You can sense it on ESPN. Barry Melrose and Matthew Barnaby on the screen. Allusions to the toughest tournament in team sports. Only 55 minutes of an hourly SportsCenter devoted to Adam Schefter’s rodent face or LeBron James palling it up with his Cavalier buds.

That’s right, folks: The NHL Playoffs begin tonight. Get ready for Sidney Crosby’s dirty ‘stache, Alexander Ovechkin’s big-game implosion, and the annual rite of Joe Thornton meekly leading San Jose to an early exit belying their regular season success.

In an Olympic year, one can expect some surprises in the playoffs. In 2006, the last Olympic year, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Edmonton Oilers in a thrilling seven-game series to win the Cup. Carolina was no surprise winner as the No. 1 seed in the East, but the Oilers certainly were a Cinderella team. As the No. 8 seed, Edmonton beat top-seeded Detroit in the first round, San Jose in the second, and Anaheim in the third to reach the Cup Finals. Led by Chris Pronger, they took the Hurricanes to the brink, despite losing their goaltender Dwayne Roloson in Game 1 of the Finals.

Pronger, of course, is a Flyer now. As a No. 7 seed, could the Flyers do the same thing? We see it (in the first round, at least).

Here is our first-round pick ‘em. Bet the house, as always:

Eastern Conference

1. Washington Capitals vs. 8. Montreal Canadiens

Analysis: The Washington Capitals have it all except a goaltender. The Montreal Canadiens have nothing but a goaltender.

Montreal blew the chance to avoid Washington in the first round by losing to Toronto in their final regular season game. They are led by Jaroslav Halak, the Slovakian goaltender who almost single-handedly got the Canadiens into the playoffs thanks to a number of brilliant performances down the stretch.

The Capitals have known they would be in the playoffs for a few months now, having run away with the top seed in the Eastern Conference (and the President’s Trophy as the point-leader in the NHL). This will be their third consecutive playoff appearance, in which they will at least double their postseason series win total (one). The Capitals needed seven games to win that one series against the New York Rangers last season, after falling behind 3-1 while being stymied by Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

What is the difference between this Caps team and the one of the previous two years? Much to the chagrin of Flyers’ fans, Mike Knuble was a valuable addition to Washington, and the emergence of Brooks Laich has allowed the Capitals to take the league by storm. The playoffs is always a different story, though. We’ll believe the Caps as postseason threats when we see it.

Could Halak pull a Lundqvist? Maybe—but it won’t be enough.

Andrew: Capitals in six

Joe: Capitals in four

2. New Jersey Devils vs. 7 Philadelphia Flyers

Martin Brodeur has reached Brett Favre territory.

Undoubtedly one of the best goaltenders in NHL history, Brodeur has not played as such in the playoffs since winning the Stanley Cup in 2003, riding mostly on his name as experts pick the Devils to go deep in the playoffs. The Devils are always a good regular season team, but have not made a deep run in the playoffs since that Cup winning season, and have won only two series in their past five playoff appearances. Brodeur melted down in the final few minutes of last season’s first-round series against Carolina, allowing the game-tying and game-winning goal in the last two minutes of Game 7 as Carolina moved on.

Who knows what to expect from the Flyers, though? A team capable of being among the best and worst teams in the league on any given night got into the playoffs by winning a shootout—A SHOOTOUT—in Game 82 of the regular season. The team is down to their third goaltender, Brian Boucher, but has had the Devils’ number this season (5-1 against New Jersey) and seems to have plenty of confidence in beating Brodeur.

Could Ilya Kovalchuk make the difference for the Devils? Considering his career playoff numbers (1 G, 1 A in four games), we doubt it. Zach Parise proved to be a big-game player in the Olympics, but it won’t be enough for the Devils.

Andrew: Flyers in six

Joe: Flyers in six

3. Buffalo Sabres vs. 6. Boston Bruins

Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller has to be the player no one wants to face in the NHL playoffs. Miller has been otherworldly this season, even before his magnificent Olympic performance, and seems to be capable of willing the Sabres to a couple playoff series victories.

The Bruins also have a solid goalie, and his name is not Tim Thomas. Tuuka Rask has been only behind Ryan Miller in goaltending since the Olympic break. With the Bruins decimated by injuries to key members (thank you, Matt Cooke), this series will likely be a goaltender duel. Over/under on goals for the series? 20.

Andrew: Sabres in six

Joe: Sabres in six

4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 5. Ottawa Senators

The Penguins team that plays the Flyers and the one that plays the rest of the NHL is entirely different. The Penguins always ramp up their game for the Flyers, but somehow struggle at times against the rest of the league. You can’t qualify their season as a Cup hangover, but they certainly haven’t been consistent this year, struggling with injuries as well as uneven play.

Ottawa is a mild surprise in the East, given they missed the playoffs entirely last season. After trading Dany Heatley in the offseason, the Senators improved enough to be the fifth seed in the East. They’re rewarded with a matchup against the defending Stanley Cup champs.

This series could really go either way. The team that wins will likely be decided by which goaltender is better: Marc-Andre Fleury or Brian Elliot. Fleury had only an average regular season, but has shown the ability to step up in the playoffs. That means…

Andrew: Penguins in six

Joe: Penguins in five

Western Conference

1. San Jose Sharks vs. 8. Colorado Avalanche

Same old story for San Jose: stellar regular season, unknown postseason fate. Hockey scribes have gotten wise to the Sharks after a couple years of picking them to win the Stanley Cup, and are rightfully leery of tabbing them the league’s best. As with the past years, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Evgeni Nabokov lead the Sharks into the postseason, but no one knows exactly how far they can lead them in the playoffs. Thornton especially needs to show he can play his best when it counts. First impressions aren’t favorable: Thornton passed the burden to Nabokov when asked what was needed in order for the Sharks to go deep in the postseason.

Colorado was a pleasant surprise this season, led by a number of their young stars, including Paul Stastny and Matt Duchene. Free agent goalie pickup Craig Anderson has had an impressive season for the Avs, but the team faltered a bit down the stretch, sliding into the eighth seed. Still, a number of hockey writers are picking the Avs as a team capable of an upset primarily because they are playing the Sharks. Apparently, the Avs don’t know their supposed to lose. Do they know they likely won’t win?

Andrew: Sharks in six

Joe: Sharks in five

2. Chicago Blackhawks vs. 7. Nashville Predators

Chicago is Washington West (or Mid-West), but with a better defense and more upside in net. In last year’s postseason, the Blackhawks went on a surprise run to the Western Conference Finals, only to fall to Detroit in five games. After adding Marian Hossa in the offseason and challenging for the top seed in the West for most of the regular season, the Blackhawks are a popular pick to win the Stanley Cup, so long as Antti Niemi holds up in the net and Patrick Kane avoids cab drivers.

Nashville continues to be successful in the regular season despite lacking a lot of offensive power. Their defense is a contender for best in the NHL, with Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, and Dan Hamhuis. To account for the dearth of scoring options, the Predators will need a great performance from goaltender Pekka Rinne in order to win their first playoff series in franchise history. Rinne is certainly capable of it, but the Blackhawks will likely be too much.

Andrew: Blackhawks in five

Joe: Blackhawks in six

3. Vancouver Canucks vs. 6. L.A. Kings

Vanouver is led by the Sedin twins (Henrik and Daniel) and Team Canada goalie Roberto Luongo. The Canucks have flamed out in the playoffs before with the Sedins and Luongo leading the way, but this season they appear to be a better team overall than last year or the year before. They have a good mix of skill, grit, and defensive prowess, so much will hinge on Luongo’s ability to take his game to a Stanley Cup-worthy level and the Sedins’ continued production. None of them have done it before (except for Luongo in the Olympics), but if they do, Vancouver is a legitimate Cup contender.

This season, Los Angeles enjoyed their first true hockey renaissance since Barry Melrose’s mullet stalked the bench. The Kings have a number of good young players, including forward Anze Kopitar, defenseman Drew Doughty, and goalie Jonathan Quick, and the future appears to be bright. They also have a good amount of grit to go along with skill, meaning they could very well upset the Canucks if they get to Roberto Luongo early and rattle his confidence.

Andrew: Canucks in seven

Joe: Kings in seven

4. Phoenix Coyotes vs. 5. Detroit Red Wings

It may all be a conspiracy, but the constantly in-flux Phoenix Coyotes are in the NHL playoffs. With a real coach behind the bench in Dave Tippett and a stud goalie in llya Bryzgalov, the Coyotes are for real. They play defense among the best in the league, and added some offensive reinforcements at the trade deadline. This team appears to be hungry and motivated despite all the ownership turmoil, and the play of Bryzgalov will go a long way in determining how far they can go in the playoffs.

Despite a late season surge, the Red Wings are simply not as good as last season. Jimmy Howard is certainly an upgrade in net over Chris Osgood, but he is only a rookie. The Red Wings have lost some key parts from the last two Finals teams. They are a savvy, experienced bunch, though, meaning they are always dangerous. This is probably not their year, however.

Andrew: Coyotes in seven

Joe: Red Wings in six