The first round of the National Hockey League playoffs has almost come to an end. Only two series have not been decided as of Sunday, with the Washington Capitals hosting the New York Islanders in the Verizon Center in a deciding Game 7 and the Detroit Red Wings heading back to Joe Louis Arena to attempt to upset the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games.  

Two series ended on Sunday as the wild card Minnesota Wild closed out the St. Louis Blues on home ice in six games and the Montreal Canadiens ended the Ottawa Senators’ amazing run over the last two months of the season, closing them out in six games on the road. 

The first round has had several upsets thus far, with upstart young teams like the Wild and Calgary Flames showing that youthful depth can catch an unsuspecting opponent off guard. 

The Red Wings will attempt to do the same, as Tampa Bay has been a dark horse Stanley Cup contender, but the Red Wings’ coaching and offensive depth have so far frustrated the Lightning. 

The Flames unseated the Vancouver Canucks through the play of Sean Monahan, Calder finalist Johnny Gaudreau and Lady Byng finalist Jiri Hudler, despite having negative metrics in possession and shot attempts throughout the regular season. 

The Wild, led by captain Mikko Koivu and assistant captains Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, handed the Blues another first round playoff exit for the fourth straight year. 

The Islanders-Capitals series has been easily the closest so far as the battle of attrition entered the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, Long Island on Saturday for what may have been the last NHL game played there. 

The Islanders faced elimination ,and despite giving up yet another goal in the last minute of the first period, they dominated the flow of play in front of their loyal fans at the arena affectionately known as “The Barn.” 

They look to temporarily extend their lease through contesting another playoff round as their cross-town rival New York Rangers await in the second round after their quick series win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

The Rangers were able to finish off the Penguins in only five short games. All four of New York’s victories came by the close score of 2-1, including an overtime win in the deciding game five.

Other series winners include the Anaheim Ducks, who swept the Winnipeg Jets after the Jets earned their first playoff appearance since their move from Atlanta. The city of Winnipeg hosted its first NHL playoff games in 19 years, and while they were swept, the Jets showed lots of promise and hope to bring playoff hockey back to Winnipeg for years to come. 

The Chicago Blackhawks closed out the Nashville Predators in six closely contested games, with the series eventually ending on a Duncan Keith overtime goal. 

This series featured two overtime games, one of which went into double OT and one that went to triple OT, both won by the Blackhawks. 

The second round matchups in the Western Conference are set, as the Wild will take on the Blackhawks for the Central Division, while the Ducks will face Calgary for the Pacific. 

In the East, the Rangers await the winner of Islanders-Capitals for the Metropolitan crown while the Canadiens will square off with the winner of Red Wings-Lightning for the Atlantic. Both of the unresolved matchups will have their next games on Monday, and the first round is guaranteed to end on Wednesday if Detroit-Tampa goes to seven games. 

—Dan Rozel