Written by Scott on Tuesday, July 21st, 2020
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The final Eastern Conference opening round matchup that we are covering is the New York Rangers vs the Carolina Hurricanes
We will let you know who we think will win the series and in how many games. Either way this is going to be a good series and a fun one to watch.
Rangers vs Hurricanes Series Prediction
The Rangers played in 70 games and went 37-28-5 for 79 points and finished in 7th place in the Metropolitan Division. The Hurricanes played in 68 games and went 38-25-5 for 81 points and finished in 4th place in the Metropolitan Division. They were close in points but finished 3 spots apart.
This is a series that could go either way. The Rangers are the underdogs here.
The Rangers have gone 10-2 over their last 12 games against the Hurricanes. They are led by Artemi Panarin who had an incredible year and he was just nominated for the Ted Lindsey award which is the most outstanding player elected by his peers. Panarin plays with Mika Zibanejad who had his best season yet putting up more points this year in 57 games then he has in a full season. They also are expecting Chris Kreider back. These 3 players carry the team and behind them they also have Ryan Strome and Pavel Buchnevich.
On defense they have Tony DeAngelo, Jacob Trouba and Adam Fox and these three can carry the team from the backend. They also have Marc Staal who doesn’t put up huge numbers but is a reliable and experienced defenseman. In goal the have questions. They have gone with a 3 person rotation this year with Lundqvist, Georgiev and Shesterkin. Lundqvist has the experience but Shesterkin has the numbers and will be the Rangers starting goalie for the future and I expect him to be their goalie for the opening round.
The Hurricanes have a solid group of forwards. Sebastian Aho is amazing and is only 22 years old, Andrei Svechnikov is only 20 and Teuvo Teravainen is 25. These three led the team in points and will do so for the next few seasons if not longer. Behind them they have depth with Martin Necas, Warren Foegale, Nino Niederreiter, Vincent Trocheck and Jordan Staal. And also they have the playoff ace in Justin Williams who has the experience and always shows up when things are on the line.
On defense the Canes are set. Their top 4 is Dougie Hamilton, Jaccob Slavin, Jake Gardiner and Joel Edmundson. Also on their roster who will help them is Brady Skjei, Sami Vatanen and Trevor van Reimsdyk plus others so if their defense is hit by injuries then the Canes are set with replacements. In goal the have Petr Mrazek who is decent but not a game changer and his backup is James Reimer who is a former number 1 and can fill in if Mrazek can’t do it.
This is going to be a good series and if not for the stoppage who knows if the Rangers would have been able to make the postseason but under these circumstances they are in. The Rangers have lots of talent at every position and I could see them winning this series. But the Canes are deep at each position and have plenty of experience which will help them in the opening round. They have lots of defensemen that will be tasked with stopping Panarin and Zibanejad and the Rangers lack forward depth behind those two.
Hurricanes in 4 games
You can bet this series currently at:
Canada: Bovada, BetOnline...
Everyone Else: 888 Sports, BetOnline..
