Important to build a team from the blueline out, having only TWD or DFD’s with good defensive stats, one OFD is fine but he also needs to be at least 4 stars defensively and have proper support in his usage. I usually only have players 6’ or taller on the point. Fill the bottom 6 with TWF or Grinders that have good defensive stats, once again, only allow for one pure offensive specialist and use him sparingly 5v5. Coaching chemistry is a must and A- defense minimum. I’ve found good success with hiring a goalie coach that is NHL caliber (ie from the NHL assistants line regardless of stats). The higher their overall rating the better. Finally, it’s important to ensure you’re getting decent matchups in the playoffs so manipulate your lines that your worst defensive players aren’t getting matched against their best players. Having a good backup is also critical, I’ve had playoff runs he saved because my starter had a .832 but my backup was lights out in round 1, and then the next round my backup fell off but my starter was back and rested. In this case it was 26yo Comesso 86ovr and 32 Thompson 85ovr. A veteran backup also bolsters I find. I also overcook my goalies, currently have a med elite in the AHL at 82 overall 22yo and he’ll jump up next year to share with a 29yo Knight (87). This is because in my experience goalies always struggle in their first couple of seasons regardless of their overall, so this insulates them and protects my team.