The Rangers are poised to finish the regular season comfortably.
Despite a turbulent January, with a record of 5-7-2, the Blueshirts never lost their top spot in the Metropolitan Division.
It’s been theirs since Oct. 24, a fact that says a lot about not only the Rangers but the other seven teams in the metro.
Six of those clubs, excluding Washington, will have a chance to shake up the Rangers in their quest for a division title.
Five of them, excluding Carolina, will have multiple chances to hinder a clean finish.
Starting with Thursday’s game against the Devils at Prudential Center, a whopping 14 of the Rangers’ final 26 regular season games will be against in-district opponents.
A four-point game is just around the corner.
The Hurricanes entered Thursday’s game trailing the Rangers by just six points, while the Devils were four points behind the second-place wild-card Red Wings in the East.
Thursday is the first of three finals games between the Rangers and Devils, with the Devils playing to get their season back in each one.
“Those games are always intense,” Mika Zibanejad said. “Those are fun, good games. They’re not just rivals, they’re division rivals. There are two big points at stake.”
The Devils proved to be a tough matchup for the Rangers, who won seven games in the first round of the playoffs last season.
By facing the Devils three times during the home period of the season, the Rangers will have an opportunity to step up their game against a team that finished last season.
That’s what the last two months of the season are all about anyway.
But the fact that about 53 percent of the Rangers’ remaining games will carry a greater weight poses unique challenges that should be beneficial in the long run.
If the playoffs had started on Thursday, the Rangers would have tied with the Lightning in the first round of the postseason.
The wild-card race remains uncertain, especially considering that Tampa Bay and the Red Wings were separated by just one point heading into Thursday night’s games against the Capitals and Avalanche, respectively. It’s such a close battle that only time will tell. .
The same goes for the Rangers, who will have to maintain their current play if they hope to remain at the top of the metro.
Winning a division comes with weight and goals, especially when it’s a division that’s been a big part of the season.
Wild card teams typically had to put in more effort to qualify for the postseason.
The Lightning, in particular, are having one of their toughest regular seasons since the last time they missed the playoffs in 2016-17.
Meanwhile, Detroit is a team aiming to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 2015-16 season.
However, the matchup between the Rangers and Devils will have different meaning for each team.
“We have to focus on our game and what we have to do next,” head coach Peter Laviolette said. “Offense is always a part of the game for us, trying to produce and create what we want on offense. We also talk a lot about defense and see if we can make the right plays in this game. [Devils] team. They are a team with a sharp attack, so we need to get better as well. ”
