State Your Case: Can Rangers reach Stanley Cup Final?

The New York Rangers entered this season with high expectations after reaching the Eastern Conference Final last season, a six-game loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Not only did they bring most of that same team back, the Rangers added star forwards Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 3.
The Rangers (37-19-10) enter their game against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SNE, SNP, TVAS, SN NOW) in third place in the Metropolitan Division, 10 points behind the Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils. But winning the division is not the priority, getting to Stanley Cup Final and playing for a championship is.
But can they take the next step this season and represent a stacked Eastern Conference in the Cup Final?
That's the question before NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen and Editor-in-Chief Bill Price in this installment of State Your Case.
Rosen: The Rangers are developing their chemistry and in a winning environment. Don't underestimate the importance of that. They're finding each other, figuring out how their lines work. That may be the second-most important thing for them going into the playoffs. The first is, without question, goalie Igor Shesterkin playing at an elite level again. He is the single biggest reason why the Rangers will be in the Stanley Cup Final this season. When he's on his game, there's arguably no goalie better in the NHL, which is why it's vitally important for the Rangers that Shesterkin string together a run of quality starts that carries him into the playoffs feeling good about his game. That's why his 32-save performance in a 2-1 overtime win at the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday was so important. The Rangers needed every save and Shesterkin clearly was the first star of the game. He is 4-1-0 with a 2.34 goals-against average and .914 save percentage in his past five games, a strong run that comes after he had a 4.00 GAA and .852 save percentage in six games from Feb. 6-25. The Rangers are in a good spot, third in the Metropolitan Division. They have 16 games remaining and Shesterkin could start 10-12 of them. If he goes into the playoffs locked in on his game, the Rangers have a real chance to roll through a tough Eastern Conference.
Price:Yes, Dan, the Rangers did need every one of Shesterkin's 32 saves against the Sabres, because they scored one goal on 23 shots in regulation. So though you point to this chemistry, it hasn't resulted in a consistent offensive attack. Clearly any team that makes the playoffs in the East can reach the Final, but I wonder if the Rangers can get there, not only because of their lack of scoring and far-too-often defensive lapses, but I also look at the road in front of them. Can they really defeat the New Jersey Devils, Carolina Hurricanes and most likely the Boston Bruins in the conference final? The way they are playing at this moment, I'm not sure they get past the Devils or Hurricanes in the first round.

Rosen:It's funny how we underestimate talent. The Rangers have loads of it. Let's remember who they added before the deadline. They didn't add depth guys to fill out a lineup, they added stars. Kane and Tarasenko are exactly what the Rangers needed all season, two right wings to fill out their top-six forward group so they could keep the "Kid Line" of Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko and
Alexis Lafreniere
together. They did it by getting two monster offensive performers. The Rangers have the extra gear a team needs in the playoffs. They can score that one more goal to make a difference. They will score it. It's OK that they're not firing on all cylinders yet. That was kind of expected. They haven't scored more than three goals in the five games Kane has played with them. But, and this flies under the radar because of the offensive talent, the Rangers also have not allowed more than three in each of the past three games. The offense will come. The players are too good and too creative for it not too. The Rangers will find their chemistry and they will score. Watch them during this five-game homestand that starts against the Capitals on Tuesday. I'll guarantee you that by the end of it we're not talking about their lack of scoring.
Price: Fair enough. I agree that Kane needs time to fit in, and let's be honest, barring an epic collapse their next really big game will be Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round, so they have time to get it together. You point to their depth on offense, and I agree, they now have four solid lines they can throw at anyone, including an impressive fourth line of Tyler Motte, Barclay Goodrow and Jimmy Vesey. My biggest concern is their depth on defense. They have five solid defensemen in Adam Fox, Jacob Trouba, K'Andre Miller, Ryan Lindgren and Niko Mikkola, with either Ben Harpur or Braden Schneider as the No. 6. But things haven't looked the same with Lindgren out the past seven games because of an upper-body injury. To me, if the Rangers are going to reach the Cup Final, they need those top five defensemen to be healthy. They also need to make things easy on themselves in the earlier rounds, something they didn't do last season when they needed seven games to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round and the Hurricanes in the second round. They appeared to run out of gas in the conference final, losing four straight after taking a 2-0 lead. I agree Shesterkin can carry them far, but I just don't see it happening with the way they have played and the teams likely standing in front of them.