Playoff Power Rankings 1. Colorado Avalanche 2. Tampa Bay Lightning 3. Dallas Stars 4. Carolina Hurricanes 5. Vegas Golden Knights 6. Minnesota Wild 7. Montreal Canadiens 8. Edmonton Oilers 9. Utah Mammoth 10. Buffalo Sabres 11. Boston Bruins 12. Pittsburgh Penguins 13. Philadelphia Flyers 14. Los Angeles Kings 15. Ottawa Senators 16. Anaheim Ducks Tier 1: Elite Starters Andrei Vasilevskiy (TB), Jake Oettinger (DAL) The list is short for very good reason -- there just aren't many of them. Not only are the Lightning and Stars legit Cup contenders, the pecking order in their crease is very clear. Oettinger didn't have a great showing last season, but he'll have a very long leash and his head coach will make sure he doesn't bash him publicly or otherwise cost him his job. Casey DeSmith may see a bit of action, but it's unlikely unless Oettinger has a bad game and the Stars choose to give him a break and save him for the next game. Jonas Johansson, on the other hand, may never touch the ice no matter how bad it gets. Tier 2: Elite Tandems Scott Wedgewood/Mackenzie Blackwood (COL), Brandon Bussi/Frederik Andersen/Pyotr Kochetkov (CAR), Filip Gustavsson/Jesper Wallstedt (MIN) All three teams could go far, but it's anyone's guess who'll be in net for their final game. For the Avs, Wedgewood has earned the start in Game 1, but don't be surprised if they go back to Blackwood in a hurry if they sense trouble. The same goes for the Wild, and they'll give Gustavsson first crack. How the Canes handle their rotation will be interesting. To date, no team in the modern era has won the Cup alternating starts. Even for teams with tandems, they've always ended up going with one goalie the rest of the way. Kochetkov was activated from IR right before the season ended, and you wonder if he's ready. My guess is Bussi gets Game 1 and will stay in net until he losses, which may not happen in the opening round against the Sens. It'll be interesting in the later rounds when it gets much tougher. For playoff pools, you either choose one of the tandem goalies and hope he emerges as the No. 1, or you take all of them to capture full value. Tier 3: Dark Horses Carter Hart (VGK), Jakub Dobes (MTL) There's a scenario in which the Knights and Habs go far. Their goaltending depth chart is well-defined, and the biggest hint is obviously who they leaned on down the stretch. Hart and Dobes will be the starters due to the questionable depth behind them, though that's not to say they won't be replaced at some point. For the Knights, Plan B is Adin Hill, who has struggled but also earned a lot of clout in the organization as their Cup-winning goalie. There's also Akira Schmid, though I think John Tortorella is far less fond of him. Behind Dobes is rookie Jacob Fowler, and then Sam Montembeault who lost the crease earlier in the season. It's anyone's guess who stands out, but Dobes will get first crack. For both the Knights and Habs, playoff poolies are hoping the status quo doesn't change. Go with Hart and Dobes at your own risk, though the rewards are potentially huge. Tier 4: Good, Not Great Karel Vejmelka (UTA), Jeremy Swayman (BOS), Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF), Dan Vladar (PHI) Each of these goalies have a strong hold on their starting jobs, especially Vejmelka, Swayman and Vladar, but it'll be very surprising if their teams go deep into the playoffs. Luukkonen might be the most shaky, but with Alex Lyon on the mend (and faltering at the end of the season) and Colten Ellis' overall performance was a little mixed. Pick these goalies if you want to capture full value in the first two rounds without any fear of them getting replaced, but know that their appearances will likely be capped at 14 games at the most. Tier 5: Hold Your Breath Connor Ingram/Tristan Jarry (EDM), Arturs Silovs/Stuart Skinner (PIT), Linus Ullmark (OTT) I don't think the Sens' chances of upsetting the Canes is particularly high, and Ullmark's availability is a real question. It's ironic the Pens and Oilers' goalies are in the same tier, though of the three teams it's the Pens who will likely go the furthest. The Pens' goaltending is buoyed by a pretty good defense but it's sometimes brilliant and sometimes very poor, and it's hard to know which one it'll be on a nightly basis. Silovs and Skinner is like a poor man's version of the Canes' rotation without the same ceiling. Tier 6: The Leftovers Anton Forsberg/Darcy Kuemper (LA), Lukas Dostal (ANA) Dostal is a good goalie but the Ducks' prospects just aren't that good. Forsberg took over the starting job late in the season and really was a big reason why the Kings managed to make the cut, but also has zero (!) playoff experience in the NHL. 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