NHL playoffs 2025: Marco Rossi and Minnesota Wild on a title course!

NHL playoffs 2025: Marco Rossi and Minnesota Wild on a title course!

The NHL playoffs begin on April 19, 2025, and 16 teams are fighting for the prestigious Stanley Cup. Among the players who are particularly in focus, is the Vorarlberg Marco Rossi, who plays wild for Minnesota. After an impressive season with 24 goals and 36 assists, a total of 60 points, his team meets the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round.

The playoffs are held in the "Best-of-Seven" mode, with the first team to move into the next round. The better placed team has the home advantage in games 1, 2, 5 and 7. The first encounters within the conferences are characterized by exciting duels, including Winnipeg Jets against the St. Louis Blues and the Dallas Stars against the Colorado Avalanche.

Playoff format and qualification

The NHL is divided into two conferences: Eastern and Western, each of which is divided into two divisions. According to NHL.com , the best three teams qualify for the playoffs directly for the playoffs, supplemented by two wildcard teams per conference. In most cases, the first 12 teams of the playoffs form a division-based bracket. As a rule, a division can send up to five teams to the postseason, while the other has a maximum of three teams.

The following encounters are pending in the first round:

top player and favorite

The regular season had some outstanding achievements. Nikita Kucherov from the Tampa Bay Lightning leads the overall points with 121 points, followed by Nathan Mackinnon (116 points) and Leon Draisaitl (106 points). In the scorer list, Draisaitl ranks with 52 goals at the top, followed by William Nylander with 45 goals.

Favoriten on the Stanley Cup include the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Colorado Avalanche and the Toronto Maple Leafs, which convince with strong offensive performance. The Florida Panthers, who reached the final last year, are also one of the hottest candidates. The Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals have also been able to prove themselves as strong teams, while the Minnesota Wild around Marco Rossi hope for a surprise.

The NHL playoffs consist of four rounds: first round, second round (Conference Semifinals), Conference Finals and finally the Stanley Cup final. The team, which gains four games in every round, moves into the next round. A special feature in the playoffs are the overtime rules that differ from the regular season: there is no shootout in the PostSeason; Instead, it is continued in Sudden Death until a team scores the decisive goal.

The tension increases while the best teams in the league fight for the coveted Stanley Cup. The first round games already promise exciting encounters for all ice hockey fans.