If you’ve had a conversation at a bar over the course of this season about the possibility of the NHL playoffs, you’ve probably discussed the possibility of a matchup between the Rangers and Panthers.
Well, here we are as the two kingpins of their respective divisions gear up for the Eastern Conference Finals, facing off in the postseason for the first time since 1997.
There’s not much to differentiate them on paper. After watching the first two rounds of play, you can praise Florida and New York’s elite goaltending, balanced scoring depth, and defensive responsibility.
But it’s the on-ice identity that will definitely leave a void in the coming weeks.
The defending conference champion Panthers were -142 favorites on FanDuel to win the series.
Maybe it has something to do with recency bias. Maybe it’s because of the firebrand hockey brand that Paul Maurice (who, despite being the fourth winningest coach of all time, still doesn’t have a Stanley Cup on his resume) has ingrained into this team.
Playing 60 minutes against Florida is exhausting. We are a team where everyone works together, implementing a tough checking approach and denying the opposition scoring chances. Florida begins quick zone escapes, scrapes in puck battles, corners opponents with strong puck possession, and even commands 5-on-5 flows.
Although it sounds familiar.
During the regular season, the only team that was better than Florida in shot attempt differential at even strength was the Hurricanes. The Rangers proved they can withstand the game’s toughest defensive challenges, take chances, and win by leveraging their burgeoning special teams.
Of course, there were exceptions where Carolina’s vanishing penalty kill helped, but the Panthers were the second-most penalized team ever throughout both the regular season and the playoffs. Boston conceded just one goal on the power play in 16 chances against the Bruins, but Boston simply couldn’t maintain a consistent man advantage all year.
The Blueshirts are 12-3 in their three regular season games against Florida and have a 31.4 percent return so far in their 10 playoff games. The outlaw approach with Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk patrolling the ice should yield bigger results than usual.
The Panthers’ suitability to call penalties stems from the fact that they are the worst club in hockey. They led the league in hits and had a wealth of extracurricular activities between games.
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Permanence has been part of the Rangers’ blueprint since Chris Drury took over the front office three years ago. If anything, April’s line brawl against the Devils was the culmination of that pursuit, proving the Rangers are more than capable of getting their hands dirty.
It could be argued that the Rangers’ success depended heavily on Artemi Panarin’s memorable season, as opposed to a lineup that featured the more balanced production of Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, and Aleksander Barkov.
But that wasn’t the case for the Rangers until last month. They have five players scoring at least one point per game, with Vincent Trocheck and Chris Kreider answering the cosmic bell.
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Sergei Bobrovsky’s return goal was uplifting. He’s playing with the same swagger that earned him his contract, but compared to Igor Shesterkin’s play, it’s a complete novelty.
Sheskterkin has scored 6.2 more goals than Bobrovsky than expected. He’s also denied 2.1 percent more shots on goal, while allowing over 60 shots in one fewer game.
After losing the first two games of the regular season, the Rangers went on to defeat the Panthers in the finals on March 23. He took control of the puck in the third period and found a shooting lane to the net for a 4-3 victory.
Florida is the only team remaining in the NHL that the Rangers had not previously beaten, and should be the last team they beat to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
Whether it’s the “curse of the President’s Trophy” or simply oddsmakers underestimating the Rangers’ ability against another strong opponent, I say it continues to deliver value.
Bet: Rangers to win the series (+118, FanDuel)
