Eight series kick off bracket in quest for Stanley Cup

The Boston Bruins will draw a lot of attention after their record-setting season, but there are plenty of other stories in the first round.

The defending champion Colorado Avalanche overcame major injuries to surge to the Central Division title. The Tampa Bay Lightning will try to reach the Stanley Cup Final for a fourth consecutive year and will start again on the road.

The Seattle Kraken made the playoffs for the first time, the New Jersey Devils ended a four-year drought and the Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets and New York Islanders are back after one-year absences.

FULL NHL PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS: Who wins Stanley Cup, Conn Smythe? Experts weigh in.

NHL PLAYOFF POWER RANKINGS: Historic Bruins No. 1, but what other teams are good Stanley Cup bets?

The puck drops on the 2022-23 NHL playoffs Monday with four series getting underway. USA TODAY Sports’ NHL experts make their predictions:

Boston Bruins vs. Florida Panthers

Bruins in five. Thirty-year-old journeyman Alex Lyon has taken the net for the Panthers and performed quite well (.914 save percentage). But these are the Bruins we’re talking about here … and a third-string goalie doesn’t seem to stand much of a chance. — Jimmy Hascup

Bruins in six. I think, the Bruins will largely cruise to the Stanley Cup. But there’s undeniably a lot of pressure on them and weird things can happen in a first-round series. These Panthers are just one season removed from winning the Presidents’ Trophy, and while their follow-up campaign has been disappointing, they still have plenty of talent and players who can at least make things annoying for the Bruins for a few games.   — Jace Evans 

Bruins in five. Alex Lyon stole a game for the Panthers in the regular season series. He will steal another game in this series, but eventually the Bruins’ talent and superior depth will win out, even if Patrice Bergeron isn’t 100%.  —…