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New York Rangers Prepare for a Pivotal Game Five Against the Florida Panthers

By Conor Power

May 28, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA;New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) makes a save against Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) during the second period in game four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
May 28, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA;New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) makes a save against Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) during the second period in game four of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
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Game four was an overtime heartbreak, but game five from Madison Square Garden will hopefully be a return to the Blueshirts victory we all know and love. With the Rangers looking for their first win in game 5 of an Eastern Conference Finals in over 30 years, it would be a great time to break a streak that predates the 1994 Stanley Cup Championship. At home to the Panthers, it's as good a time as any.

A few Rangers have underperformed in the Eastern Conference Finals to this point, but the biggest one is Mika Zibanejad. Coming off a dismal season by his lofty standards, Zibanejad is being outproduced in this series by the Florida Panthers netminder Sergei Bobrovsky. That's not good enough. We're getting into the crunch time of this series, and Mika has to find a way to get into this series. He's struggled since the Carolina series, becoming a significant problem for the Rangers.

Igor Shesterkin was superhuman in the two games in Sunrise. New York will need to improve in front of the Russian shot-stopping star if it will push the Florida Panthers to the brink of elimination. Expecting Igor to be as strong as he was in the Sunshine State again is unrealistic. Knowing the Panthers will come hard and early at the Rangers, the Blueshirts need to keep their defensive stability early.

Projected lineups

Florida Panthers

Carter Verhaeghe - Aleksander Barkov - Sam Reinhart
Matthew Tkachuk - Sam Bennett - Evan Rodrigues
Eetu Luostarinen - Anton Lundell - Vladimir Tarasenko
Steven Lorentz - Kevin Stenlund - Kyle Okposo
Gustav Forsling- Aaron Ekblad
Nikko Mikkola -Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson - Dmitry Kulikov
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz

New York Rangers

Chris Kreider - Mika Zibanejad - Filip Chytil
Artemi Panarin - Vincent Trocheck - Alexis Lafreniere
Jack Roslovic - Alex Wennberg - Kaapo Kakko
Will Cuylle - Barclay Goodrow - Matt Rempe
Ryan Lindgren - Adam Fox
K'Andre Miller - Braden Schneider
Erik Gustafsson - Jacob Trouba
Igor Shesterkin
Jonathan Quick

Puck Drop

Tonight's game will be an 8 p.m. puck drop from Madison Square Garden. Both teams are looking to push the other to the brink of elimination. New York will be standing behind the Blueshirts tonight. Can the Rangers win their first game 5 in the Conference Finals in seven attempts, or will another game fall by the wayside and put the Rangers behind in the series? Only time will tell.

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