(1) Rangers - (8) Senators preview - 04-10-12
(1) Rangers vs. (8) Senators
Rangers Leading Regular Season Scorer: Marian Gaborik (right), 76 points (41 goals, 35 assists).
Senators Leading Regular Season Scorer: Jason Spezza, 84 points (34 goals, 50 assists).
Rangers Expected Starting Goaltender: Henrik Lundqvist, 39-18-5, 1.97 GAA, .930 SV%.
Senators Expected Starting Goaltender: Craig Anderson (below), 33-22-6, 2.84 GAA, .914 SV%.
Rangers Regular Season Statistics
Senators Regular Season Statistics
Rangers Injuries: Defenseman Steve Eminger (undisclosed) is day to day. Left winger Mats Zuccarello (wrist) is out. Defenseman Michael Sauer (concussion) is on injured reserve.
Senators Injuries: Center Peter Regin (shoulder) is on injured reserve.
Rangers with Stanley Cup bling: Ruslan Fedotenko, LW; Brad Richards, C; Mike Rupp, C.
Senators with Stanley Cup bling: Sergei Gonchar, D.
Something worthwhile about the Rangers: The Rangers tied a franchise record with 24 road wins this past regular season.
Something worthwhile about the Senators: The Senators had 23 wins when leading after two periods this past regular season, the fewest among any playoff team.
Something useless about the Rangers that is vaguely connected to the Penguins: Former Penguins and Rangers defenseman Sergei Zubov holds the NHL record for career postseason points with 117.
Something useless about the Senators that is vaguely connected to the Penguins: Former Penguins goaltender Patrick Lalime holds the Senators franchise record for career postseason shutouts with five.
Former Penguins on the Rangers: Ruslan Fedotenko, LW; Rick Kehoe, professional scout; Mike Rupp, C.
Former Penguins on the Senators: Matt Carkner (Carkner played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins but not the NHL club); Sergei Gonchar, D.
Who needs to be the difference for the Rangers: Gaborik and Richards. The Rangers don't produce a ton of offense. They need two two players they've doled out big money two the past two offseason to carry the load in terms of producing goals. Richards especially since he was signed in part due to his strong postseason history.
Who needs to be the difference for the Senators: Craig Anderson. He needs to steal goals and games. And he's capable of doing that. He heated up in the 2010 playoffs and nearly led the Avalanche to an upset of the Sharks. Anderson is the only hope the Senators have of pulling an upset here.
Best Rangers YouTube Video We Could Find: Rangers left winger Esa Tikkanen's series-clinching overtime goal of a 3-2 win against the Panthers in a 1997 Eastern Conference quarterfinal series:
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Best Canucks YouTube Video We Could Find: Senators defenseman Igor Kravchuk scoring an empty-net goal late in Game 6 of a series-clinching 3-1 win against the Devils during the 1998 Eastern Conference quarterfinals. The eighth-seeded Senators defeated the fifth-seeded Devils for the first playoff series win in franchise history:
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EN Prediction: The Senators just don't match-up well. They can score goals easily, but they don't play a particularly strong brand of defense. The Rangers get by with just enough offense and strangle the life out of an opponents offense by collapsing around the cage. On top of that, the Rangers have a clear-cut advantage in net with Lundqvist. Rangers 4-1.
(Photos: Gaborik-Paul Bereswill/Getty Images; Anderson-Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)