The teams with the two best records in each conference are facing one another in the second round of the playoffs because, for no good reason, two years ago the NHL abandoned the re-seeding that made its tournament the most equitable in pro sports.
Integrity of the competition was deemed secondary to marketing concerns. The re-seed was dropped so the NHL could promote some silly “bracket” contest on its website and network, as if the Stanley Cup playoffs could somehow piggyback off March Madness.
That is why the Capitals and Penguins are meeting in one Eastern semifinal while the Islanders, fifth-best in the conference, and the Lightning, sixth, face off in the other.