Early returns suggested that the second round of the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs would be over in a hurry, but with teams mounting comebacks in the Eastern Conference, there is still plenty left to be decided.

The Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens will do battle in Game 6 Tuesday, as the Habs have won consecutive contests since going down 3-0. Also, the New York Rangers have battled back from a 3-1 deficit against the Washington Capitals to force a decisive Game 7 Wednesday.

The winners will join the NHL‘s version of the Final Four with the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks having already advanced to the Western Conference Final.

As the second round nears its conclusion, here is a rundown of the remaining schedule, as well as predictions for who will come out on top.

Playoff Bracket (via NHL on Twitter)

Whose bracket looks like this? #NHLBracketChallenge by @SamsungCanada http://t.co/gGlJrmGajs pic.twitter.com/f9ppbNrfLl

— NHL (@NHL) April 30, 2015

*Although not reflected in the bracket graphic, the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks have advanced to the Western Conference Final by defeating the Minnesota Wild (4-0) and Calgary Flames (4-1), respectively.

Second-Round Schedule

Second-Round Predictions

Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

The Bolts have had the Habs‘ number all season long, but now that the Canadiens have managed to win two games in a row, momentum is on their side as they enter Game 6 in Tampa.

In order to force a Game 7, though, Montreal will have to beat the Lightning on the road. While the past two games haven’t gone their way, the Lightning have to like their chances of closing out the series on home ice due largely to their depth of talent.

Perhaps no team in the league has a more dangerous crop of forwards than Tampa. Tyler Johnson, Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat are just a few of the guys who can strike at any moment. Johnson has been chief among them during the playoffs as the NHL’s leading goal scorer.

As evidenced by this stat, courtesy of NHL.com’s Pete Jensen, the Bolts find ways to win when Johnson is hitting the back of the net:

.@TBLightning are 5-0 when Tyler Johnson scores a goal this postseason. Has 8 of their 27 playoff goals (30%), & a point on 4 of their 7 GWG

— Pete Jensen (@NHLJensen) May 7, 2015

Because of that, the Canadiens figure to game-plan heavily in order to stop the diminutive American. They must remain cognizant of Tampa’s other forwards, though, especially since the previously slumping Stamkos now has points in four straight games.

Montreal may feel as though it has a mental edge over Tampa Bay since likely Vezina Trophy winner and Hart Trophy candidate Carey Price is a steadier presence between the pipes than Ben Bishop. Even so, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper insists that his team isn’t intimidated, according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet:

For us, we’ve had success against Carey Price. So he, to us, is not the mental block just because we’ve played them so many times in the last couple years and we look back and his numbers against the Tampa Bay Lightning are very pedestrian compared to the rest of the teams.

That doesn’t make him any less a goaltender. We’ve just found a way a little bit to have some success.

The Lightning will be playing with fire if they lose Tuesday and allow the Canadiens to force a Game 7. The team with better goaltending would have a huge advantage in that scenario, not to mention the fact that Montreal would get to play in front of its raucous home crowd.

Game 6 is a must-win contest for the Habs, and while it technically isn’t for the Bolts, they need to have a mindset that believes otherwise.

Provided the Lightning show desperation and channel what they were able to do in the first three games of the series, they’ll find a way to win Game 6 and halt Montreal’s comeback.

Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers

Jared Silber/Getty Images

Like the Canadiens, the Rangers are currently playing with the utmost confidence as they have won back-to-back games and forced a Game 7 against the Capitals with a spot in the Eastern Conference Final on the line.

The Caps have had their chances to close things out, but they haven’t found a way to seal the deal. As pointed out by legendary interviewer Larry King, Washington seems to struggle when it has an opportunity to deliver a finishing blow:

Why can’t the Washington Capitals ever win the big game? #itsmy2cents

— Larry King (@kingsthings) May 11, 2015

Perhaps that will change in Game 7, but it won’t be easy as the Capitals will have to play at Madison Square Garden. Also, while Caps goalie Braden Holtby started the series fantastically, he has been overtaken by Henrik Lundqvist over the past couple games in terms of performance.

That is compounded by the fact that the Blueshirts know a thing or two about playing close contests in the postseason, according to ESPN Stats & Info:

Rangers force Game 7 by defeating Capitals 4-3. 13th straight 1-goal game in postseason for the Rangers

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 11, 2015

With that said, Washington is a veteran team when it comes to playing in decisive games, per SportsCenter:

Rangers-Capitals will meet in ANOTHER Game 7. It’s the 4th time in their last 5 playoff meetings to need 7 games. pic.twitter.com/K5PIZx79GL

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 11, 2015

Something has to give, and it is tough to go against the Rangers at this point. Not only do they have the better goaltending, but they are the defending Eastern Conference champions, while the Caps tend to stall out at this point in the postseason all too often.

Washington has a fighting chance since superstar winger Alexander Ovechkin can bust out at any time, but the Rangers have done an excellent job of containing him in this series.

After watching big forwards like Chris Kreider and Rick Nash make the difference for New York in Game 6, it is clear that the Rangers are better equipped to win big playoff games than the Capitals. Because of that, they will manage to complete the comeback and win Game 7 at MSG.

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