Today, NHL.com previews the New Jersey Devils vs. New York Rangers matchup in Round 1 of the Eastern Conference Playoffs.
Devils du New Jersey (2) vs Rangers de New York (3)
Devils : 52-22-8
Rangers : 47-22-13
Matches this season : NJD 3-0-1; NEW 1-2-1
Game number one : Tuesday (time to be determined)
The Hudson River rivalry moves into the playoffs for the first time in 11 years.
The New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers will meet in the spring tournament for the seventh time when they meet in the first round.
It’s the first series between these two rivals since the Eastern Conference Finals in 2012, when the Devils won in six games to reach the Stanley Cup Final.
Since then, the Devils and Rangers have never been in the playoffs at the same time. New Jersey is back in the playoffs for the first time since 2018, which was the team’s first appearance in the tournament since 2012.
“It’s a rivalry”, launched the center player of the Rangers Mika Zibanejad. “They’re across the river and they’re tough opponents. They had a very good regular season. All of our games against them have been close. It will be very pleasant. »
The Devils are back in the playoffs after setting team records in wins (52) and points (112). They had 27 wins and 63 points last season.
“We talked about the first leg,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. “The first step was to make sure we were going to play good hockey and make the playoffs. And now the stakes are even higher. The opportunity to deliver the goods and keep moving forward is before us, and we must seize it. »
The Rangers are back in the playoffs after reaching Game 6 of the Eastern Finals last season, when they admitted running out of gas against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
They were slow to find their groove with an 11-10-5 record at the start of December, following a 5-2 home loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 3. But they won their next seven games and went 36-12-8 in their last 56 meetings.
“There’s no doubt we’ve had our ups and downs,” said Rangers captain Jacob Oven. “I think we know what we are capable of and we know the goal. I love our team heading into the playoffs and I think we’re ready to get going. »
They could make the difference
Devils : Jack Hughes set a franchise record for single-season points with 99 (43 goals, 56 assists) in 78 games. He will play in the playoffs for the first time, as New Jersey failed to make the spring tournament in its first three seasons after being the first overall pick in the 2019 draft. Hughes had at least one point in 58 of the 78 games he has played this season. He finished the regular season with an eight-game point streak (three goals, 10 assists).
Video: CBJ@NJD: Hughes, through and through!
Rangers : Rangers are full of elite players, but Zibanejad could be the most dangerous. He led New York with 39 goals and his personal best 91 points placed him second behind Artemi Panarin (92). He finished the season on a streak of six games with at least one point (one goal, eight assists) and he plays in all situations. He notably led the Rangers with 20 goals and 39 points on the power play.
In front of the net
Devils : Vitek Vanecek hatched into his first season with the Devils, his third in the NHL. He set personal bests for games played (52), starts (48), wins (33), goals-against average (2.45), save percentage (.911) and shutouts ( 3). There was concern a month ago when Vanecek went 4-3-0 with a 3.59 GAA and .862 save percentage between Feb. 21 and March 14, but he’s bounced back since, going 5-3-1 with a 2.12 GAA and .922 save percentage in his most recent nine games.
Rangers : The good news for Rangers is that the last quarter of the season was the goalkeeper’s best part of the season Igor Shesterkin. He started 16 of the last 23 games and went 12-3-1 with a 1.98 GAA, .934 save percentage and two shutouts. Shesterkin returned to his best when the time was right and finished the season with a 37-13-8 record, 2.48 GAA, .916 save percentage and three shutouts in 58 games after won the Vézina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender last season.
Interesting statistics
Devils : The Devils’ 28 road wins put them tied with the Colorado Avalanche for second in the NHL, behind the Boston Bruins (31). They finished tied with the Seattle Kraken for fourth in the NHL in goals-against average (3.52) and eighth in goals against per game (2.71).
Rangers : The Rangers are 12-3-4 in their last 19 games and have never allowed more than three goals in that stretch. They fielded two scorers with 90 or more points (Panarin and Zibanejad), the first since 1991-92, when Mark Messier and Brian Leetch had 107 and 102 points, respectively. New York was fourth in goals against average per game (2.63) and tied for 11th in goals scored per game (3.33).
Imponderables
Devils : We do not talk enough about Dawson Mercer, with all the offensive talent there is in New Jersey. But the 21-year-old striker has been a true Swiss army knife for the Devils this season. He played 82 games for a second consecutive season and registered 57 points (27 goals, 29 assists), while playing 16:34 per game on average. He’s also used on the power play and on the penalty kill, and the Devils can use him as a winger on the top-6 or as a third-line center.
Rangers : Filip Chytil is coming off the best season of his career with 45 points (22 goals, 23 assists) in 74 games. Chytil sounds the charge on Rangers ‘youth trio’ – with Kaapo Kako et Alexis Lafreniere – thanks to his speed and north-south play to create scoring chances and cause turnovers on the forecheck. The Rangers are 21-0-2 when Chytil, Kakko and Lafrenière each have a point in a game (3-1 in the playoffs last year).
Video: CBJ@NYR: Chytil gives Rangers the lead
Devils planned roster
Tomas Tatar — Nico Hischier — Dawson Mercer
Ondrej Palat — Jack Hughes — Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier — Erik Haula — Yegor Sharangovich
Miles Wood — Michael McLeod — Nathan Bastian
Kevin Bahl — Dougie Hamilton
Jonas Siegenthaler — Damon Severson
Ryan Graves — John Marino
Vitek Vanecek
Mackenzie Blackwood
Entrenched : Luke Hughes, Jesper Boqvist, Curtis Lazar, Brendan Smith
Hurt : Jonathan Bernier (hip)
Planned formation of Rangers
Chris Kreider — Mika Zibanejad — Patrick Kane
Artemi Panarin– Vincent Trocheck — Vladimir Tarasenko
Alexis Lafrenière — Filip Chytil — Kaapo Kakko
Tyler Motte — Barclay Goodrow — Jimmy Vesey
Ryan Lindgren — Adam Fox
K’Andre Miller — Jacob Oven
Niko Mikkola — Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin
Jaroslav Halak
Entrenched : Ben Harpur
Hurt : None
