The Eastern Conference semifinal is providing a heavyweight bout as the top two teams in the Metropolitan Division and two of the three best regular-season squads in the NHL, the New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes, square off.
The Rangers made easy work of the Washington Capitals with a four-game sweep. It was the first first-round sweep in a playoff series since 2022 and the first time the Blueshirts swept a first-round series since 2007.
Carolina joins them in the second round after disposing of the New York Islanders in five games — a 6-3 victory on Tuesday night punching their ticket to the conference semifinals for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
This is a rematch of the second-round series in 2022 in which the Rangers squeaked by the Hurricanes in seven games.
Rangers vs. Hurricanes Regular Season Tale of the Tape
| Rangers | Stat | Hurricanes |
| 55-23-4 (114 points) | Record (Points) | 52-23-7 (111 points) |
| 1st in Metro | Finish | 2nd in Metro |
| 69.5% | Points% | 67.7% |
| 278 (6th in NHL) | Goals For | 277 (7th) |
| 226 (7th) | Goals Against | 211 (4th) |
| 26.42% (3rd) | Power Play % | 26.91% (2nd) |
| 84.48% (3rd) | Penalty Kill % | 86.43% (1st) |
Rangers vs. Hurricanes Playoffs Tale of the Tape
| Rangers | Stat | Hurricanes |
| 4-0 | Record | 4-1 |
| Swept Capitals | Last Round | Beat Islanders in 5 |
| 15 | Goals For | 19 |
| 7 | Goals Against | 12 |
| 37.5% | Power Play % | 33.3% |
| 88.2% | Penalty Kill % | 72.7% |
Why the Rangers can win
Special teams are clicking: The Rangers have had one of the best power plays and penalty kills in the postseason. Their five power-play goals in the first round were tied for second-most in the NHL while their two shorthanded goals were the most. New York killed off 15 of Washington’s 17 power plays in the first round.
Mika Zibanejad: Oftentimes, the Rangers’ Stanley Cup quest has been derailed because their most important players have not shown up in the biggest moments. Zibanejad is bucking that trend, though it is important to take it with a grain of salt considering just how poor of a team the Capitals are. He posted seven points (1 G, 6 A) in four games and was vital to the special teams’ success. Four of his points came on the power play and he came up with a big assist on K’Andre Miller’s shorthanded goal in Game 2.
Igor Shesterkin: Those early-season struggles are firmly in the rearview mirror as Shesterkin was brilliant in the first round against Washington. Going 4-0, he saved 94 of the 101 shots he faced (.931 SV%) with a sterling goals-against average of 1.75. He has lost just four of his last 18 starts and has allowed more than three goals just twice. He will have to keep up this level of play against a marauding Hurricanes team.
Projected Rangers Lines
- Chris Kreider – Mika Zibanejad – Jack Roslovic
- Artemi Panarin – Vincent Trocheck – Alexis Lafreniere
- Will Cuylle – Alex Wennberg – Kaapo Kakko
- Jimmy Vesey – Barclay Goodrow – Jonny Brodzinski
- Ryan Lindgren – Adam Fox
- K’Andre Miller – Braden Schneider
- Erik Gustafsson – Jacob Trouba
- Igor Shesterkin
- Jonathan Quick
Why the Hurricanes can win
Non-stop attacking: The Hurricanes are the complete opposite of what the Capitals are. Rod Brind’Amour’s men are a fast-paced, relentless team with the highest work rate in the league. They ran the Islanders into the ground amidst their aggressive style of play and will look to keep that momentum when they head to Madison Square Garden. No team in the postseason has come close to the Hurricanes’ 348 shot attempts across five games. The second-place Avalanche are more than 50 behind at 291. That will put the Rangers’ defense to the test considering they ranked 16th in the NHL with just over 15 blocked shots per game.
Quick-striking abilities: Carolina showed that it can turn a game on its head in mere seconds against the Islanders. In Game 2, they overturned a 3-0 deficit to win by scoring two goals in nine seconds in the third period. They topped that by scoring twice in eight seconds in Game 5 to break a 3-3 third-period tie that put the Islanders away for good.
Skill to match: The Rangers have their embarrassment of riches when it comes to playmakers, whether it be Zibanejad, Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, or Adam Fox. But the Hurricanes have just as skilled a front line of playmakers Their first line of Jake Guentzel, Sebastian Aho, and Seth Jarvis has been one of the best trios in the NHL since Guentzel was acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins at the trade deadline. In 17 regular-season games, Guentzel posted eight goals and 17 assists (25 points) working alongside Jarvis, who potted three goals with four assists in five games against the Islanders.
Projected Hurricanes Lines
- Jake Guentzel — Sebastian Aho — Seth Jarvis
- Andrei Svechnikov — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Martin Necas
- Jordan Martinook — Jordan Staal — Stefan Noesen
- Jack Drury — Jesperi Kotkaniemi — Teuvo Teravainen
- Jaccob Slavin — Brent Burns
- Brady Skjei — Brett Pesce
- Dmitry Orlov — Jalen Chatfield
- Frederik Andersen
- Pyotr Kochetkov
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