Despite their regular season success, the New York Rangers have three players who underperformed during the season and need to step up in the playoffs: Jacob Trouba, K’Andre Miller, and Mika Zibanejad. If these players can improve their performance, the Rangers have the potential to win the Stanley Cup.
The New York Rangers will host the Washington Capitals in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers currently hold a 1-0 lead in the series after winning the first game 4-1. Artemi Panarin leads the Rangers with 49 goals and 69 assists this season, while John Carlson leads the Capitals with 10 goals and 42 assists. The game will be broadcast on ESPN, MSG, and Monumental Channel. Fans can also watch the game for free with a subscription to DirecTV Stream.
Former Capitals coach Peter Laviolette is now behind the bench for the New York Rangers, who face Washington in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Laviolette was fired by the Capitals after three seasons, and this is only the eighth time in Stanley Cup playoff history that a head coach has faced the team that dismissed him in the previous season.
The Colorado Avalanche and Winnipeg Jets will square off in Game 2 of their first-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series on Tuesday, April 23, 2024 at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Jets hold a 1-0 lead in the series after winning the opener 7-6. Adam Lowry led the way for Winnipeg with two goals, while Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and two assists for Colorado. The Avalanche will be looking to even the series up on Tuesday, while the Jets will be aiming to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
The Vegas Golden Knights, reigning Stanley Cup champions, kicked off their title defense with a 4-3 victory over the top-seeded Dallas Stars on Monday night. Mark Stone, Tomas Hertl, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brayden McNabb scored for Vegas, while Jamie Benn, Jason Robertson, and Mason Marchment replied for Dallas. Logan Thompson made 27 saves for the Knights, while Jake Oettinger stopped 11 shots for the Stars. Game 2 of the series is set for Wednesday night.
The reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights opened their title defense with a 4-3 win over the top-seeded Dallas Stars on Monday night. Mark Stone, Tomas Hertl, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brayden McNabb scored for Vegas, while Jamie Benn, Jason Robertson, and Mason Marchment replied for Dallas.
The Boston Bruins dropped Game 2 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Monday night at TD Garden, evening the series at 1-1. The Bruins allowed a late breakaway goal by Auston Matthews and lacked urgency in the third period, leading to the loss. Linus Ullmark made several key saves, but the team’s power play was ineffective.
In the first-round Stanley Cup playoff series between the Colorado Avalanche and the Winnipeg Jets, both teams will likely focus on improving their defense after a high-scoring Game 1. Both goaltenders, Connor Hellebuyck for the Jets and Alexandar Georgiev for the Avalanche, will need to step up their play. The Avalanche may also need to find a backup goaltender with Justus Annunen still out due to illness.
Casey Mittelstadt impressed in his playoff debut for the Colorado Avalanche, providing depth and offense behind Nathan MacKinnon. Despite one costly mistake, Mittelstadt showed his willingness to battle and create scoring chances, contributing to the team’s strong performance against the Winnipeg Jets in Game 1.
The Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights, who met in last year’s Western Conference Final, are expected to produce a high-scoring series when they face off in the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Vegas’s Jack Eichel has been on a hot streak, scoring six goals in his last eight games. Dallas’s Jason Robertson, who eclipsed the 100-point mark in 2023, has three goals and three assists in nine career regular-season games against Vegas. Both players are strong candidates to find the back of the net in this series.
