I can't imagine the Whizzers getting through to the Eastern Conference finals. I don't see them as having top 6 in the east talent so they'd have to survive the play in (which they could make), then win 2 rounds to get to the finals. Too much depth even in the East for that.
Commies just need 2 games, and there's a lot of mediocrity in the 7-10 to 10-7 range, but mediocrity is still an aspiration for them.
As between the Caps and the Nats, structurally the NHL seems like the easiest for a low seed to advance. Hot goalie, more frequent 8 over 1 upsets, maybe one last healthy season from the old war horses that are around. I could see Ovie et al pulling off the same sort of last hurrah that Bergeron / Krejci / Marchand etc... did. The wild card, literally and figuratively, are the Nats. I think the core is there and it depends on augmenting it. That's a mystery due to ownership more than anything. It'll be nice if there's an in-house solution to 3rd and someone emerges as an ace, but I don't think 2026 is ridiculous for going deep in the playoffs.
Caps will get in 2 seasons before the Nats are ready, so I'm going with the Caps.
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