Carolina Hurricanes' dominant regular-season finish with the Eastern Conference's top record and their undefeated 8-0 playoff start through back-to-back sweeps of the Senators and Flyers have driven the bulk of trader consensus toward them as the Eastern Conference champion. The Hurricanes now await the winner of the second-round series between the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens, both of whom earned strong regular-season points totals but enter this matchup with far less postseason experience. That ongoing series remains closely contested, leaving open the possibility that either the Sabres or Canadiens could advance and challenge Carolina in the conference final, where historical patterns show even strong favorites can face momentum shifts from rest advantages or goaltending variance.