The New York Rangers wrapped up the Presidents' Trophy on Tuesday night with a 4-2 victory in New Jersey. With two games remaining, the Rangers can rest, relax and get themselves mentally prepared for a first-round matchup with...well, there are a lot of teams still fighting for the final wild-card spot in the East.
Before we look at that, one note: There is no Presidents' Trophy jinx. Winning the trophy is actually super terrific because it gives you home-ice advantage throughout the entire postseason. Of the 29 teams to win the trophy, eight have won the Stanley Cup, three lost in the Cup Final and five others reached the conference finals before bowing out.
More than half the teams to win the Presidents' Trophy have reached the NHL's final four. Finishing with the NHL's best record is not a bad thing.
Neither are most of the potential first-round matchups for the Rangers. There are six teams that could face the Rangers in Round 1; some provide favorable matchups, some look like they could give the Rangers some trouble.
Let's take a look at those six teams in order of easiest to toughest opponent.
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Dave Lozo
How the New York Rangers Match Up with Potential 1st-Round Playoff Opponents
April 8th, 2015 by Dave Lozo Leave a reply »
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