Remember back in the day when you played a fighting game like Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter and you'd select your favorite fighter then wait as the computer randomly selected the opponent? It didn't matter who you'd face first (Blanka, Ryu, Guile or Chun Li), YOU WERE GETTING A GOOD FIGHT. Those games weren't Punchout and there was no Glass Joe to start you off. Well, since the Blueshirts punched their first ticket to the post-season since 2017, they are waiting for the opponent to PRESS START on their playoff match-up. However, there's plenty of factors could transpire to determine who the Rangers will face in the first round.
If the Rangers remain where they are in the standings, there's two potential match-ups that could find the Broadway stage. Rangers would host either the Pittsburgh Penguins (currently 3rd | 97 pts in 77 games) or the Washington Capitals (currently 4th | 94 pts in 75 games). Assuming that Washington wins their games in hand, they could leap frog the Penguins and the Rangers avoid Sidney Crosby and company. In that case the team the Rangers started the season against - and the reason they reshaped their team - would give the Rangers all the physical presence they can handle right off the bat.
Oh yeah they got Alexander Ovechkin, who has scored plenty over the playoff battles between these clubs in 2009, 2011-2013 and 2015. There's that pesky Tom Wilson, who hasn't done much vs the Rangers since opening night. Neither team has a goalie that you fear. Ilya Samsonov and Tristan Jarry don't exactly have playoff pedigrees. Samsonov has that dreadful Craig Smith OT winner (above) he surrendered to Boston last year and Jarry set up Josh Bailey's Game 5 winner that ultimately gave away the series to the Islanders (below). Pittsburgh scored four goals in four games against the Rangers this season, but do you really want to tempt fate by getting more Sidney Crosby?
"Do you REALLY want to tempt fate by getting more Sidney Crosby?"
But what if the Rangers get ONE MORE POINT than the Carolina Hurricanes and win the Metropolitan Division? Their reward would likely be one of the Atlantic Division teams that couldn't make the top 3 slots. No big deal. It's only a division where every playoff team is on pace to get 100 points... 100 FREAKING POINTS TO A WILD CARD?!!!! Come on, who could they end up playing? Well...the CURRENT two time defending Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning. Yes, the Rangers are 3-0 vs the Ning this season and TWO of this victories were against starting goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, but do you really want to go up against the rope-a-doping Lightning that are like a lion in the weeds waiting for the "REAL" season to start? Then again the Boston Bruins have 42 points in their last 32 games and Jeremy Swayman looked to solidify the goal from the Bs. The second year Boston goaltender has 12 wins in 18 games started with a .915 save % and a 2.45 GAA. However, he's cooled off since mid-march with a 3.10 GAA in March and 3.66 in April. Certainly a worthy doormat for the Rangers unless the Bs Perfection line (Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak) reunites to terrorize the Blueshirts.
Bottom line, there's no easy road to the Stanley Cup. If there was, plenty of teams would try to lose to get the team they want. However, careful what you wish for cause if you get the "easy" first round opponent, you may get your worst nightmare. Remember the "easy" play-in round for the Rangers in 2020? That team they beat soundly every game that season and then that team swept them in the series for the ONLY sweep of the play-in round. Oh yeah, that was the Carolina Hurricanes. The best answer is always "just win and get ready for whoever is coming next." It's going to be a good team and there's no running from it. You wanna be the best, you'll have to beat the best.
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