goalie pick. Just keep in mind that one bad outing and Brian Elliott can be right back in goal. Taking a late flier on Zach Parise or Thomas Vanek might prove to be a shrewd move, given that if the Wild squeaks by, they could make some serious noise.   ANAHEIM vs. WINNIPEG After getting bounced out by the LA Kings last season in the playoffs, the Ducks look more equipped for a long postseason run with the acquisition of center Ryan Kesler. The former Vancouver center makes the Anaheim forward lines more potent and balanced, giving them more pop up the middle and a better second line to complement the Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry top unit. The bigger question for the Ducks is whether a rookie in goal-starting with Federik Andersen or John Gibson if he falters, can handle the workload and lead the team to a finals appearance. The Winnipeg Jets have gotten stellar and somewhat surprising goaltending from Ondrej Pavelec, who despite losing the job earlier to Michael Hutchinson, has been amongst the best in the NHL over the last month. With a current shutout streak at 3 and counting, the  underdog Jets might hold a slight edge in goaltending.  The trade deadline acquisitions of RW Drew Stafford and D Tyler Myers have bolstered Winnipeg's depth to offset late season losses to Tobias Enstrom, Dustin Byfuglien and Mathieu Perreault, but they should all be fine for game 1.  Something tells me "Big Buff' will give the Ducks all they can handle, but Anaheim should prevail in 5-6 games.  Winnipeg should be one and done, so focus on Perry, Getzlaf, and Kesler as elite picks while Andersen could end up being one of the better fantasy goaltenders of this year's playoffs. NASHVILLE vs CHICAGO The return of superstar winger Patrick Kane to the Chicago lineup should do wonders for a Chicago team that has been thriving on the offensive heroics of captain Jonathan Toews- 16 points in the the last 18 games. Talented forwards Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa, and Brandon Saad will help the Hawks deliver a lethal one-two punch against arguably the best goaltender in the NHL, Pekka Rinne. Make no mistake about it- although the Preds were flying offensively for most of the season under the new regime, their playoff success will hinge mostly on the play of Rinne and his stout defense led by All-World Shea Weber. Roman Josi has also flourished this season with 55 points and cannot be underestimated in this series. Chicago can also match any opposing defense with an elite top four pairing starting with Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. Corey Crawford is no slouch in net either, so both teams are evenly matched across the board. It's the intangibles associated with the Stanley Cup experience of "Captain Clutch" Jonathan Toews and a hungry Patrick Kane that will be the X-factor. Take Chicago in 5. Take all your key Chicago players early only if you feel that they will get by Saint Louis in a potential second-round matchup. We don't, so maybe take Duncan Keith or Brent Seabrook, given that they could pile up valuable defensive points even in 1-2 playoff series.   VANCOUVER vs. CALGARY This should be a dead even battle between two western Canadien teams that few gave a chance to make the playoffs at the start of the season. The Flames were led by young upstart forwards Johnny Gaudreau( 64 points as a rookie ), Sean Monahan (31 goals as a sophomore ) who lined up with veteran Jiri Hudler and his career high 76 points. The trio was dynamic on offense while defenseman Mark Giordano was a worl- beater and arguably the best at his position before he was injured. Dennis Wideman and Kris Russell have stepped up in his absence to make a potent tandem on the power play and help it become one of the leagues next. Throw in above average goaltending from the Jonas Hiller- Karri Ramo tandem and you have Calgary's first playoff berth since 2009.  Vancouver had taken a huge offensive step back under defensive minded coach John Tortorella, but the Sedin twins have bounced back nicely under new boss Willie Desjardins. The acquisition of Radim Vrbata helped rejuvenate the offense while getting Ryan Miller in net brought the team a bonafide upper tier goalie. The play of Eddie Lack down the stretch in place of the injured Miller does create a bit of a goalie dilemma to start the playoffs, but the Canucks have stabilized in the crease.  Don't bother with any of these players in your playoff pools, given that the winner could be a quick out in round 2.