The 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs have begun with 16 teams ... and the banged-up New Jersey Devils lost their Game 1 to the Carolina Hurricanes, who have emerged as the Eastern Conference favorites.

Hockey fans, the most wonderful time of the year has arrived: the Stanley Cup playoffs. And the 2025 version might be as good as ever, with what looks like a wide-open race going into the postseason.

Shots and scenes from the Hurricanes' 3-1 Game 2 win over the New Jersey Devils in their first-round 2025 Stanley Cup ...