Lightning at Rangers
Fresh off an historic comeback victory over Washington, the New York Rangers prepare to host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final. The Rangers won the final three contests against the Capitals, including an overtime thriller in Game 7, to become the first NHL team to erase a 3-1 series deficit in back-to-back years.
Standing in New York's way of a return trip to the Stanley Cup final are the upstart Lightning, who ousted Atlantic Division champion Montreal in six games after clawing back from a 3-2 series deficit to defeat Detroit in the first round. There will be an air of familiarity in the series, a result of last year's blockbuster trade that sent forward Martin St. Louis to New York for forward Ryan Callahan in a deal involving former team captains. Additionally, center Brian Boyle and defenseman Anton Stralman left Gotham in the offseason to sign with the Lightning as free agents. "This is good for the game," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. "How often do two captains get traded for each other and end up going against each other in the Eastern Conference Finals a year later? You can't make that stuff up."
TV: 1 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, TVA
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING: While Tyler Johnson is the leading goal scorer in the postseason with eight, the biggest development for Tampa Bay was the re-emergence of captain Steve Stamkos, who has three tallies during a five-game point streak after failing to notch a goal in the first eight postseason contests. Stamkos, who was shifted to right wing in an attempt to get his offense going and responded with goals in Games 5 and 6 versus the Canadiens, was second in the league with 43 tallies and singed the Rangers for a pair of three-point performances this season. Callahan was a nemesis for his former team in three regular-season meetings, scoring four goals, but he is questionable for the series opener after undergoing an emergency appendectomy on Monday.
ABOUT THE RANGERS: Henrik Lundqvist was having a solid - but not spectacular - postseason until New York needed him most, turning aside 105-of-110 shots in his last three victories to become the third netminder in league history to register six Game 7 wins and move to the forefront in the race for the Conn Smythe Trophy. The Rangers could use a boost from 42-goal scorer Rick Nash, who has tallied only twice in 12 postseason games, but Chris Kreider netted four goals against Washington to hike his career total to 16 in 53 playoff contests. St. Louis, who has had a quiet postseason with three assists in 12 games, is in no mood for a sentimental journey, calling Tampa Bay "just a team standing in my way."
OVERTIME
1. The Presidents' Trophy-winning Rangers set an NHL record by having all 12 of their postseason games decided by one goal.
2. Tampa Bay outscored New York 15-7 in winning all three regular-season matchups, but the teams haven't met since Dec. 1.
3. The Rangers have killed off 22-of-23 penalties in their last 10 games but must deal with a Lightning power play that was 7-for-20 versus Montreal.