The 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs are almost underway with several exciting matchups in both the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. The Eastern Conference has several teams that surged towards the end of the regular season, giving everyone a good amount of momentum heading into the postseason. Both the Washington Capitals and New Rangers looked to be doomed at the beginning of the season, but win streaks at the end of the season will see these two unlikely playoff contenders meet up in Round 1.
Both the Rangers and the Capitals were unlikely playoff candidates at the start of the season. However, they were able to pull things together to earn spots on the top eight of the conference. The Capitals went 15-2-2 in their final 19 games to clinch the Southeast Division and the No. 2 overall spot in the Eastern Conference. Alex Ovechkin led the team and the NHL with 32 goals, including 19 in the team's final stretch of games. That late season push will likely earn Ovechkin his third Hart Trophy as the league's MVP. After surpassing Sidney Crosby in stats, he led the NHL in goals for the third time in his career, ultimately leading to his crowning as MVP.
Ovechkin paired with goalie Braden Holtby could be enough to get the Capitals through the opening round. Holtby emerged as the No. 1 goaltender during the season going 23-12 with a 2.58 goals-against average. Defenseman Mike Green found a return to form, assisting in Washington becoming the most productive power-play team at 26.8 percent.
The New York Rangers will have their hands full with the Capitals. They saw a late-season rise during April, finishing 10-3-1. They moved all the way into the sixth overall seed in the conference. Despite being without defenseman Mark Staal, the Rangers put up one of the league's best defensive units. Having one of the league's best goaltenders in Henrik Lundqvist has certainly been a help for the Rangers. He went 24-16 on the season with a 2.05 goals-against average, one of the NHL's best. Depth could be an issue for the Rangers has the opening round continues on and injuries have plagued the team in recent weeks.
These two teams created one of the more memorable second round series in the playoffs in 2012. Each game was decided by one goal and this year could be more of the same.
