PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 16: Ilya Sorokin #30 of the New York Islanders eyes the puck as it is played during overtime in Game One of the First Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on May 16, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) Credit: Getty Images/Emilee Chinn
You know those position-by-position analyses sportswriters have produced before postseason series since around the time the first Stanley Cup playoff was held in 1894?
They generally prove irrelevant or inaccurate once the games are played. But not always.