New York Rangers Connections: Stanley Cup roundup

We are now deep into the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and it hasn’t been a kind one to a host of former New York Rangers players.

We’ve been treated to 41 games, a ton of goals, two series sweeps and some big upsets that have involved a number of players who once laced up their skates for the New York Rangers.

Although the Blueshirts aren’t involved in the postseason, we here at Blue Line Station have still been keeping a close eye on all of the action.

Here’s our handy roundup of all the ties involving former NYR players…

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (0-4)

There was a boatload of former Rangers involved in this matchup and the majority of those went home unhappy.

This was a true bracket buster and there probably wasn’t too many people out there who predicted a series win for the Blue Jackets, let alone a sweep.

And it looked like it was all going to plan for the Lightning who had a three-goal lead after the first period in Game One, but it all went downhill from there for the team that clinched the Presidents Trophy and made history with 62 wins in the regular season.

Ryan McDonagh gave up a brutal giveaway that led to the comeback in Game 1, and you would be hard pressed to give any credit to too many players on that Tampa Bay roster.

Columbus, on the other hand, who can count former Rangers center Brandon Dubinsky and defenseman Adam Clendening among their number, were superb throughout the series and their gutsy moves at the trade deadline paid off in emphatic fashion.

Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (3-3)

This series is on a knifes edge and it is anyone’s guess as to who marches on to the Second Round.

Boston were many people’s favorites to beat Tampa to the Stanley Cup but they haven’t been that impressive, and it has taken a while for the likes of David Pastrnak to get hot.

Toronto, meanwhile, is desperate to avoid a second straight first round exit at the hands of their archrivals and they will need to do a much better job of killing penalties if they want to ensure history doesn’t repeat itself again.

The Maple Leafs rank 15th out of the 16 teams involved in the First Round in terms of the penalty kill, with a percentage of 56.3.  They’ve been penalized 16 times and have allowed a whopping seven goals

In terms of Rangers connections, there are only two involved in this series and they both ply their trade for the Bruins in John Moore and Steven Kampfer.

Moore has skated in three games with no points and a +/- rating of -4, while Kampfer has only laced up for one game this series.

Both teams have a ton of firepower at their disposal which should make for a thrilling Game Seven.

Rooting for a fans’ favorite

Dallas Stars vs. Nashville Predators (3-2)

Let’s all be honest here; all New York Rangers fans have probably adopted the Dallas Stars as their second favorite team for the postseason.

That is down to one man and that of course is Mats Zuccarello, who was the darling of Madison Square Garden throughout his tenure as a Blueshirt.

Zuccarello was acquired by Dallas at the trade deadline to bolster their roster for the playoffs, and he’s certainly been a shining star for his new team in this series.

He has three goals in five games and is a big reason why the Stars are on the cusp of eliminating the Predators, who have been god awful at home this series, and moving on to the Second Round.

We all love that unmistakable Zuccarello smile and here’s hoping we get to see plenty more of it throughout the postseason. The added bonus is if the Stars make it to the Conference Finals, the second round pick acquired in the trade becomes a first rounder.

Former Rangers Brian Boyle and Cody McLeod will be hoping to do what they can to stop the Stars and Zuccarello from clinching a spot in the Second Round, however.

St. Louis Blues vs. Winnipeg Jets (4-2)

You probably would have been accused of being mad if you predicted at Christmas that the Blues would be competing in the playoffs, let alone getting ready for the Second Round.

However, after carving out one of the best records in the NHL after the turn of the year, St. Louis proved too much to handle for the Jets, winning four one-goal games to advance through to the second round for the third time in four years.

Backstopped by the impressive rookie Jordan Binnington in net, the Blues continue to silence their doubters and owe a lot of credit to Jaden Schwartz, who has been lethal with four goals and five points.

There is always a loser in the postseason and Rangers fans would have been upset to see Winnipeg bow out so early given that they had a certain Kevin Hayes on the roster.

Acquired at the trade deadline, Hayes endured a miserable start to this series after going scoreless in the first two games and playing a measly eight minutes in the second of those.

He finished the series with three points (two goals, one point) and plus/minus rating of +2, and all eyes will now be on where Hayes’ long-term future lies given that he is due to hit free agency this summer.

San Jose Sharks vs. Golden Vegas Knights (3-3)

The Sharks won a thriller in double overtime on Sunday to force a Game 7 after staring elimination in the face.

This has been another entertaining series loaded with star power on both sides of the puck, so Game seven should be an absolute humdinger.

There are three Rangers connections in this series.

Micheal Haley – who played nine games for the Blueshirts in 2012-13 – has laced up his skates for three postseason games so far.

Nick Holden and Brandon Pirri, both on the Golden Knights’ roster, have hardly featured in this series with only Holden getting into one game.  Holden play in 61 games this season, but after posting a minus two in the first game, of the series, he has been relegated to the press box.

We will be doing another Playoff roundup later this week.