The New York Rangers secured a playoff spot first and ended the NHL season with the best record, earning the Presidents’ Trophy. The Washington Capitals barely made it into the playoffs after winning their last game of the season.
Now, these two teams from the Metropolitan Division are facing off in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade.
New York’s coach, Peter Laviolette, knows the Capitals well as he spent three years coaching them before joining the Rangers last summer. However, he doesn’t think it will give his team a big advantage since they’ve had similar performances in their four games this season, each winning twice on home ice and totaling nine goals each.
“It works both ways,” Laviolette said. “They also understand my strategies and systems… It comes down to who executes their game plan better on the ice.”
The first game of this best-of-7 series is on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers, aiming for their first championship in 30 years, have the fourth-best odds to win the Stanley Cup along with Colorado and Edmonton, according to Bet MGM Sportsbook. Meanwhile, the Capitals have the lowest odds, especially after finishing the season with a poor scoring record compared to other playoff teams since 1991.
“Everyone might say we shouldn’t be here because of our goal differential, but I believe in this team,” said Washington coach Spencer Carbery.
“I know we’re not just satisfied with making it to the Stanley Cup playoffs. We want to show what we can do as a team and give it our all.”
New York only lost two games in a row once until early January. After a tough stretch where they lost eight out of 12 games later in the month, the Rangers bounced back and won 10 games in a row.
The Rangers were the best in the league at coming back from behind to win games, with 28 comeback victories. They were also tied with the Detroit Red Wings, who didn’t make the playoffs, for the most third-period comebacks, with 14.
