On Thursday, the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers will play a massive Game 5. This is the Eastern Conference Finals, with the winner heading to the Stanley Cup Finals. When they get there, they will take on either the Dallas Stars or Edmonton Oilers. This series is tied at 2 wins each after the Florida overtime win on Tuesday.
The Florida Panthers are 10-5 in the postseason so far. The Panthers beat up on the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games to start the postseason. Next was the Boston Bruins. Florida eliminated them in six games. Now, it’s the New York Rangers. Florida went 52-24-6 in the regular season, and won the Atlantic Division.
New York is 10-4 in the postseason. The Rangers swept the Washington Capitals in four games. The second round saw the Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes in six games. Now, the Rangers and Panthers are tied 2-2. New York had the most points in all of the National Hockey League during the regular season. The Rangers went 55-23-4.
The Florida Panthers are favorites, despite being on the road in this game. The Panthers are -120 at Madison Square Garden. The total for this affair is set at 5.5 goals.
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers got a goal 1:12 into overtime from Sam Reinhart. It was a power play goal, and it was the 8th of the postseason for Reinhart. That won the game, and evened the series at 2 each. The other goals for Florida came from Sam Bennett and Cnnor Verhaeghe. Verhaeghe was his ninth of the postseason.
Sergei Bobrovsky was sharp in the win for the Panthers. He allowed two goals, but turned away 21 shots. He has gone 10-5 in the postseason for Florida. In the regular season, the netminder went 36-17-4, and allowed just 2.37 goals per game.
The Panthers are looking for more from Vladimir Tarasenko. They acquired him to help with the cup run, but he has yet to score in this series. In fact, he has just three points in the postseason so far. The last time he recorded a point was May 12th in Boston.
New York Rangers
For New York, things got started quickly, as Vincent Trocheck got them on the board in the first period. It was a power play goal from Panarin and Fox. That was the lone first period goal of the game. The second goal for New York tied it in the third. Alex Lafreniere netted his 7th of the season, which also came from Panarin and Fox.
The Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin did all he could to keep his team in the game. He turned away 37 shots in the game. Shesterkin is now 10-4 in the postseason. He went 36-17-2 in the regular season, and allowed 2.58 goals per game.
New York could use more from Chris Kreider. In the series against Carolina, he scored 5 goals and dished out 2 assists. Kreider had a hat trick to eliminate the Hurricanes. In this series, he has yet to record a point. In the regular season ,he scored 39 goals and dished out 36 assists.
Rangers Top Panthers
The New York Rangers are back home. Madison Square Garden is a special place. The Rangers want to guarantee another home game. New York wins this game over Florida and moves one game away from the Stanley Cup Finals. Take the New York Rangers at +100 over the Florida Panthers on Thursday!
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