3 Keys: Rangers at Devils, Game 2 of Eastern 1st Round

(3M) Rangers (2M) at Devils
Eastern Conference First Round, Game 2
New York leads best-of-7 series 1-0
7:30 p.m. ET; TBS, SN360, TVAS2, MSGSN, MSG

NEWARK, N.J. --The New Jersey Devils will look to improve a few areas hoping to even the Eastern Conference First Round against the New York Rangers in Game 2 at Prudential Center on Thursday.
New Jersey had no shots on goal on four power-play opportunities in a 5-1 loss in Game 1 on Tuesday to become the seventh team since the stat was first tracked in 1997-98 to have as many power-play chances and fail to record a shot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"We need to generate shots with good puck movement," Devils captain Nico Hischier said. "It starts on top with Dougie Hamilton. I think Dougie's pretty good at finding lanes to the net, so I think it'll be all right up there.
"If you have a lane, shoot it. It's a shoot-first mentality."
RELATED: [Complete Devils vs. Rangers series coverage]
The Rangers had no such issues, going 2-for-3 on four shots with the man-advantage. New York also had 23 blocked shots, including a combined seven from the fourth line of Barclay Goodrow (three), Tyler Motte (two) and Jimmy Vesey (two).
"It's a little bit of our identity," Motte said. "I think this time of year it comes down to maybe a little bit more and people notice it a little bit more, but we're just out there trying to do our job and help our team win any way we can."
Teams that take a 2-0 lead in a best-of-7 series are 342-54 (.864), including 5-2 last season (2-0 in the first round).
Here are 3 keys to Game 2:
1. Vanecek needs to rebound
Goalie Vitek Vanecek will start for the Devils after allowing four goals on 22 shots in Game 1. He was 4-1-2 with a 2.28 goals-against average, .903 save percentage and one shutout in seven starts after allowing at least four goals during the regular season.
"I expect our goaltender to be good," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said. "We all have to be better. We all have to execute better. This group has responded to that all year long."
Vanecek was 33-11-4 with a 2.45 GAA, .911 save percentage and three shutouts in 52 games (48 starts) during the regular season.
2. Shesterkin must continue to shine
Igor Shesterkin made 27 saves, including several key stops for the Rangers in big moments of Game 1. He allowed a penalty-shot goal by Jack Hughes at 17:14 of the third period and New York leading 4-0.
The Vezina Trophy winner voted as the best goalie in the NHL last season, started 16 of the Rangers' last 23 regular-season games since Feb. 26. He was 12-3-1 with a 1.98 GAA, .934 save percentage and two shutouts.
"I've been here for two years with him now and he's been a top player for us, obviously," New York coach Gerard Gallant said. "He just comes to play every night and when you have a bad game or a bad goal, he bounces back and that's what you need."
3. Elevating execution
The Rangers were superb in the early stages of Game 1 when building a 2-0 lead while dictating pace in the opening 10 minutes. They forced the Devils to begin chasing the game and, as a result, forcing plays that led to turnovers or missed chances.
"We just need to hit the reset button and go do it again," Motte said. "That's really all it comes down to this time of the year. You got to start all over. They're going to have a pushback, and we got to be able to match it."
The Devils realize better execution on the power play and 5-on-5 is paramount in Game 2. New Jersey is 7-3-1 in 10 games following a loss since March 1.
"We're looking forward to tonight for a win, that's our mindset," Hischier said. "We want to tie the series up. It was definitely not the start we wanted, but it's one game, so now we got another chance. We're still at home, so it's go time tonight."
Rangers projected lineup
Chris Kreider -- Mika Zibanejad -- Patrick Kane
Artemi Panarin -- Vincent Trocheck -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Alexis Lafreniere
-- Filip Chytil -- Kaapo Kakko
Jimmy Vesey -- Barclay Goodrow -- Tyler Motte
Ryan Lindgren -- Adam Fox
K'Andre Miller -- Jacob Trouba
Niko Mikkola -- Braden Schneider
Igor Shesterkin
Jaroslav Halak
Scratched: Ben Harpur, Jake Leschyshyn, Jonny Brodzinski, Libor Hajek, Louis Domingue
Injured: None
Devils projected lineup
Timo Meier -- Nico Hischier -- Dawson Mercer
Ondrej Palat -- Jack Hughes -- Jesper Bratt
Miles Wood -- Erik Haula -- Tomas Tatar
Yegor Sharangovich -- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Dougie Hamilton
Ryan Graves -- John Marino
Kevin Bahl -- Damon Severson
Vitek Vanecek
Akira Schmid
Scratched: Luke Hughes, Jesper Boqvist, Curtis Lazar, Mackenzie Blackwood
Injured: Jonathan Bernier (hip)
Status report
The Rangers held an optional morning skate. ... Sharangovich is expected replace Boqvist and make his Stanley Cup Playoff debut. ... Meier is expected to move to the top line after playing a third-line role in Game 1.