The NHL playoffs continued on Thursday with the first round and in Game 1 the NY Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild won over the Penguins, Lightning, Blues and Jets to take 1-0 series leads and those teams will play again on Saturday as the postseason moves along towards the Stanley Cup finals.
The Rangers came into the playoffs as the number one team in the NHL and they took a 1-0 lead with a win against the Penguins. The teams played last season and the Rangers went down 3-1 before coming back in the series and now they come in as the favorites. The Rangers scored 28 seconds into the game after a great shot following a rebound by Derick Brassard and that set the team up.
The Rangers took a 2-0 lead and hurt the Penguins on the power play, but Pitt was able to get one goal by Henrik Lundqvist. The Rangers held things and won the game 2-1 and now they have home ice leading into Game 2. The team got 24 saves from Lundqvist and the Rangers also had Dan Girardi leave the game after taking a puck to the face.
The Red Wings upset the Lightning at home to steal home ice and now they take a 1-0 series lead into Game 2. The Blues were tied for the most points in the west this season, but they lost in Game 1 to the Wild. The Blues have had some tough playoff performances over the past few years and fans could start getting worried. The Ducks won 4-2 and they take a 1-0 lead over the Jets after getting two goals and two assists from Corey Perry.
