Welcome Back! Leafs, Wild, Islanders and Habs return to the playoffs April 29, 2013

In a shortened season with storylines a plenty, the playoffs begin with a decidedly “old school vibe”, as a number of teams with legendary pasts return to the fold.  Most notable of all are the Toronto Maple Leafs, coming back after a dry spell kept them out since the 2003-04 season. They will take on their old rivals the Boston Bruins, a classic original six matchup that should prove to be a hard-hitting, action-packed affair. 

For more on the Leafs/Bruins series, keep reading The Globe and Mail article here. 

The Islanders and Wild return after not making the playoffs since 07’ and 08’, respectively. Both teams will look to do better this time around. Neither has made it out of the first round since the Wild advanced all the way to the conference finals in 02-03.

For what makes the Islanders a fun team to watch in these playoffs, click on the SB Nation write-up  here.

To find out about the Wild’s chances, keep reading the Star Tribune story here. 

As for the Canadiens, It has only been a year since they last qualified, but it was the turnaround from last year that was so impressive. After finishing 15^th in the east in the 2011-12 season, few could have imagined a 2^nd place finish this year.  

For a peek into how the Habs could win it all, read the NHL.com post here.

 

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