Who is the MVP for Round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs?

As the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs comes to a conclusion following the Game 7 matchup Monday between the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils, Daily Faceoff insider Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk take to the #AskDFO inbox to answer your question.

This week they talk all about who was the MVP of the first round. Was it Matthew Tkachuk helping his Florida Panthers defeat the Presidents Trophy winners, Boston Bruins? Was it Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner who helped Toronto get to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in 19 years, or perhaps maybe it’s Roope Hintz who dominated the series against the Minnesota Wild? Find out what the guys had to say.

Tyler Yaremchuk: This one comes from Tony Couture in the Daily Faceoff YouTube chat, and he wants to know if you’ve got an early Conn Smythe to pick through one round of the playoffs. It’s tough to do, but I will say that our friends at Betano do have Connor McDavid as the favourite, followed by Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. But, who’s one player who has maybe stood out as the MVP of round one? 

Frank Seravalli: Matthew Tkachuk. That would be my round one MVP; I know that’s not a Conn Smythe winner, but that’s the guy I would pick. 

Tyler Yaremchuk: if I had to throw a name into the ring here and someone whose odds I actually like over on Betano, it would be Roope Hintz of the Dallas Stars. He’s set at 17:1 and had 12 points in round one, two points per game and five more points than anyone else on that team. Joe Pavelski went down, and Hintz stepped up and was a big reason why that top line kept humming.

You can watch the full episode here…