With four games remaining after Sunday night’s 5-2 win over the Canadiens, the Rangers’ first-round playoff opponent is still up in the air.
Unlike last season, when the Blueshirts were scheduled to play the Devils for months, the standings change almost daily as Eastern Conference clubs compete for the final postseason standings.
The Rangers were scheduled to play a Round 1 rematch against the Penguins on Sunday morning, but the game was moved to the Red Wings after Detroit’s win over the Sabers later that day.
Considering there are several other teams still in the mix, everything could change again in the coming weeks.
In addition to Pittsburgh, which is pushing forward with great play from captain Sidney Crosby, and Detroit, which is aiming for its first postseason appearance since 2016, the Rangers could also face the Islanders and Flyers. or uppercase.
The Lightning are also on an impressive road to the end of the season, but may have had enough wins recently to move them out of a potential first-round matchup with the Rangers.
But you can never say “never” in the NHL.
Either way, the Rangers are on pace to secure home-ice advantage in the first round for the second time in the past three seasons.
Entering Sunday’s game, the Rangers’ home scoring percentage was .730, which ranked third in the NHL.
They come into the game with a 27-10-0 record at MSG and have won 13 of their last 16 home games.
Zach Jones returned to action for the second time this month after serving as a healthy scratch in the previous two games.
He returned to his usual position on the left side of leading duo Braden Schneider.
As a result, Erik Gustafsson was a healthy scratch along with Chad Ruhwedel.
This is the first time Gustafsson has been a healthy scratch this season.
“Gus has been great all year,” head coach Peter Laviolette said after the Rangers’ morning skate at the MSG Training Center. “We’re going to play Jones and give him a fight. Once that’s done, we’ll move on.”
Vincent Trocheck has been selected as the recipient of the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award.
The honor is decided by the fans and given to players who have gone “above and beyond the call of duty.”
