The New York Rangers have been on an absolute tear since the trade deadline when they acquired superstar forward Patrick Kane. The team’s offense has taken a step in the right direction and the goaltending has lived up to the lofty expectations that Rangers fans should have considering their tandem between Igor Shesterkin and Jaroslav Halak.
Since the Trade Deadline
Since the trade deadline the Rangers have won 8 out of their 11 games and own an impressive +17 goal differential in that span. The team has scored some truly signature wins recently with wins at Florida, at Carolina, and two resounding shutout home victories over the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Nashville Predators.
While some may feel like blowing out those teams isn’t much of an accomplishment, I would disagree. The Penguins and Predators have been fighting for their playoff lives and they showed up to New York and never had a chance in their games. It goes to show just how dominant this Rangers team can be – especially in first round matchups, as that is the caliber of team that the Rangers will be up against to begin with after such a successful regular season.
The Rangers are coming off a season where they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals and were only two wins away from making their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance since 2014. The Rangers fought hard against the Tampa Bay Lightning but relied too heavily on their goaltending to propel them past teams. This year, however, it seems the offense will be able to carry its slack and match the goaltending output.
Playoffs
A team that I think that could have serious trouble with the Rangers come playoff time is the Boston Bruins. The only way the Bruins will lose a series is if they are up against a team that is able to produce offense as well as quality goaltending.
The Rangers are firing on all cylinders right now and teams with championship hopes like the Bruins should hope to steer clear of them in the playoffs. Playoff wins come down to marginal victories, and the Rangers have a roster that can compete with anyone situationally.
