If the regular season ended today, the New York Rangers would be the top team in the Metropolitan Division and would get the opportunity to face the team that earned the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. It is going to be a close race to the finish for the top spot in the East as the Rangers, Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers are only separated by one point. There is a chance the Rangers could win the East and even the Presidents’ Trophy as the best regular season team in the league. So, they could either face the team in the first or second wild card spot.
In this piece, we are going to look at some of the potential opponents they could face in the first round and rank them from least concerning to most concerning. For this, we are going to look at the six teams that at least have over 70 points as of this writing. This will not include the Pittsburgh Penguins or New Jersey Devils as they are just below 70 points.
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres have not been in the conversation for a potential playoff spot until recently. They have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games and as of this writing, are four points back of the second wild card spot. If they continue to play well, they could surprise everyone and clinch a playoff berth for the first time since the 2010-11 season. Their goalie, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, has been one of the best in the league as of late and has been very good for the majority of this season. He has 23 wins, one away from being in the top ten in the league. He also has a .915 save percentage and is tied for third in the league in shutouts with five. He has been the key factor for the Sabres over this run and if they are able to make the playoffs, he is going to be the main reason why.
While they have been playing well lately, the Rangers have been playing well all season and this is why the Sabres would be the least concerning first round opponent. They lack the playoff experience that the Rangers have and while Luukkonen has played well, Igor Shesterkin is playing his best hockey of the season right now and is a proven playoff performer. The Sabres also lack depth and traded away players at the trade deadline while the Rangers added players. Their lack of experience and the lack of depth throughout their lineup are the main reasons why they are the lowest-ranked team on this list.
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings have been playing well for the majority of the season and looked like a lock to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2015-16 season. However, their playoff hopes are now in jeopardy as they have gone 2-8-0 over their last ten games, which included losing seven games in a row. They now sit one point out of the playoffs as of this writing. They have also been without their captain, Dylan Larkin since the beginning of March, which is another reason why they have lost so many of these crucial games. Their goaltending is also nothing special. They are without Ville Husso, who was supposed to be their number one, but he’s been out with injury, and he wasn’t playing well before his injury. Alex Lyon and James Reimer haven’t been great either and if they do end up making it, their goaltending is their biggest weakness.
If the Red Wings and Rangers were to meet in the first round, the Rangers have the edge in all areas. They have better forward depth and more game-breaking talent. They have the better defensive group and have the biggest edge in goal with Shesterkin over any of the three Detroit goalies. Another factor the Rangers have on their side is momentum. If the Red Wings enter the playoffs on a cold streak and the Rangers continue to keep winning, it will likely not be a series that goes seven games. If they want to become a more serious threat, they need to start winning more games and winning more consistently.
Washington Capitals
As of now, the Capitals are in possession of the second wild card spot with 75 points and are one point back of third in the Metro. There are three options for them going forward. They will either get one of the two wild card spots, move up to third in the Metro or they will miss the playoffs altogether. They have gone 6-4-0 over the last ten games and have won three in a row. Alex Ovechkin is starting to heat up now after being snake-bitten for most of the season. He is leading the charge for the Capitals and while they looked out of it a few weeks ago, they have picked up their game and could be back in the playoffs after missing them last season.
Related: Rangers’ Schneider Stepping up with Trouba Out
However, the Capitals did sell off some players at the trade deadline including Anthony Mantha and longtime fan favorite, Evgeny Kuznetsov. Their depth took a big hit and if they were to match up with the Rangers in the playoffs, they do not have the depth or star power that the Rangers have and again, Shesterkin is the biggest factor in all of these potential matchups. These other teams don’t have a goalie that is as proven as he is. The Capitals have Darcy Kuemper, who won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche, but he wasn’t the reason why they won the Cup. He even got injured during that run and only had a .902 save percentage at the end of the playoffs. He is not reliable and has an injury history. So while the Capitals could make it a series – they did beat the Rangers twice this season – when the time comes in the playoffs, the Rangers would get the job done.
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders currently have 73 points and are two points out of the second wild card spot and three points out of third in the Metro Division. However, if you take away the 15 points they have gotten from losing in overtime and the shootout, they would not even be in this conversation and would have a better chance of getting the first overall pick than making the playoffs as they would rank the second to last team in the Eastern Conference. Since they are here, they could be a potential opponent for the Rangers and they would differ from the other teams listed so far because the Isles have a goalie that could match what Shesterkin can do. Ilya Sorokin, while having a down year from what he has previously done, could still be a problem since the playoffs are like the start of a new season for the players. He could easily find his game again and he would be the biggest problem for the Rangers if the two teams were to meet in the postseason.
The Islanders were known for their defense a few seasons ago and they still have a very solid group. Noah Dobson is having a great season and will likely get some consideration for the Norris Trophy. Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock are still a solid defensive pair. The biggest issue is that they have regressed from what they were a few seasons ago and finding offense is still a problem for the Isles. They don’t have any player who has hit the 30-goal mark yet and only four players with 20 or more goals. The Rangers have Artemi Panarin and Chris Kreider with 38 and 33 goals respectively. While the goaltending matchup could be seen as even, the Rangers would have the offensive and defensive edge and it would be an exciting series to watch if it happened.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers have shocked many this season as they were projected to be one of the bottom teams in the league as it seemed they were entering a rebuilding stage. However, they have been in the third spot in the Metro Division for a majority of the season and it looks like they could very well be a playoff team for the first time since 2020. They are currently on the brink of losing that third spot in the Metro as the Capitals are one point behind them and the Islanders are three points back. They have gone 4-5-1 in the last ten and have lost two in a row as of this writing. They don’t really have any superstar players, but their work ethic and the no-quit attitude they possess would be a problem for any team in a playoff series.
They are ranked ahead of the Islanders because of that aspect. They don’t have an elite goalie or as good a defense as the Islanders, but they haven’t been struggling for most of the year as the Islanders have been. They always play the Rangers hard and have played some close games against them this season. If they do make the playoffs, they could be this season’s New Jersey Devils. The team that defied expectations and could go on a run if everything comes together at the right time. The Rangers were the victims of this last season and could very well match up with the Flyers if they do fall into one of the wild card spots.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Before the season, some thought that the Tampa Bay Lightning would miss the playoffs due to them losing some key depth pieces over the past few seasons and that Andrei Vasilevskiy would miss the first two months of the season with an injury. While they haven’t had a season like in years past, they are playing very well. They are led by Nikita Kucherov, who is having a Hart Trophy-worthy season and because they are currently seven points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for third in the Atlantic Division, they will likely end up as the top wild card team and have to face the winner of either the Metro or Atlantic Division depending on how the season ends. If it ended today, it would be a rematch of the 2022 Eastern Conference Final between the Rangers and Lightning.
This would be the most concerning matchup for the Rangers if it were to happen. The Lightning have had their number over the years in the playoffs, beating them in 2015 and 2022. They also have the most star power out of all of these teams and even if their depth players aren’t scoring, they have the game-breaking talent that could easily take over a game by themselves. It just happened to the Rangers, as they lost 6-3 in Tampa and Brayden Point had a hat trick and six points. While the Rangers might be seen by many as the favorite going into the series, true fans know what Tampa is capable of and it would likely be a very close and tight series. If this series were to happen, let’s hope the Rangers learned their lesson from 2022, when they had a 2-0 series lead and lost the next four after taking their foot off the gas. Out of all of these potential first round opponents, the Lightning is who the Rangers want to see the least.
