The old five-game format of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs traditionally produced an upset or two. This year, the league moves to a seven-game format, making the underdogs' task even more difficult.
The Los Angeles Kings enter their first-round series against the Edmonton Oilers Wednesday trying to rekindle memories of their dramatic five-game upset in 1982's first round.
This year, the Kings must beat an Oilers team that led them by 36 points in the Smythe Division, produced the best overall record in the league, and is bent on redeeming its failure to advance to the finals last year. And, this year, the Kings must beat the vaunted Oilers four times.
'Patience and hard work will win,' Kings Coach Mike Murphy said. 'It will pay off for us like it did in 1982. The important thing is you have to be strong mentally against the Oilers. You have to persevere.'
Edmonton Coach Glen Sather, however, points out only Dave Taylor, Jay Wells and Mark Hardy remain from the 1982 Kings.
'It's not the same hockey team,' Sather said. 'Besides, I haven't seen too many situations where what happened yesterday determines what happens tomorrow.'
The Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers meet in the opening round for the fifth time in the last six years. The Rangers have won three of those series, but those were all best-of-five affairs.
'A best-of-seven should favor the most consistent team,' Philadelphia Coach Mike Keenan said.
The Flyers posted a 46-26-8 record and won their third straight Patrick Division championship this year. The Rangers went 34-38-8 to finish fourth and surrendered 323 goals, third-most in team history.
'We all realize what happened to us last year,' Flyers defenseman Brad Marsh said of Philadelphia's first-round loss to the Rangers last season. 'We're anxious for the playoffs to start. This year, we're mentally sharper for the playoffs.'
Hartford upset first-place Quebec in last year's Adams Division semifinals. Now, the two teams find themselves in a rematch, with Hartford in first and Quebec fourth.
'They've definitely got what happened to them in the back of their minds,' Hartford defenseman Joel Quenneville said. 'Last year, they kind of died after we scored in overtime of the first game. There's going to be more pressure this year.
'I think the seven-game series is going to make a big difference. If you won the first game before, you could end it quickly.'
The Boston Bruins have lost 17 straight playoff series to Montreal dating back to 1943. Wednesday, they face the hottest team in the league - the Canadiens have a 10-game unbeaten streak -- and now must defeat the Canadiens four times to advance in the other Adams Division series.
'We're going into the playoffs with nine consecutive victories against some pretty good teams,' defenseman Craig Ludwig said. 'We're a team which wins with defense and now we're the team which allowed the fewest goals during the regular season, so there's a lot for us to lose this time around.'
The St. Louis Blues moved into first place in the Norris Division the last day of the season and play fourth-place Toronto starting Wednesday. Three weeks ago, it appeared the Blues, who finished with 79 points, might not make the playoffs.
'We were fighting for our lives, for a playoff spot,' defenseman Rob Ramage said. 'Everything happened so quickly in the last three weeks.'
Washington takes a nine-game unbeaten streak into its playoff series against the Islanders in the Patrick Division. The Capitals, who have never advanced past the second round in the playoffs, swept the Islanders 3-0 last year.
Calgary plays Winnipeg in the opening round for the third straight year. The Flames defeated Winnipeg last year on their way to the finals, but the Jets tuned up for the playoffs Sunday with a 3-1 victory over Calgary.
The Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks enter their series suffering from slumps. The Red Wings ended their regular season with three straight losses to give the Blues the Norris Division crown. The Blackhawks finished third in the Norris Division and had a 2-8-4 mark in their last 14 games.
