Hurricanes vs. New York Rangers: 3 burning questions for each team

The New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes are set to face-off in the NHL’s qualifying round starting August 1.

Uncertainty seems to be the theme ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Which teams will come out of the gate hot? Will COVID-19 wreak havoc on the hub cities? Will the lack of fans be a noticeable difference in the ultra-competitive NHL playoffs? All of these are questions that remain unanswered. Similarly, the New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes have questions that need to be answered as well.

Carolina comes in with the expectations of repeating their surprising playoff run last season on their shoulders, while the youthful Rangers head to Toronto as a team who is ahead of schedule in their rebuild.

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Both teams are young and skilled and despite the Rangers asserting their dominance over Carolina this season, expect a close battle in the qualifying round after this extended hiatus. Without further ado, let’s get to the three burning questions for the two foes, starting with the  Carolina Hurricanes.

Carolina Hurricanes:

1. Will the goaltending hold up?

On paper, the only position that seems inferior to the Hurricanes counterparts is the goaltending. Petr Mrazek and James Reimer make up the ‘Canes tandem, and both have had their ups and downs throughout their careers.

Mrazek saw a drop in his numbers during his second season with the Hurricanes, recording a 21-16-2 record with a GAA of 2.69 and a save percentage of .905. Reimer held the fort while Mrazek was injured, posting a 14-6-2 record to go along with a 2.66 GAA and a .914 save percentage.

The Hurricanes went with Mrazek last year during their surprising run to the Eastern Conference Finals, but this year the position has yet to be solidified. Mrazek went 0-3 against the Rangers this season while along 3.44 goals per game, while Reimer had just one start against the Blueshirts, allowing five.

It’s obvious that the Rangers had the number of both these goaltenders, but for Carolina to have success and get past the qualifying round, head coach Rod Brind’Amour will have to hope that whoever he puts between the pipes can hold the fort down in this five-game set.

2. Can the Hurricanes withstand more injuries on the backend?

According to Sara Civian of The Athletic, Dougie Hamilton is injured again, and although it is not a re-aggravation of his leg injury, he is still out week to week.

Hamilton, who was expected back for the qualifying round after breaking his leg was on a torrid pace before his injury. Many considered him a front runner for the Norris at the time, alongside Capitals defenseman John Carlson. He had 40 points in 46 games and was by far the Hurricanes best all-around defenseman.

Brett Pesce, another reliable d-man for the Canes won’t be traveling with the team to Toronto yet but does have a roster spot open for him when he does return. Carolina is still stacked on the blue line with the like of Jaccob Slavin, Sami Vatanen, Joel Edmundson, Brady Skjei, Jake Gardiner, and Trevor van Riemsdyk.

They have the corps to still pose as a formidable defensive group and have the talent to get past the Rangers, creating time for both of their injured defensemen to return. But can this group play steady enough without two of their best to stop one of the more elite goal-scoring teams in the NHL this season?

3. Can the Hurricanes break the trend against the Rangers?

Since the 2010-11 season, the Carolina Hurricanes are 8-25-7 against the New York Rangers, a trend that needs to end for the Hurricanes to advance. The Blueshirts have dominated the season series against Carolina, winning every series since going 0-2-2 in 2010-11.

It is unknown if these regular season woes will carry to postseason play, as these two sides have never met in a playoff game prior to these qualifying rounds. For Carolina to have success, they are going to have to pin the Rangers in their own end and stifle the transition game, a task they have struggled with this season.

You can make the case that in each of the four meetings this season, Carolina was the better team, but New York’s goaltending and transition created enough opportunities for them to come away as the victors. Tighter defensive structure in the playoffs could be the answer, and if Carolina advances, a huge monkey would be lifted off the backs of the franchise.

New York Rangers

1. Who will start in goal?

The ultimate decision ahead of this series is who will the Rangers nab as their starting goaltender. Head Coach David Quinn has kept his decision very close to the vest, but it does appear to be a two-horse race between rookie phenom Igor Shesterkin and veteran netminder Henrik Lundqvist.

At a glance, this decision does not look difficult at all. Lundqvist struggled mightily this season, and Shesterkin went 10-2 in his 12 appearances, playing brilliantly. Yet the Rangers opponent creates an issue, as the ‘King’ has had tremendous success against Carolina.

He owns a 33-12-1 record against the Metro rivals, including a 3-0 mark this season. His career GAA against Carolina is 2.00 and he has a .934 save percentage as well. This season, despite his struggles, he still managed to put up ridiculous marks against the Hurricanes, posting a 2.33 GAA and a .947 save percentage.

Shesterkin, in his lone start against Carolina, was victorious, holding the Canes to two goals and stopping 27 of the 29 shots thrown his way. Ultimately, I think Shesterkin will get the nod, but in contrast to the Hurricanes’ goaltending situation, this seems like a good one to have.

2. Will they find secondary scoring?

Primarily, the Rangers offense in 2019-20 was generated off of the sticks of two men; Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin. New York was one of three NHL teams to have seven players finish with 40 or more points this season, and that consistency will have to continue against Carolina?

As we have seen during the playoffs before, its the fourth line contributions that are key to a team winning in the postseason. Even the great Rangers runs just a few years ago were sparked by players like Dan Carcillo, Dominic Moore, and Brian Boyle. This season, that depth will be tested as outside of the top-six forwards, the Blueshirts bottom lines struggled to score.

Youngsters Kaapo Kakko, Filip Chytil, Brett Howden, and Julien Gauthier all have the task of providing secondary scoring during the postseason, something they have done in spurts during this campaign. Consistency has eluded these youngsters and rightfully so, as they all are still trying to find their footing in the NHL.

But one thing is for sure, the Hurricanes will be keying in on Zibanejad, Panarin, and the rest of the Rangers top-six, putting some pressure on the young players to step up and contribute.

3. Can the Rangers defense tighten up?

New York allowed 3.14 goals per game during the 2019-20 campaign, the ninth highest total in the NHL. Bad gaps, youthful mistakes, and the constant struggle to maintain posture in the defensive zone all led to an extravagant amount of shots and goals allowed per game.

Rangers’ goaltenders faced 34.0 shots per game, second to only the Blackhawks 35.1, and the team’s penalty-kill finished in the bottom-third of the league at 77.4%. The lack of consistency in the defensive zone led to the goaltenders bailing out the Blueshirts on a consistent basis, an upsetting trend heading into the do-or-die qualifying rounds.

You can only out-score your defensive deficiencies for so long, and the New York Rangers will have to tighten up defensively if they want to compete with a very solid defensive team in Carolina. Jacob Trouba will have to perform up to his seven-year, $56 million contract, and Adam Fox along with Tony DeAngelo will have to continue their great seasons.

Of course now, with the departure of Lindy Ruff, the Rangers could have a different defensive scheme heading into their upcoming battle. Even so, if the Blueshirts want to surpass the Hurricanes and head into the first round of the NHL postseason, the goals per game total will have to drop below three during this best-of-five series.

Final Thoughts

I fully expect this series to be a battle. Regular season records can be tossed aside considering the four and a half month layoff and the magnitude of the postseason. Goaltending and star-power up-front certainly favors the Rangers, but defense and depth are in favor of Carolina.

This series ultimately will come down to converting in transition and special teams. New York is extremely talented at scoring off of the rush and finished with the seventh-ranked power play at 22.9%. Carolina finished eighth on the power play at 22.3% and ranked fourth short-handed at 84.0%.

Speed and skill will be noticeable in this series, and after what could potentially be a cautious first 20 minutes in game one, I fully expect this best-of-five to open up and be one of the more exciting qualifying round matchups on the NHL’s slate.