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What's at stake for the New York Rangers versus the Carolina Hurricanes?

The New York Rangers are still in the playoff race — albeit barely — as a result of escaping elimination by stomping the New York Islanders in a 9-2 win. They now shift their focus to attempting to keep their hopes alive by defeating the Carolina Hurricanes. Here's what's at stake.
ByJennifer Streeter|
Carolina Hurricanes v New York Rangers
Carolina Hurricanes v New York Rangers | Sarah Stier/GettyImages

According to MoneyPuck.com, the New York Rangers have a 0.6% chance of making the playoffs.

Obviously, these are not good odds. When we look futher at the odds, the Rangers have a 0.3% chance of making the second round, and then a 0.2% chance for the third round and finally a 0.1% chance of making the final. While the odds are not in their favor, the Blueshirts are still alive. Plus, the Carolina Hurricanes are seeking to complete a four-game regular-season series sweep of the Rangers in addition to eliminating them from the playoffs.

When we look at this analytically, perhaps there are certain members of the Rangers' roster are to blame.

  • Artemi Panarin has been red-hot and had a strong season of production as a whole with 87 points in 77 games, but some of the other stars in New York have taken a step backward. Notably, Chris Kreider had 39 goals last season. This year? Just 26 points total.
  • Additionally, the league highest goaltender Igor Shesterkin went 36-17-2 last season with a .913 SV%. This year? 26-28-5 with a .905 SV%, which would finish as his lowest in his six NHL seasons.

While the Rangers are all but officially eliminated from playoff contention, the Carolina Hurricanes are looking to snap a four-game losing skid. And in order for the Rangers to find a way to defeat the second-place team in the Metropolitan Division, they will need to rely on Panarin.

Artemi Panarin

Panarin scored two more goals and had three points in the win against the Islanders to continue his heater down the stretch. The 33-year-old is finishing strong with 28 points (14 goals, 14 assists) in 20 games since March 2.

Recently reaching a milestone, "Bread" scored his 300th NHL goal in the loss to the Flyers on Wednesday. He is three goals shy of his second 40-goal season and three points away from his fourth straight 90-point campaign and fifth of his career. Should the team-leader (87 points) continue, he could single handedly keep the Rangers' playoff hopes alive.

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