The New York Rangers, the "beasts of the East" or whatever one wants to call them are the best team overall not just in the Eastern Conference but league-wide as well, having surpassed the West giants Anaheim & St.Louis in total points. The Broadway Blueshirts are a formidable opponent with four deep lines, a strong backend, and (hopefully in the eyes of Ranger fans), the return of the superbly talented netminder King Henrik, who has been absent from the lineup in the last few weeks of the season due to a scary injury he sustained. A healthy Lundqvist means a formidable presence in net. Backup Cam Talbot has done well in Lundqvist's place, but there's nothing better during playoff time than to have your best goalkeeper tending the net.
The Pittsburgh Penguins. This team is hard to figure out for the mere fact that the Penguins had to practically crawl to their WC finish. How so for a team that employs one of the best if not the best in Sydney Crosby and a equally dangerous Evgeny Malkin, plus the fact that Pittsburgh possesses good metrics -- penalty-killing, power-play, even-strength, and a low goals-against.
But, with all of the injuries to key players such as Norris Trophy candidate Kris Letang, Pittsburgh's best mobile d-man currently out for the rest of the season & playoffs, including a not so healthy year for both Crosby and Malkin (who may return for this round), the Penguins struggled particularly in the late month and a half of the season, a woeful April month they'd rather forget.
One more thing, Penguins goalkeeper Fleury. He has presented himself as not being too steady in minding the net yet he can be his old acrobatic self at times. This isn't the same Fleury who backstopped his team to a Stanley Cup victory a few years ago, this Fleury seems hot and cold for want of a better phrase. If Marc-Andr? can once again regain his glory, it'll give Pittsburgh a better chance in these playoffs. That will remain to be seen.
A cakewalk for the Rangers? One shouldn't underestimate the Penguins just yet, but if all indications persist, then the Blueshirts of Manhattan shall prevail.
(Reference) Source: THN, CBC, ESPN
