The first round matchup between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Nashville Predators features two teams that have a couple of things in common"”they slog into the playoffs far from being in top form, although they have shown early in the season how dangerous they can be when all cylinders are firing. That would be the question heading into Game 1, which version of each team will show up in the playoffs?

As ESPN points out, during a torrid stretch back in November all the way to December, the Blackhawks went 16-3-1. Since the turn of the year, though, they've just gone a pedestrian 25-19-4, and come into the postseason losers of their last four games.

Just a couple of months ago, the Predators looked formidable at 41-13-7, but in their last 21 games, they've just managed a 6-12-3 record in their final 21 games, and have dropped their last six coming into the matchup with the Hawks.

Said Blackhawsk defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson, "They know how good they can play and they've been ready for the playoffs for such a long time, too. So, I think when it comes to when the puck drops against us, I think they're going to elevate their game exactly the way that we're thinking about doing."

The Blackhawks enter playoffs with marked offensive struggles, but that should look to have a boost with the expected return from injury of Patrick Kane. And while the Predators haven't been puncturing the back of the net themselves, this series could ultimately be decided by the respective keepers.

According to ESPN, the Predators Pekka Rinne finished the season first in quality start percentage (.721), while the Hawks Corey Crawford came in third at .696.

The former's play could mark how far the Predators' season goes, as the struggles Nashville has had in the latter part of the season can be traced to Rinne's own personal struggles.

Game 2 of the Blackhawks vs. Predators is on Friday at 9:30 pm, check out the live stream link here.