Rangers Look To Weather the Hurricanes and Draw Closer to an Elusive Title

In a matchup that’s expected to be fast and physical, the New York Rangers will further their quest to win the Stanley Cup when they face the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday at Madison Square Garden in Game One of a best-of-seven series.The Rangers advanced to the second round by sweeping the Washington Capitals for their first four-zero playoff series since 2007. Carolina, meanwhile, defeated the New York Islanders in five games to set up a showdown between the top two teams in the Metropolitan Division. The winner advances to the Eastern Conference finals.The Rangers won two of three meetings this year between the two teams and also won a seven-game series against the Hurricanes in the second round of the 2022 playoffs where New York eventually lost to Tampa Bay in six games of the Eastern Conference Final.“Obviously, we know them pretty well,” Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren told reporters earlier this week. “They’re a pretty good hockey team. They play a fast game. They’re in your face. It’s all about us and the way we play. We need to get the pucks out and we need to support each other out there and play physical. It should be a really good series.”Neither team is making much of what happened in the playoffs two years ago. The Rangers have a new coach in Peter Laviolette and former Hurricane Vincent Trocheck is now with the Rangers. Unlike two years ago, the Rangers — 55-23-4 — have home ice after compiling a league-best record to capture the President’s Trophy. Yet Carolina — 52-23-7 — has been just as impressive, finishing just three points behind the Rangers.Carolina is trying to reach the Eastern Conference Final for the second straight year and third time since 2019. The Hurricanes were swept by the Florida Panthers in the conference final last year.“They’ve been the standard of the division for the last couple of years, and even this year they had a great season,” Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba said. “Coming in this year, that’s the team you want to overtake and be ahead of in the standings. I think we’ve gotten better and I think it’s going to be a great series.”Both clubs should be well-rested. The Rangers had a full week off after eliminating Washington on April 28, while Carolina clinched the second round by beating the Islanders, six-three, in Game Five on Tuesday. The Rangers took two days off before resuming practices in preparation for what figures to be a tight-checking high-shot volume series.“We’ve got to make sure that we’re playing the game that we want to play,” Mr. Laviolette said. “We know it’s going to be fast. We know it’s going to be competitive. That’s when I think we’re at our best and you watch that’s when they’re at their best as well. They’re on the attack, they’re checking forward, they’re pressing, pressing, pressing. You have to be ready for that from a speed standpoint and a compete standpoint.”The Hurricanes offense has benefited from the additions of Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov, acquired before the trade deadline, and the return of Andrei Svechnikov, who missed the playoffs last season due to injury. Mr. Svechnikov had five points on one goal and four assists against the Islanders. He was one of 12 different goal scorers for Carolina in the first round.“It won’t be about stopping one person,” Mr. Laviolette said. “It’ll be about how do we play against that team in all three zones and how do we go about our business.”The Rangers had ten different goal scorers in their sweep of Washington. Mr. Trocheck was the top goal scorer with three, while Rangers center Mika Zibanejad led with seven points on one goal and six assists. Artemi Panarin had just three points on two goals and one assist after scoring 120 points in the regular season.Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin extended his solid play from the regular season by allowing just seven goals on 101 shots against the Capitals. He also turned away 12 of 14 shots during the Washington power play.Carolina veteran goaltender Frederick Andersen missed 49 games while receiving treatment for blood clots. He looks 100 percent healthy after finishing the regular season winning nine of ten games and having a .912 save percentage against the Islanders.Mr. Trouba is expecting a long, grueling series. “We believe in ourselves,” he said. “We know what’s ahead of us. We know it’s going to be a hard-fought series. That’s what we’re preparing for.”

Rangers Look To Weather the Hurricanes and Draw Closer to an Elusive Title

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