I am pumped for this series. Assuming the winner comes out reasonably healthy, I think the winner will be the SC fav, and I think win the Cup. I do believe these are the two best teams, with 2 or 3 others not too far behind. As I said against the Caps, game 1 is not the end all be all, the sky isn't falling if you lose game 1, and in this series, I do believe we'll be tied 1-1 going to Carolina regardless of which team wins game 1, but I would like to see the Rangers get the win today to set the tone. We won the Met, earned home ice, swept in round 1, to lose the first game against the favored Canes I wouldn't love. For all those reasons I do think winning game 1 is a little bigger for us. Again, won't be the end of the world if we lose, I still believe we'll be tied 1-1, but I would really like to see us win today and put some pressure on the Canes. And speaking of pressure, to me that is the key to this whole series. Can the Rangers make quick smart decisions with the puck against the Canes relentless pressure (even when they are on the PK). If they can I believe we'll win the series, if they cannot, it will lead to breakdowns in our own end with wide-open guys, and the Canes will win the series. These are the two best teams on special teams, both top 3 on the PP and PK, and we'll need to have some 5 on 5 production and handle their pressure, while staying structured. The key to everything. Side note: with the way the NHL and NBA schedules were setup, starting today you have 10 straight days of Rangers or Knicks games, through game 5 for each, which means it should happen as I don't see either series being a sweep. That is awesome if you are a Rangers and Knicks fan.
