The top storylines heading into NHL Conference Finals

For nearly a decade the Hurricanes were either completely forgotten about or nothing more than a punchline around the NHL. But how could you blame people in Raleigh for not turning out in numbers to watch a team that was always, at best, completely mediocre? You build a fan base by winning, and the Hurricanes have not only given their fans a team worth supporting, but they also have given them a team worth watching and falling in love with. 

You know it is always going to be something with him. A year ago in the playoffs it was licking opponents (seriously!). In Round 2 it was a punch to the back of the head and trying to break an opponent's stick blade by stomping it during play. He is one of the league's best players, definitely one of the top 10 or 15 offensive players and also a world-class pest. You hate him when he plays against you. You love him when he plays for you. He will no doubt be one of the focal points of this series. 

You hate to focus on it, but it's a story. A big one. There have been a lot of missed calls in the postseason so far that have played a huge role in games. The Game 7 penalty to Vegas' Cody Eakin that swung that game and series in the Sharks' favor. No one noticing Brad Marchand punching Scott Harrington. The missed puck off the protective netting in Columbus that resulted in a goal for the Blue Jackets. Charlie McAvoy getting only two minutes for his hit on Josh Anderson. The offside review in Game 7 of the Avalanche-Sharks series. The list goes on and on. There will no doubt be something controversial in one of these two matchups. 

Jumbo Joe is an all-time great. He is one of the best pure passers and playmakers the NHL has ever seen, a dominant two-way player and a slam dunk Hall of Famer when his career ends. The only thing his resume is missing is a Stanley Cup. He has been to the Final once (2016 when the Sharks lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games) and is four games away from returning. Nobody knows how much longer his career will go on, and everything the Sharks did this season was about going all in for the Cup in 2019. This is his best shot at it. 

Petr Mrazek opened the playoffs as the starter and played extremely well before an injury in Round 2. Backup Curtis McElhinney relieved him and finished off the New York Islanders with a pair of outstanding performances. Does that mean coach Rod Brind'Amour will stick with the hot hand? Will there be a short leash for Mrazek when he returns if he shows any sign of struggling? Will both of them continue to play at the level they have played this season, which is probably far and away better than anybody could have reasonably expected back in October? The answers to these questions will go a long way toward determining what happens with the Hurricanes in this series. 

So far in the playoffs, no one has been able to. And that has continued a trend that goes back several years for the Sharks forward. Since the start of the 2015-16 playoffs, only Sidney Crosby has more postseason points than Couture's 59 entering the season, and nobody has more goals than his nine in these playoffs. The Sharks offense is loaded, and Couture is one of the biggest drivers of that success. 

Boston's power play is a confounding one. So much talent, but so many breakdowns that lead to shorthanded chances against. Despite the latter point, it has still been the best power play in the 2019 playoffs. That could be a difference in the series, given that Carolina's penalty kill has been one of the worst. Now there are some small sample sizes at play here, and not only was Carolina's PK really good during the regular season, but its Round 1 opponent was Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals. A lot of teams give up goals to them. But if Carolina is going to reach its first Stanley Cup Final since 2006, this is an area in which it is going to need to excel. 

Will it be the one who was one of the least productive starting goalies in the NHL during the regular season and the one who almost cost them their Round 1 series against the Vegas Golden Knights? Or will it be the one who caught fire in Round 2 and actually played like a Stanley Cup-caliber goalie? It is not a stretch to say this might be the most important question the Sharks have going into their matchup with the Blues. Jones has been their X-factor all season, and that is not changing now. He showed in 2016 he can take a team to the Stanley Cup Final by getting hot at the right time. Round 2 may have been the start of it. 

Since making his first NHL start in early January, Binnington has been one of the most productive goalies in the league. He recorded a shutout in that start and hasn't stopped winning since, as the Blues have gone from the bottom of the Western Conference standings to the Western Conference Final. Considering that he started the season as a backup ...in the American Hockey League...it is one of the most improbable postseason success stories we have seen in quite some time. He slumped for the first time this season in Round 2 against the Dallas Stars but responded with huge efforts in Games 6 and 7 with the season on the line. He has shown that he deserved the honor of being a finalist for the NHL's Rookie of the Year award. 

Schwartz scored just 11 goals for the Blues during the regular season. He enters the Western Conference Final having already scored eight in 13 games. He was a huge factor in eliminating the Winnipeg Jets in Round 1 and has just kept scoring goals. His regular-season performance was a bit of a fluke, driven mostly by an unsustainably low shooting percentage. Now that he is starting to get some bounces and breaks to go his way again, he is back to being a top scorer for the Blues. 

After being knocked out late in the third of the Sharks' Game 7 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Round 1, Pavelski missed the first six games of their Round 2 win over the Colorado Avalanche due to the head injury he suffered. It was a huge loss not only because he is one of their leaders but also because he is one of their best players and scored 38 goals during the regular season. He stepped right back into the lineup in Game 7 and recorded two points, including a goal, in the win. Having him back at the start will be massive for the Sharks. 

When the Bruins decide to put Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak together,there may not be a more dominant trio in the NHL. Since the start of the 2017-18 season they have outscored teams during 5-on-5 play by a 72-50 margin (plus-22!) when they are together. They dominate puck possession, shut down other team's top lines and can score at a level few other lines can match. 

When it comes to the Hurricanes, a lot of the focus is on their defense and top forward, Sebastian Aho. But you should start paying attention to the trio of Nino Niederreiter, Jordan Staal and Teuvo Teravainen because they are making quite the impact this postseason. Through the first two rounds, that line outscored opponents by a 4-0 margin and controlled more than 64 percent of the total shot attempts, scoring chances and high-danger scoring chances when the three were on the ice together during even-strength play. When you have a star like Aho on the top line and can follow that up with this line, you have a chance to win every single night. 

Tarasenko is one of the NHL's best goalscorers and has consistently been money for the Blues in the playoffs throughout his career. That is what makes his 2019 postseason performance a little disappointing. Not bad. Just disappointing. He has five goals in 13 games so far but has yet to record an assist and has only one even-strength goal. The good news is the Blues have made it this far without him taking over just yet. But if they want to keep winning and make their first Stanley Cup Final since 1970, they might need him to start taking control. 

Hertl's 2018-19 regular-season performance was by far the best of his career, shattering all of his previous career highs. He has been just as dominant in the playoffs, entering the Western Conference Final averaging a point per game and being tied with his teammate Logan Couture for the league lead with nine postseason goals. Hertl has also had a knack for scoring some huge goals in key situations and is one of the biggest reasons the Sharks are just four wins away from reaching their second Stanley Cup Final in four years and just eight wins away from winning their first one. 

While it is probably not a huge surprise to see the San Jose Sharks or Boston Bruins in the Conference Finals, it is a pretty big shock to see the Carolina Hurricanes and St. Louis Blues here. The Blues have not been in the Stanley Cup Final since 1970. The Hurricanes have not been there since 2006. The Bruins went in 2013, while the Sharks are the most recent participant, having gone for the first time in 2016. Given how we have become so used to seeing Pittsburgh, Chicago and Los Angeles at this stage of the season throughout the salary cap era, it is definitely nice to see some new fan bases experience the excitement (and stress!) of an extended Stanley Cup playoff run. 

Historically when teams have multiple Norris Trophy-winning defenders on their rosters, they usually go far in the playoffs and tend to be in the Stanley Cup Final at least once (think Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer in Anaheim, as an example). The Sharks have that same set-up with the Erik Karlsson-Brent Burns duo, and it gives them plenty of options for every situation. The strategy from coach Peter DeBoer in Round 2 was to utilize Karlsson as the go-to defender on the power play and lean on Burns to match up with Nathan MacKinnon. No matter what path he chooses here, DeBoer is going to have at least one Norris Trophy winner on the ice for at least two-thirds of every game. That is a huge advantage.