At the end of the toughest 16 wins in sports, there's a Cup.

Regardless of Boston's historic regular season, the playoffs will be a free-for-all.

David Pastrnak

Four years ago the Tampa Bay Lightning had serious concerns. Should they celebrate the upcoming Stanley Cup down by the water, or should they take their parade across the causeway to St. Petersburg?

The Lightning had 30 more points than Columbus, its first-round opponent. It had met Columbus three times in the regular season and was 3-0 with a goal differential of plus-14. Nikita Kucherov had scored 128 points for the season, the most since the rules were changed in 2005, and Tampa Bay had tied the NHL record with 62 wins.

In Game 1 the Lightning rolled to a 3-0 lead. Then Columbus dug its way to a 4-3 victory. That was the closest game of the series. The Blue Jackets won 5-1, 3-1, and 7-3. Tampa Bay was done. At the end, the St. Louis Blues won the Cup, after they were 15-18-4 on Jan. 2.

There was a happy, if delayed, ending. Tampa Bay brought in players who lived for the board battles and signed up for backchecking. It won the next two Stanley Cups and was in last year’s Final.

The Boston Bruins already know sacrifice and physicality, always have. And they have more cautionary tales than their kids have bedtime stories. Their 65 victories and 135 points are NHL records. They have a 43-point edge on Florida, their first-round opponent. Linas Ullmark is the likely VezinaTrophy winner in goal. Yet it could all be gone by next week, in theory. The Stanley Cup playoffs contain the most sensitive delete buton in sports.

It is also the best playoff season in sports and absolutely the least predictable. It is no respecter of precedent or even tradition. The Presidents’ Trophy was established 37 years ago to at least acknowledge that one team showed its ability to grind its way through 82 games. Only eight of those regular-season winners went on to win the Cup, and none since Chicago ten years ago.

So here’s a series-by-series look at the minefield, and some predictions that could be matched by any Ouija board or farm animal. Surprise doesn’t live here. Glorious combat does.

BOSTON vs. FLORIDA

Goals: Boston 2nd, Florida 6th.

Goals against: Boston 1st, Florida 21st.

Power play percentage: Boston 12th, Florida 10th.

Penalty-kill percentage: Boston 1st, Florida 23rd.

5-on-5 goal percentage: Boston 1st, Florida 8th.

Top scorers: David Pastrnak (51-62-113) for Boston, Matthew Tkachuk (40-69-109) for Florida.

Goalies: Linas Ullmark (40-6-1 in goal, .938 save percentage) for Boston, Sergei Bobrovsky (24-20-3, .901 save percentage) for Florida.

Fun facts: Boston’s Hampus Lindholm led the NHL in plus-minus. The Panthers led the league in shots on goal.

Prediction: Bobrovsky was the Columbus goaltender in that 2019 first round. However, Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said the Columbus upset happened, in part, because the Lightning had wrapped up its spot and had nothing to play for. The Bruins were incentivized by their chance at history and did not let up. Boston in five.

CAROLINA vs. NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Goals: Carolina 15th, Islanders 22nd.

Goals against: Carolina 2nd, Islanders 5th

Power play percentage: Carolina 20th, Islanders 30th.

Penalty kill: Carolina 2nd, Islanders 9th.

5 on 5 goal percentage: Carolina 5th, Islanders 6th.

Leading scorers: Martin Necas (28-43-71) for Carolina, Brock Nelson (36-39-75) for the Islanders.

Goalies: Freddie Anderson (21-11-1, .903 save percentage) for Carolina, Ilya Sorokin (31-22-7, .924) for the Islanders.

Fun Facts: New York was 14-7-2 since Feb. 20. The Hurricanes gave up 480 high-danger chances, by far the league’s lowest.

Prediction: Neither team will sleep well after this one. The Islanders’ brand is punishment and effort, but Sorokin takes the goal-prevention to another level. They brought in Bo Horvat from Vancouver, and signed him, for this moment. Carolina’s goaltending is less defined, and for a skillful team that shoots a lot, it has trouble scoring. Islanders in six.

TORONTO vs. TAMPA BAY

Goals: Toronto 9th, Tampa Bay 8th.

Goals against: Toronto 7th, Tampa Bay 14th.

Power play percentage: Toronto 2nd, Tampa Bay 3rd.

Penalty kill: Toronto 12th, Tampa Bay 15th.

5-on-5 goal percentage: Toronto 3rd, Tampa Bay 13th.

Leading scorers: Toronto’s Mitch Marner (30-69-99), Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kuchrov (30-83-113).

Goalies: Toronto’s Ilya Samsonov (27-10-5, .919), Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy (34-22-4, .915).

Fun Facts: Toronto’s Auston Matthews, the reigning Hart Trophy winner, scored 20 fewer goals than last season (60 to 40). Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point had 51, his career high by 10. Point was hurt during last year’s playoffs.

Predictions: Maple Leafs haven’t won a playoff series since a first-rounder over Ottawa in 2004. Considering their front-line talent, that’s disgraceful, but it also becomes self-fulfilling. This will be their chance, since Tampa Bay has slipped noticeably, particularly on defense. Watch for William Nylander, who was in the top ten in even-strength goals. Toronto in five.

NEW JERSEY vs. N.Y. RANGERS

Goals: New Jersey 4th, New York 12th.

Goals against New Jersey 8th, New York 4th.

Power play percentage: New Jersey 13th, New York 7th.

Penalty kill: New Jersey 4th, New York 13th.

5 on 5 percentage: New Jersey 4th, New York 10th.

Leading scorers: New Jersey’s Jack Hughes (43-56-99), New York’s Artemi Panarin (29-63-92).

Goalies: New Jersey’s Vitek Vanecek (33-11-4, .911), New York’s Igor Shesterkin 37-13-8 (.916).

Fun Facts: Devils’ centers Hughes, Nico Hischier and Dawson Mercer totaled 30 penalty minutes. New York’s Filip Chytil improved from eight to 22 goals.

Prediction: Can New Jersey keep Rangers’ fans out of the Prudential Center? More to the point, can the Devils keep Mika Zibanejad and his crew from destroying games on the power play? Zibanejad had 20 such goals. The Rangers have the firepower, the goalie and a vast edge in experience. Rangers in six.

VEGAS vs. WINNIPEG

Goals: Vegas 14th, Winnipeg 21st.

Goals against Vegas 11th, Winnipeg 10th.

Power play percentage ;Vegas 18, Winnipeg 23rd.

Penalty kill: Vegas 19th, Winnipeg 6th.

5 on 5 goal percentage: Vegas 11th, Winnipeg 15th.

Leading scorers: Vegas’ Jack Eichel (27-39-66), Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor (31-49-80).

Goalies: Vegas’ Laurent Brossoit (10-7-0, .927), Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck (37-28-2, .920).

Fun Facts: Alec Martinez, 35, blocked 47 more shots than anyone else in the league. Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey went from 37 points last season to 76, second-most on the Jets.

Prediction: Look at the numbers and you wonder how Vegas won the Pacific Division. For one thing the Knights had the fewest power play opportunities of any team. Chalk it up to depth and solid D, but the Jets have more dangerous scorers and by far the more credentialed goalie, and Rick Bowness got an underdog Dallas team to the 2020 Finals. Winnipeg in six.

COLORADO vs. SEATTLE

Goals: Colorado 10th, Seattle 5th.

Goals against: Colorado 5th, Seattle 15th.

Power play percentage: Colorado 6th, Seattle 21st.

Penalty kill: Colorado 16th, Seattle 21st.

5 on 5 goal percentage: Colorado 9th, Seattle 2nd.

Leading scorers: Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon (42-69-111), Seattle’s Jared McCann (40-30-70).

Goalies: Colorado’s Alexandar Georgiev (40-16-6, .918), Seattle’s Martin Jones (27-13-3, .886).

Fun Fact: Of the 11 players who scored 100 or more points, MacKinnon did it in eight fewer games (71) than anyone else. McCann went from minus-26 last season to plus-18.

Prediction: This will be an uncomfortable series for the champs, who still aren’t completely healthy and won’t have Gabriel Landeskog. But Seattle permitted a higher percentage of high-danger chances to score than any other team. Although Adam Larsson and Vince Dunn became the top defense pair in the league, they’ll eventually get burned by Mikko Rantanen, who carried the Avalanche to an unlikely division title. Colorado in seven.

EDMONTON vs. LOS ANGELES

Goals: Edmonton 1st, Los Angeles 11th.

Goals against: Edmonton 17th, Los Angeles 16th.

Power play percentage: Edmonton 1st, Los Angeles 4th.

Penalty kill: Edmonton 20th, Los Angeles 26th.

5 on 5 goal percentage: Edmonton 12th, Los Angeles 16th.

Leading scorers: Edmonton’s Connor McDavid (64-89-153), Los Angeles’ Anze Kopitar (28-46-74).

Goalies: Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner (29-14-5, .913), Los Angeles’Joonas Korpisalo (7-3-1, .921).

Fun Fact: The Oilers converted 32.7 percent of their power plays, a league record. Drew Doughty, 33, played 2,125 minutes, most in the NHL.

Prediction: McDavid had the best season the NHL has seen in 27 years. He was the difference in a 7-game win over the Kings last year. The Kings are better and certainly deeper, and Korpisalo brings peace of mind. Obviously both teams must stay out of the penalty box. Edmonton worked hard to get home ice with a 7th game in mind and it will show why. Edmonton in seven.

DALLAS vs. MINNESOTA

Goals: Dallas 7th, Minnesota 23rd.

Goals against: Dallas 3rd, Minnesota 6th.

Power play percentage: Dallas 5th, Minnesota 15th.

Penalty kill: Dallas 3rd, Minnesota 10th.

5 on 5 goal percentage: Dallas 7th, Minnesota 17th.

Leading scorers: Dallas’ Jason Robertson (46-63-109), Minnesta’s Kirill Kaprizov (40-35-75).

Goalies: Dallas’ Jake Oettinger (37-11-11, .919), Minnesota’s Filip Gustavsson (22-9-7, .931).

Fun Fact: The Stars’ Ryan Suter, 38, has played the most MHL games of any active player without winning the Cup. Minnesota defenseman Jared Spurgeon is plus-32 each of the past two seasons.

Prediction: The Wild can and probably will play both Gustafsson and Marc-Andre Fleury in net. Both have been good,but Oettinger can be spectacular. A season of renewal for Jamie Benn has made the Stars deeper, and their defense allowed the second-fewest high-danger chances in the league. Depsite the efforts of Kaprizov and Matt Boldy, the Wild just isn’t made for these offensive times. Dallas in five.