Honestly, if you looked at the 2018 NHL playoff bracket before the puck dropped in April, you probably didn't see the Washington Capitals hoisting the Cup. Nobody did. At least, nobody who had watched Alex Ovechkin and company spend a decade face-planting in the second round. We all had our theories. Most of them involved the Pittsburgh Penguins winning a third straight title or the Tampa Bay Lightning finally steamrolling the East.
Instead, we got a year where the script was completely shredded.
It was a weird time. The Vegas Golden Knights were essentially a collection of "misfits" that weren't supposed to be there. The Capitals were supposedly "past their window." Even the Predators, who walked away with the Presidents' Trophy, felt like they were on a collision course with destiny until the Winnipeg Jets had other plans.
Looking back, that bracket wasn't just a list of games. It was a chaotic six-week journey that changed how we think about "playoff experience" and franchise curses.
The Western Conference Side of the 2018 NHL Playoff Bracket
The West was basically the Wild West that year. You had the Vegas Golden Knights, an expansion team in their literal first season of existence, coming in as the top seed in the Pacific Division. Everyone—and I mean everyone—expected them to turn into a pumpkin once the postseason intensity ramped up.
They didn't.
Vegas started by sweeping the Los Angeles Kings in four games. It wasn't even a high-scoring affair; it was just a defensive masterclass led by Marc-Andre Fleury. He was playing like a man possessed, posting a .977 save percentage in that first round. Seriously.
- Vegas Golden Knights vs. Los Angeles Kings (Vegas wins 4-0)
- San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks (San Jose wins 4-0)
- Nashville Predators vs. Colorado Avalanche (Nashville wins 4-2)
- Winnipeg Jets vs. Minnesota Wild (Winnipeg wins 4-1)
The most fascinating part of the Western bracket was the Central Division. Nashville and Winnipeg were the two best teams in the entire league during the regular season. Because of the NHL's bracket structure, they had to play each other in the second round instead of the Conference Finals. It was a heavyweight bout that went the full seven games. When the Jets finally won Game 7 in Nashville with a 5-1 blowout, it felt like they were the favorites to win it all.
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But then they ran into the Vegas machine.
Vegas took care of Winnipeg in five games in the Western Conference Finals. It was surreal. A team that didn't exist 12 months prior was headed to the Stanley Cup Final.
Why the Eastern Conference Bracket Felt Different
Over in the East, the story was less about "new" and more about "finally."
The Tampa Bay Lightning were the juggernauts. They finished with 113 points and made quick work of the New Jersey Devils in the first round. Meanwhile, the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs were busy trying to kill each other in a seven-game series that ended with the Bruins advancing after a wild Game 7.
But the real drama was in the Metropolitan Division.
The Washington Capitals actually started the playoffs by losing the first two games at home to the Columbus Blue Jackets. People were already writing the obituaries for Barry Trotz’s job. Then, they switched to Braden Holtby in net, won four straight, and set up the matchup everyone dreaded: Washington vs. Pittsburgh.
This was the hurdle. The Penguins had eliminated Washington in back-to-back years on their way to Stanley Cups.
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Breaking the Penguin Curse
The 2018 NHL playoff bracket will always be remembered for the moment Evgeny Kuznetsov slid the puck past Matt Murray in overtime of Game 6. That one goal didn't just win a series; it ended a psychological haunting. Washington beat the Penguins 4-2.
After that, the Capitals had to face a rested Tampa Bay team. They went up 2-0, lost three straight to face elimination, and then Braden Holtby decided he wasn't going to let another puck in. He posted back-to-back shutouts in Games 6 and 7 to win the Eastern Conference.
- Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New Jersey Devils (Tampa wins 4-1)
- Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (Boston wins 4-3)
- Washington Capitals vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (Washington wins 4-2)
- Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers (Pittsburgh wins 4-2)
The second round saw Tampa dismantle Boston in five games, while Washington finally got over the hump against Pittsburgh.
The Finals: Misfits vs. The Ovi Factor
By the time the Stanley Cup Final arrived, the 2018 NHL playoff bracket had narrowed down to the two most improbable stories.
Vegas was the "Inaugural Season" miracle.
Washington was the "Finally Got It Right" veteran squad.
Game 1 was a high-scoring track meet in Las Vegas that the Golden Knights won 6-4. It looked like the fairy tale was going to have a happy ending. But Washington clamped down. They won the next four games straight.
A few things stand out from that series. First, "The Save" by Braden Holtby in Game 2. If Alex Tuch scores that open-net goal, Vegas probably goes up 2-0 in the series and everything changes. Instead, Holtby reached back with his paddle and made one of the most iconic stops in hockey history.
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Second, the depth of the Capitals was insane. Devante Smith-Pelly, a guy who was mostly a journey-man, scored goals in three straight games to close out the series. Lars Eller scored the winner in Game 5. It wasn't just Ovechkin; it was everyone.
Final Results Summary
- Stanley Cup Winner: Washington Capitals (4-1 over Vegas)
- Conn Smythe Winner: Alexander Ovechkin
- Leading Scorer: Evgeny Kuznetsov (32 points)
The image of Ovechkin screaming into the night air in Las Vegas remains one of the most emotional moments in sports. He had waited 13 seasons for that. The wait was the second-longest in NHL history for a first-time champion franchise, only trailing the Los Angeles Kings.
Actionable Insights for Hockey Fans
If you're looking back at the 2018 bracket to understand how to predict future playoffs, there are a few real-world takeaways.
Don't overvalue the Presidents' Trophy. Nashville was the best team on paper all year. They didn't even make it past the second round. The playoffs are about match-ups and who has the hotter goalie, not who had the most points in December.
Watch the Wild Card "Upsets."
Columbus taking a 2-0 lead on Washington almost changed the course of history. In the current NHL format, the gap between the top seed and the wild card is much smaller than it used to be.
Narratives matter until they don't.
The "Capitals can't win the big one" narrative was ironclad until about 10:45 PM on June 7, 2018. If you're betting on or analyzing a bracket, don't let past failures blind you to a team that is currently playing elite hockey.
To really get the most out of studying past brackets like this, you should go back and watch the Condensed Games from the Caps/Pens series. It shows exactly how a team's playing style evolves when they finally stop playing scared and start playing to win.