The Tampa Bay Lightning made history in the regular season with an NHL record-matching 62 wins and hope to continue their dominance in the playoffs when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets for Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round series Wednesday. The Lightning have won all six games against the Blue Jackets the last two seasons, outscoring them 17-3 in three victories in 2018-19, but they know little of that matters now.

Stellar goaltending and a worst-to-first defense that allowed 100 fewer goals than last season have the New York Islanders in position to enjoy home-ice advantage in a playoff series for the first time since 1988. The Islanders look to gain the upper hand on Wednesday in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round set against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, who have secured a playoff berth in 13 consecutive seasons.

The St. Louis Blues are one of the hottest teams in hockey entering the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and head to Winnipeg for Game 1 on Wednesday against a Jets squad that stumbled through the past three months. The Jets, who led the Western Conference in early January, went 16-16-3 since Jan. 19 and lost the Central Division title to Nashville in the final two weeks while the Blues went 30-10-5 since Jan. 1 to tie Winnipeg in the standings with 99 points.

The Nashville Predators had to go to the final night of the regular season to win the Central Division title but, as they found out a year ago, that does not guarantee playoff success. Making a fifth successive trip to the postseason, Nashville faces a familiar foe when it hosts the Dallas Stars on Wednesday night in a Western Conference first-round matchup.

The San Jose Sharks made quite the splash prior to the season by acquiring star defenseman Erik Karlsson, although the two-time Norris Trophy recipient was plagued by injuries before returning for the finale. A presumably healthy Karlsson looks to help the Sharks avenge last year's postseason exit at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights when the teams open their Western Conference first-round series on Wednesday in San Jose.