NHL playoff goalie analysis: Everything you need to know about all 8 series

The Stanley Cup playoffs have arrived, which means it’s time for goaltending to take center stage.

Every year, teams outperform expectations thanks to terrific play in net, while others fall flat when they don’t get saves. Predicting which way it will go is tough, but there are indicators we can use to help.

Rather than looking at each team’s offense and goaltending as a whole, we’ve looked through a more narrow lens, using the NHL’s player and puck-tracking data. How do the playoff teams score their goals? What areas of the ice are they scoring from? Why are they effective from those areas, and how does the opposing goalie in each series perform against those specific types of shots?

We’ve broken down the goaltending for all eight first-round series, looking closely at how each netminder matches up against the specific offensive attack he’ll face.

Stat of the series: Igor Shesterkin led the NHL in goals saved above expected (16.7) and shutouts (4) after the All-Star break.

After a bit of a rocky start to the season, Shesterkin returned to his usual, elite self over the second half, and that makes the Rangers as scary as any team in the playoffs. He wasn’t over-taxed during the regular season, thanks to Jonathan Quick’s resurgence, and with a 25-save shutout in the finale, Shesterkin is playing his best hockey at the right time.

Washington doesn’t pose many threats outside of Alex Ovechkin’s blistering shot. The Capitals are the worst offensive team in the playoffs, ranking 28th in the NHL with only 2.63 goals per game. If there’s a bright spot, it’s their long-range shooting, in which they rank 14th in goals (17) and eighth in shooting percentage (3.6). Defenseman John Carlson has a cannon of a shot from the blue line, ranking in the top 4 percent of all NHL players in shots (85) and goals (4) from more than 43 feet from the net.

The good news for the Rangers is that Shesterkin is excellent on these shots. His .981 save percentage on long-range shots is well above the league average. He likes playing further out of his net than most goalies, and that depth gives shooters almost no net to shoot at. Combine that with Shesterkin’s great hands and puck-tracking, and he’s incredibly difficult to beat from distance, where he’s allowed only six goals all season.

The biggest key to Shesterkin’s aggressive style is his incredible lateral quickness, which allows him to play with more depth than most while maintaining the ability to explode across the crease in the event of a pass.

In three starts versus the Capitals this season, Shesterkin was 2-1-0 with a .926 save percentage. Over his career, he’s 8-4-0 with a .916 save percentage.

Big question: Can Charlie Lindgren keep the magic going?

It might surprise you to know that Shesterkin doesn’t even have the most goals saved above expected of every goalie in this series. Lindgren’s 18.58 GSAx ranked ninth in the NHL this season. It’s been a special year for the…