It all comes down to it. President-winning Winnipeg Jets hosted the St. Louis Blues in Game 200 in Stanley Cup playoff history (Sunday)7. PM and TBS).
One team will advance to the second round, while the other team will start early in the offseason - and try to solve the problem.
For the Blues, it was the club's 19th game and the most of any non-original six teams. They finished 10-8 in Game 7, with the most recent match against the Boston Bruins in the 2019 Stanley Cup final, where they won 4-1.
This version of the Jets has much less history of drawing the 7th game. Their only seventh game was a second round victory over the Nashville Predators in 2018.
Who won this? We have gathered the ESPN hockey family to identify the main players who are watching during the game and their final score predictions.
Who is the key player you will watch in Jets-Blues?
NHL reporter Ryan S. Clark: If he plays, it's Tag cream. The success of Brayden Schenn and/or Radek Faksa in Game 5 sparked a lot of conversations about the most demanding series in the first round. Scheifele's performance this season, while the series before the hits reinforced the reason he became the league's legal top center. We saw how the Jets manipulated in the last two stages of Game 5, and Game 6 proved why they all needed everyone’s contribution if he couldn’t go.
But this is if Scheifele plays. He skated in track pants Saturday, and Scott Arniel said the center will be Sunday's game time decision.
NHL broadcaster Ardaöcal: Connor Hellebuyck This is the obvious answer for me, as he has been at home "Vezina" (especially scene 2) and "Vezina from Temu".
Hellebuyck allowed four or more goals in seven straight playoff games, which is linked to the second straight win in Stanley Cup playoff history. But in the 7th game at home. The pressure was already on, but he was in a comfortable range, surrounded by "white people". Which version of Hellebuyck do we have on Sunday night?
NHL reporter Kristen Shilton: Connor Hellebuyckcertainly. Is there such a Jekyll/Hyde performance in recent years?
Vezina finalists can turn on lights at home like a water on the road. Will this trend continue in Game 7? Which goalkeeper has what version?
But as a reward, I'll throw it away Pavel Buchnevich Enter this equation. He's been driving the Blues offense, and if Hellebuyck is on A-Game, St. Louis will need Buchnevich to spread his hat-trick energy from the third game to help Blues achieve an amazing road victory.
Greg Wysshynski, NHL reporter: Jordan Binnington He won 31 games in 31 games in the 4-country Canadian national championship matches, reverting his title to one of the NHL's most popular goalkeepers, including six saves in overtime. He first won the game in 2019 and won the Blues to the Stanley Cup with a game 7 win over Dallas and Boston.
Now, he has the opportunity to re-establish these certificates.
Binnington averaged 0.82 goals and saved % in previous Game 7. While Hellebuyck was bad at St. Louis, it wasn't better in Winnipeg's Binnington, producing a save percentage of 0.861 and an average of 3.44 goals in two of the three games and giving up four goals. But as the four countries have shown, Binnington can satisfy this moment. (Although this time, Kyle Connor will actually be the lineup of the opposition. Not us bitter or anything else.)
The final score will be _____.
Clark: 4-3 jets. There are some themes in this series. The first is the offense is not a problem - the team has scored over six goals in total except for one game. The second is that the home team won every game. I said this continued and the jets went forward.
ÖCAL: 6-5 jet. Hellebyuck didn't have his best game, but the Jets challenge surpassed that, with Kyle Connor scoring another third-stage goal in the series.
Hilton: 5-4 jets. The jet is too good on home ice to let it slip away. That's not to say St. Louis' victory is surprising, but even if Hellebuyck stands out, Winnipeg's offense should be able to provide enough buffers for the Jets to scream with a narrow victory.
Wyshynski: 5-3 jet. If this game was played in St. Louis, it's toast because it's the obvious fact that Hellebuyck is a disaster in the playoffs. He is slightly below the home replacement in the playoffs, but Winnipeg will adopt that given his three demolitions on the road.
The Blues ranked in the playoffs with a 5-on-5 offense and a percentage of goals at home in the playoffs. But Winnipeg is second in both categories. Hellebuyck calmed down and the offense was tricky at home, especially now that Nikolaj Ehlers have a game that has not played since April 12 due to foot injury.