Time flies when the stakes to win are high. It’s been 706 days since the Rangers defeated the Hurricanes in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinal in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs.
It was the surprise run that propped back open the Rangers’ window for Cup contention, ending an expedited rebuild. The young Rangers core had all to gain and nothing to lose then, feeding it a tablespoon of playoff hockey’s arduous nature.
That age of innocence is now long over as expectations are quite the reverse for the Presidents’ Trophy winners.
The Rangers carry the poundage of these expectations with them into another postseason test against the stingy Hurricanes, who are the gatekeepers of the Eastern Conference in the eyes of oddsmakers these days.
The ’Canes remain the market consensus favorites to win the Stanley Cup heading into Game 1’s puck drop at MSG, with odds as low as +360 at FanDuel.
The perception is this: If you can beat the Hurricanes, the sky’s the limit.
So in other words, you can thank Gary Bettman for the Rangers playing “the boss level” one round early in his controversial playoff format.
This might just be the most extreme example of a premature matchup that I can think of since the change was installed in 2013-14.
Nonetheless, Rod Brind’Amour has built up Carolina’s revered reputation brick-by-brick over the course of the past five seasons, appearing in two conference finals and two semifinals. Remember where the Rangers were back in 2018-19?
I suppose it feels as though this Hurricanes bunch has paid its dues while the Rangers are still new kids on the block.
Narratives aside, you can argue the complex style of hockey that the ’Canes use to stump everyone at five-on-five play.
They led the regular season in puck possession at even strength and have continued that trend through their swift first round series advancement against the Islanders.
But the Islanders weren’t much of a benchmark for anything and neither were the Capitals in their four-game faceplant against the Rangers.
For what it’s worth, if that Washington series had been played in the Henrik Lundqvist era, it would have likely waned on to six or seven games until he bailed the Rangers out in the 11th hour.
It’s encouraging when contenders step on the throats of significantly inferior opponents, but the playoffs really begin for both of these teams in this round — where the difficulty spikes from novice to grandmaster within days.
New York took the regular season series against Carolina, 2-1, with neither team eclipsing 30 shots on goal in any of those games.
The Rangers labored their way to those two victories both by one-goal deficits while only going 1-for-7 on their power play.
Winning without relying on special teams is a circumstance the Rangers are prepared for — it’s a necessity against a Hurricanes club that doesn’t take many penalties then traps you otherwise by clogging the ice.
Ironically, in the one game the Rangers did lose to the ’Canes by an off-kilter score of 6-1 on Jan. 2, they dominated at five-on-five and forced more than double the amount of turnovers.
That was a night Igor Shesterkin likely still wants back — and the way he’s played thereafter, he’s primed to do so.
Shesterkin is ranked No. 3 overall in goals saved above expected (4.4) and is top five in save percentage through the playoffs, allowing just three goals against 31 high-danger scoring chances.
Betting on the NHL?
Frederik Anderson had his moments in goal against the Islanders, but he wasn’t nearly as consistent through a couple of games where his defense gave him the night off.
Carolina prides itself on depth and is strong inside the circles, but the Rangers have emerged as a team with faceoff success and punch from their bottom-six forward group.
They won more than 55 percent of faceoffs in the first round, while the fourth line pumped out timely goals with six combined points.
You need to mirror the Hurricanes if you want to beat them.
It might make for a blinking contest that won’t sound many goal horns, but if there is one team that’s rehearsed the task at hand, it’s Peter Laviolette’s Rangers.
Besides, when was the last time you can recall the top overall seed of the playoffs priced as an underdog? In that sense, I suppose Bettman cut us all a bargain.
