The New York Rangers needed a huge Game 7 performance to advance to the second round and they got just that, as Henrik Lundqvist put up back to back shutouts to get the team through and to prove that he may be the best goaltender in the NHL.
The Rangers were down 3-2 in the series when Game 6 landed at Madison Square Garden and they came through with a clutch 1-0 victory, but they saved their best for the final Game, as they made up for two things they did not do in the series prior, scoring goals and winning on the road. Until the final elimination game neither team won on the road, but the Rangers did in a big way with a five goal outburst to advance to play the Boston Bruins in the second round.
The Rangers fought their way into the sixth seed after playing most of the season in eighth and at first it seemed like a good idea, but once the Senators defeated the Canadiens and the Rangers were on the brink to the Caps, it looked like a mistake. The Rangers are no stranger to seven game series after playing two of those last season and now they have won another one and has the chance to get to their first Stanley Cup finals since winning back in 1994.
The team will need more scoring from their top players in Brad Richards and Rick Nash, who were both held back in the first series. The Rangers got some unexpected production from Derek Brassard, who came to the team from the Blue Jackets in the trade for Marian Gaborik and he leads in scoring, goals and assists for the playoffs and he also had a huge power play goal in the series.
The Rangers will need to watch out for Dave Krejci, who did the same thing in the series for Boston and is leading with 13 points, five goals and eight assists, while he also had a hat trick against the Maple Leafs in one game. The biggest factor in the series will be Henrik Lundqvist and whether he can keep things up from the last series.
