TONIGHT'S GAME
RANGERS VS. HURRICANES HISTORY
All-Time Postseason Record: 0-1 in series, 1-5 in games (1-0 at home, 0-2 on the road, 0-3 on neut. site)
All-Time Regular Season Record:86-57-7-2 (77-51-20-4 at home, 35-37-3-0 on road) - Includes Hartford Whalers
- The Rangers and Hurricanes are playing a best-of-seven series against each other for the first time ever.
- In 2020, the Rangers and Hurricanes played in the Stanley Cup Qualifying Round in the bubble, Carolina taking all three games. Through the three games, Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Ryan Strome and Chris Kreider led the Rangers with two points each. Panarin, Zibanejad, Kreider each had a goal. Strome led the Rangers with two assists in the 2020 qualifying round.
- The Blueshirts have won six of their last nine regular season games against the Hurricanes and have wins in seven out of their last 11 games against them.
Pregame Notes: Game Four vs. Hurricanes
HOME SWEET HOME
The Rangers are 4-1 on home-ice in these playoffs, the only loss coming in triple overtime in Game 1 of the First Round. New York is looking to win its fifth playoff home game in a row (in a single playoff season), tying a franchise record done four times previously:
1994 (5) - Games 1 &2 of CQF vs. NYI, Games 1, 2, 5 of CSF vs. WSH
1981 (5) - Games 3 &4 of Prem. Round vs. LAK, Games 3, 4, 6 of QF vs. STL
1974 (5) - Games 4 &6 of QF vs. MTL, Games 3, 4, 6 of SF vs. PHI
1940 (5) - Games 1, 4, 6 of SF vs. BOS, Games 1 &2 of Stanley Cup Final vs. TOR
Since 2010-11, the Rangers have a 19-4-0 record against the Hurricanes at home (18-4-0 in regular season, 1-0 in postseason).
NO QUIT IN NEW YORK
The Blueshirts are attempting to comeback to win a series after trailing 2-0 in a series for the third time in franchise history (2013 vs. WSH in CQF, 1996 vs. MTL in CQF). In franchise history, the Rangers have won Games 3 and 4 to tie a best-of-seven series nine times:
OPP YEAR ROUND
OTT 2017 R2
\WSH 2013 CQF
BUF 2007 CSF
\MTL 1996 CQF
NYI 1983 DF
PHI 1974 SF
BOS 1970 QF
TOR 1962 SF
DET 1948 SF
\Denotes series win
In the First Round, the Rangers became the first team in Stanley Cup Playoff history to record three consecutive comeback wins in elimination games within the same series. New York won a series after trailing 3-1 for the third time in team history (2015 R2 vs. WSH, 2014 R2 vs. PIT) after coming into these playoffs with a 2-18 series record when trailing 3-1.
In the regular season, New York had 27 comeback victories, the second most in the NHL in 2021-22 and most in franchise history.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
New York has 14 different goal scorers, tied for the most in the NHL, and 17 different point getters, tied for the sixth most in the league. 15 different Rangers have multiple points, tied for the second most in these playoffs.
KILLING IT
The Blueshirts are 7-for-7 on the penalty kill in this series and 24-for-30 (80.0) in these playoffs. New York has been perfect on the penalty kill in five of its last six games and six times in 10 playoff games.
DEFENSIVE EFFORT
New York has allowed five goals in three games (Game 1 - 2, Game 2 - 2, Game 3 - 1) to begin the series and has allowed 30 or fewer shots on goal (22 G2, 26 G1) in two of the three games.
In Game 3, Igor Shesterkin made 43 saves on 44 shots, earning his fifth win of the postseason. When facing 40 or more shots in a game this season, Shesterkin is 7-1 (3-1 in postseason, 4-0 in regular season).
Shesterkin's 339 saves through 10 games in a playoff year is the most by a Rangers goaltender since 1955-56, besting Mike Richter's mark of 329 saves through 10 games in 1997.
YOUTH MOVEMENT
This Rangers team has an average age of 27 years old, the youngest remaining team in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Alexis Lafrenière (20 YO - 2G-3A), Filip Chytil (22 YO - 2G-1A) and Kaapo Kakko (21 YO 1G-1A) have a combined 10 points in these playoffs. With his five points, Lafrenière is the fourth player in Rangers history to collect at least five points in a single postseason at age 20 or younger, joining Don Maloney (7G-13A-20 PTS in 1979), Niklas Sundstrom (4G-3A-7 PTS in 1996) and Rod Gilbert (2G-3A-5 PTS in 1962).
Excluding the 2020 playoff bubble, 12 Rangers have made their playoff debut this postseason (Motte, Brodzinski, Shesterkin, Georgiev, Fox, Lindgren, Chytil, Kakko, Miller, Schneider, Rooney, Lafrenière).
Four players (Miller, Kakko, Schneider, Lafreniere) who have played in these playoffs were born in 2000 or later.
OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMEN
The Rangers have 25 points by defensemen, 19 assists by d-men, and six goals from defensemen in these playoffs. All three are tied for the second most in the NHL through these playoffs.
Adam Fox ranks tied for the second most points (11) among League defensemen behind Cale Makar (12).
DEADLINE DARLINGS
Andrew Copp finished the First Round series with four goals and three assists for seven points in seven games. In a combined 26 games (regular season and playoffs) with New York since being acquired at the trade deadline, Copp has tallied 25 points (12G-13A).
Frank Vatrano has five points in seven games (2G-3A) in the First Round. His five points are the most he has recorded in a playoff year in his career. In a combined 32 games with New York since being acquired by the team, Vatrano has notched 18 points (10G-8A).
After missing 15 games (10 in regular season, 5 in playoffs), Tyler Motte played in Games 6 and 7 of the First Round, recording a plus-1 rating. Motte scored his first goal with the Rangers in Game 3 vs. Carolina.
FANTASTIC MR. FOX
Adam Fox has 11 points (3G-8A) in 10 playoff games. The only Rangers defensemen with more in a single postseason in the past 26 years are Ryan McDonagh (17 in 2014) and Dan Girardi (12 in 2012). Fox's eight assists are tied for the ninth most in a single playoff season by a Rangers defenseman.
In the First Round, Adam Fox became the fourth defenseman in NHL history with at least one point in all seven games of a series (3G-7A), joining Miro Heiskanen (DAL - 2020 - R2), Larry Murphy (PIT - 1995 - CQF), and Paul Reinhart (CGY - 1984 - Div. Finals). Fox was the first skater (defenseman or forward) in Rangers history to accomplish the feat.
MIKA MAY
In his last five games, Mika Zibanejad has nine points (4G-5A). In total, Zibanejad has 13 points in 10 playoff games (4G-9A), his 13-points rank tied for fourth in the NHL. The last Ranger to have 13 or more points through 10 playoff games was Jaromir Jagr (15 in 2008).
His 11 points in the First Round were tied for the most in a single series by a Rangers skater in playoff history and ranked tied for third in the NHL:
MOST FIRST ROUND POINTS
Connor McDavid (EDM) - 14
Carter Verhaeghe (FLA) - 12
Mika Zibanejad (NYR) - 11*
Brad Marchand (BOS) - 11
KREIDING RIGHT INTO THE RECORD BOOKS
Chris Kreider continues to climb all-time Rangers leaderboards as his 30th career playoff goal in Game 3 vs. Carolina surpassed Mark Messier for the second most in Rangers playoff history.
Kreider's goal in Game 3 was his sixth of the playoffs, 58th of the season, and his third game-winning goal of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Only three players in Rangers history have had more in a single postseason: Frank Boucher (4 in 1928), Brian Leetch (4 in 1994) and Mark Messier (4 in 1994). His nine-career playoff game-winning goals are the most in franchise history. .
Kreider has a combined 31 special teams goals (PP + SH) this season, the most since Mario Lemieux's 43 in 1995-96. The breakdown of Kreider's special teams' goals is below:
PPG: 27
SHG: 4
RS PPG: 26
RSL SHG: 1
PO PPG: 3
PO SHG: 1
PANARIN MAN
Artemi Panarin has eight points (3G-5A) in these playoffs, to give him 104 total points in the regular season and playoffs combined. The last Rangers skater to record at least 100 points in the regular season and postseason combined was Jaromir Jagr in 2006-07 (107 PTS).
Panarin had three goals and four assists for seven points in seven games in the First Round, including the Game 7 overtime winner to put the Blueshirts in the Second Round.
UPCOMING PLAYOFF MILESTONES
Chris Kreider
- 1 power play goal from tying Rod Gilbert for the third most power play goals in Rangers playoff history (11).
- 2 points from tying Derek Stepan, Steve Vickers, Ron Greschner for the sixth most points (49) in Rangers playoff history.
