2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Devils vs. Rangers 1st-round preview

The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs features 16 teams in eight best-of-7 series, which start Monday.
Today, NHL.com previews the Eastern Conference First Round between the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers.

(2M) New Jersey Devils vs. (3M) New York Rangers

Devils:52-22-8, 112 points
Rangers: 47-22-13, 107 points
Season series:NJD 3-0-1; NYR 1-2-1
Game 1:Tuesday at New Jersey (7 p.m. ET; TBS, SN360, TVAS2)
The "Hudson River Rivalry" is back on in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in 11 years.
The New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers will face off in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the seventh time when they face each other in the Eastern Conference First Round.
It's the first series between the rivals since the 2012 Eastern Conference Final, when the Devils won in six games to reach the Stanley Cup Final.
The Devils and Rangers had not been in the playoffs in the same season since until this season. It's New Jersey's first trip back to the postseason since 2018, which was its only appearance since 2012.
"It's a rivalry," Rangers center Mika Zibanejad said. "They're right across the river and it's a tough opponent. They've had a really good regular season. It's been tight games against them. It's going to be a lot of fun."
The Devils got back to the playoffs by setting single-season team records for wins (52) and points (112). It was an improvement of 25 wins and 49 points from last season.
"We talked about step one," Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. "That was step one, to make sure that we're in the playoffs, play good hockey. And now the stage gets bigger. The opportunity to accomplish and keep moving on will be in front of us and you've got to just really wrap your arms around this moment."
The Rangers are back in the playoffs after reaching Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final last season, when they admittedly ran out of gas and were eliminated by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
They were floundering in early December with an 11-10-5 record after a 5-2 loss at home against the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 3. But they won their next seven games and went 36-12-8 in their final 56 games.
"We've had our ups and our downs for sure," Rangers captain Jacob Trouba said. "I think we know what we're capable of, we know what the goal is. I like our team heading into the playoffs and I think we're ready to get this thing rolling."
The Devils enter the playoffs with wins in four of their past five games and six of eight starting with a 2-1 victory against the Rangers on March 30.
The Rangers lost their last two regular-season games, 3-2 in a shootout to the Buffalo Sabres and 3-2 in regulation against the Toronto Maple Leafs, but overall, were 12-3-4 since March 9.
"We played [the Devils] four times this year and they won three out of the four," Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said. "Good hockey games, close hockey games all of them. They present a challenge. They're a talented team. They can score goals. They're a young team but they're a skilled team and they can create a lot. Some of their guys took big steps like our young guys this year. I think it's going to be a great series."

Game breakers

Devils: Jack Hughes, New Jersey's No. 1 center, set a team record for points in a single season with 99 with 43 goals and 56 assists in 78 games. He will be playing in the playoffs for the first time after New Jersey failed to make it in his first three seasons after he was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, one spot ahead of the Rangers taking Kaapo Kakko at No. 2. Hughes had points in 58 of the 78 games he played this season. He closed the regular season on an eight-game point streak (three goals, 10 assists). He is the most explosive player on the Devils and has turned into one of their most reliable too.
Rangers:New York is loaded with potential game breakers, but it's still Zibanejad, their No. 1 center who could be the most dangerous of them all. Zibanejad led the Rangers with 39 goals and his NHL career best 91 points was second on the team behind Artemi Panarin (92 points). He finished the season on a six-game point streak (one goal, eight assists) and with points in 13 of the final 16 games (23 points; seven goals, 16 assists). Zibanejad played 19:58 per game, tops among Rangers forwards. He plays in all situations too. He led the Rangers with 20 goals and 39 points on the power play. He also had a team-high 251 shots on goal. Zibanejad is everywhere and does everything. He's the Rangers most dangerous skater.

Goaltending

Devils: Vitek Vanecek had a breakout season in his first season with the Devils. In his third season, Vanecek set NHL career highs across the board for games played (52), starts (48), wins (33), goals-against average (2.45), save percentage (.911) and shutouts (three). There was some concern about Vanecek one month ago, when he was in a seven-game stretch from Feb. 21-March 14 when he was 4-3-0 with a 3.59 GAA and an .862 save percentage (24 goals allowed on 174 shots). But he bounced back and finished strong, going 5-3-1 with a 2.12 GAA and .922 save percentage in his last nine games. When healthy, Mackenzie Blackwood was the primary backup to Vanecek, but his numbers weren't as strong as Akira Schmid's. Blackwood was 10-6-2 with a 3.20 GAA and an .893 save percentage in 22 games (20 starts) while Schmid went 9-5-2, with a 2.13 GAA and a .922 save percentage in 18 games (14 starts).
Rangers: The best news for the Rangers going into the playoffs is that the last quarter of the season was goalie Igor Shesterkin's best quarter of the season. He started 16 of the Rangers' last 23 games since Feb. 26 and was 12-3-1 with a 1.98 GAA, .934 save percentage and two shutouts. Shesterkin rounded into form at just the right time to finish 37-13-8 with a 2.48 GAA, .916 save percentage and three shutouts in 58 games this season after winning the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's best goalie last season, when he went 10-9 with a 2.59 GAA and .929 save percentage in 20 playoff games. Shesterkin's 37 wins are an NHL career high. Jaroslav Halak was Shesterkin's backup all season and went 10-9-5 with a 2.72 GAA and .903 save percentage in 25 games (24 starts).

Numbers to know

Devils: New Jersey's 28 road wins are tied for second in the NHL with the Colorado Avalanche behind the Boston Bruins (31). They tied with the Bruins for the most wins in games when they allowed the first goal (22). And their eight wins in games they were down going into the third period was also tied for the most in the NHL with the New York Islanders and Vancouver Canucks. The Devils scored five or more goals in five of their last seven regular season games. They were tied for fourth in goals per game (3.52) with the Seattle Kraken. They were eighth in goals against per game (2.71). They allowed 28.2 shots on goal per game, fifth fewest in the NHL. Nico Hischier had 80 points (31 goals, 49 assists) in 81 games. The center's team-high nine game-winning goals was tied for fifth in the NHL. Dougie Hamilton was second in goals (22), fourth in points (74) and first in shots on goal (275) among NHL defensemen.
Rangers:They went 12-3-4 in their last 19 games and did not allow more than three goals in any of them. The Rangers were 33-0-0 when scoring four or more goals, the only team in the NHL without a loss of any kind when scoring four or more in a game. The Rangers had two players with 90 or more points (Panarin and Zibanejad) for the first time since 1991-92, when Mark Messier had 107 and Brian Leetch had 102. Adam Fox had his second straight season with 70 or more points (72), becoming the second defenseman in Rangers history to do it after Leetch (twice). New York was fourth in goals against per game (2.63) and tied for 11th in goals for per game (3.33).

X-factors

Devils:When you talk about impact players for the Devils, the first name that comes up is Hughes, then Hischier, probably Hamilton, sprinkle in some Vanecek, forward Jesper Bratt, the impact of forward Timo Meier since he was acquired from the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 26 and the playoff experience of Ondrej Palat, who went to the Stanley Cup Final with the Tampa Bay Lightning the past three years. But Dawson Mercer should be mentioned higher, because the 21-year-old versatile forward has been a do-it-all player for the Devils all season. He played 82 games for his second straight season (he hasn't missed a game in his NHL career) and had 56 points (27 goals, 29 assists) playing 16:34 per game. He plays some on the power play (1:19 per game) and some on the penalty kill (1:18 per game). The Devils can use him as a right wing in the top six or as their third-line center.

Rangers: Filip Chytil had the best season of his five-year NHL career with 45 points (22 goals, 23 assists) in 74 games. The 23-year-old center was rewarded with a four-year, $17.75 million contract on March 31. Chytil centers the Rangers' third line, affectionately known as the "Kid Line," with Kaapo Kakko (22 years old) and Alexis Lafreniere (21 years old) on his wings. It's Chytil who drives the line with his play, using his speed and straight-line approach to create scoring chances and force turnovers on the forecheck. When that line is going, as it was in the last quarter of the season, the Rangers usually are winning. The Rangers are 21-0-2 all time when Chytil, Kakko and Lafreniere each get a point in the same game. They were 3-1 in the playoffs last season.

They said it

"I know the fans will go at it during the series. This is what you play for. The playoffs, we got that taste of it, got pretty close last year and it made us hungry for it this year. We got pretty far last year. We want to take that a step further this year. But we can't look too far ahead. It starts with Game 1." -- Rangers defenseman Adam Fox
"We'll talk about what to expect, but it's an opportunity that you can't take for granted will be the message. You always think if you get this opportunity, well, it will be year after year, but that doesn't [happen] all the time. So, let's just seize the moment. Let's focus in on this next series and be ready to go."-- Devils coach Lindy Ruff

Will win if …

Devils: They play with the type of speed and tenacious attack mode mentality they had in the regular season, and their goaltending holds up. The second part might be more important than the first, though there is no indication from Vanecek that he shouldn't hold up. He finished strong and has played in the playoffs before, getting three starts with the Washington Capitals over the past two seasons. But the Devils have to stay with the same pace that has worked for them all season. If they slow it down or play tight because the stakes are high, then the experienced Rangers will be able to take advantage. Their speed has given the Rangers fits all season and if it does again, there's a good chance the Devils will be moving on into the second round.
Rangers:They limit their turnovers, get Grade A goaltending from Shesterkin, and make their power-play opportunities count either by scoring or generating momentum for 5-on-5. They will struggle to match the Devils speed if they aren't careful with the puck, particularly through the neutral zone. But if they are, the Rangers should be able to generate their own speed into the zone and be dangerous off the rush. They were 24.1 percent on the power play, including 27.1 percent once forward Patrick Kane was on it starting March 2. They can use it to their advantage to put pressure on the Devils and Vanecek. The Rangers also have more playoff experience as a team after going through what they went through last season. That should play to their advantage too.

How they look

Devils projected lineup
Tomas Tatar -- Nico Hischier -- Dawson Mercer
Ondrej Palat -- Jack Hughes -- Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier -- Erik Haula -- Yegor Sharangovich
Miles Wood -- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Kevin Bahl -- Dougie Hamilton
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Damon Severson
Ryan Graves -- John Marino
Vitek Vanecek
Mackenzie Blackwood
Scratched: Luke Hughes, Jesper Boqvist, Curtis Lazar, Brendan Smith
Injured:Jonathan Bernier (hip)
Rangers projected lineup
Chris Kreider -- Mika Zibanejad -- Patrick Kane
Artemi Panarin -- Vincent Trocheck -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Alexis Lafreniere -- Filip Chytil -- Kaapo Kakko
Tyler Motte -- Barclay Goodrow -- Jimmy Vesey
Ryan Lindgren -- Adam Fox
K'Andre Miller -- Jacob Trouba
Niko Mikkola -- Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin
Jaroslav Halak
Scratched:Ben Harpur
Injured:None