The New York Rangers and the Carolina Hurricanes are both coming off sensational Game 7 wins in the first round. Which team will keep it going when they meet each other on Wednesday in Carolina? Check out our preview below of this Rangers vs. Hurricanes 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs showdown.
Down 3-1 in the series, the Rangers buckled up and went down to work, not losing their focus on the job at hand to pull off a series win over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round. New York turned things around on offense and defense in the final three games of that series, outsourcing the Pens in that stretch, 14-9. Igor Shesterkin,m the best goalie in the regular season, started the Penguins series horribly but has seemingly regained his footing. That’s a good sign for the Rangers, who wouldn’t have made it to the postseason without the exploits of the likely winner of this season’s Vezina Trophy. Offensively, the Rangers will look to stay hot on the man advantage. So far in the playoffs, New York is third overall with a 31.6 PP%. Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox each have four power-play goals so far in the postseason.
The Rangers are 6-2 in their last 8 games after two days of rest.
Like the Rangers, the Hurricanes had to win a Game 7 to get out of the first round. Carolina bested the pesky Boston Bruins in seven games despite playing without starting goalie Frederik Anderson, who is still uncertain for Game 1 of the Rangers series due to a lower-body injury. If he can’t go for the series opener, the Hurricanes will look for Antti Raanta to fill in in front of the net. Ranta went 3-2-0 with a .927 SV% and 12 goals allowed on 165 shots faced against the Bruins, while third-string goalie Pyotr Kochetkov went 1-1 with a .900 SV% and six goals allowed on 60 shots against. Speaking of goalies, Shesterkin did not look like a Vezina Trophy finalist in the regular season when he was facing Carolina. Shesterkin was 0-2-0 with seven goals allowed on 60 shots faced versus the Hurricanes, who must be smelling blood in the water offensively against the Rangers. The Penguins had their way of getting prime scoring chances against New York, a great omen for Carolina, which finished the regular season no. 1 in the NHL in terms of high-danger goals (90).
The Hurricanes are 10-3 in their last 13 overall games.
