Grantland: The bandwagon fan's guide to the NHL playoffs

The NHL playoffs are here, and if you cheer for one of the 16 teams that made the cut, you know what you need to do: Put fresh batteries in the remote, kiss your loved ones good-bye, and get ready for the emotional roller coaster that you’re about to ride.

But what if your team didn’t make it? What if you find yourself looking for a bandwagon to jump on over the next few weeks? Well, in that case you could refuse to do that because bandwagon-jumpers are the absolute worst fans in sports better choose carefully!

It’s not an easy decision. In fact, choosing a temporary team can be one of the toughest calls a sports fan can make. You want a team that’s fun to watch, is riding a nice story, and preferably has a chance to win at least a round or two. You might prefer a franchise with some recent success, but not so much that you seem like a front-runner. And of course, you’ll want to be associating yourself with a worthy fan base, even if the relationship is only going to be short term.

I’m here to help. So I went through all 16 playoff teams and ranked them in terms of their desirability as a bandwagon destination. If you want someone to root for during the postseason but you’re not sure which team to choose, consult this handy guide to make sure you don’t make a decision you’ll regret.

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Eastern Conference playoff preview

Mandatory playoff preview week continues. Yesterday we took a look at the Western Conference. Given the absence of a Northern or Southern Conference, I guess that means today we're stuck with the East.

#8 New York Islanders vs. #1 Pittsburgh Penguins

The Islanders kept it close until a
second Penguins player showed up.

The view from Long Island: Will try to shut down the Penguins' best players the same way they always do: By giving the puck to Brooks Orpik at the point and hoping he takes a slapshot.

The view from Pittsburgh: Will have to play a disciplined game, and try not to take a bunch of too-many-men penalties every time Dan Bylsma yells "Get out there, future hall-of-famer!"

Player to watch: David Volek, on a YouTube loop, while quietly muttering "I believe in miracles" to yourself.

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Western Conference playoff preview

Another NHL regular season is in the books. The standings are set, 14 teams have been sent packing, and the matchups have been finalized. And that means it's playoff preview time.

We'll cover the Eastern Conference tomorrow. Today, let's start off with a look at the Western Conference matchups.

#8 Minnesota Wild vs. #1 Chicago Blackhawks

Damn you, google image search for "most recent
meaningful Minnesota/Chicago hockey game"

The view from Minnesota: The team spent almost $200 million in free agency so Wild fans could watch a championship caliber team, and now they can for four games until the Blackhawks move on to round two.

The view from Chicago: Know that playoff success can come down to taking advantage of just a few short seconds on one single shift, which is good since that's probably all the time that Ryan Suter will be spending on the bench each game.

Player to watch: Duncan Keith, assuming he's soaping himself up in the shower and you are an impudent lady reporter, Don Cherry assumes.

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Grantland grab bag: No, I'm pretty sure Albert wasn't supposed to be Brazilian

In the weekly grab bag: A week of dumb outrage, don't mess with Tony Twist, a debate about where games are too loud, and more Albert ad theories.

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Grantland: A dozen possible first round matchups I'd love to see

The NHL playoffs are less than a week away, and we’re starting to get a clearer picture of exactly which teams will be involved.

But while several are locked into a playoff spot, there’s still plenty of uncertainty over what the actual first-round matchups will be. So this seems like a good time to start thinking ahead to some potential pairings.

We’re not necessarily going to worry about the most likely scenarios, just the potentially best ones. To keep from veering too far into wishful thinking, we’ll limit it to matchups that have at least a 15 percent chance of happening, according to Sports Club Stats.

Here are a dozen possible playoff matchups that hockey fans can start getting excited about.

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