Hurricanes -125 Favorites to Beat Rangers After Opening at -150

• The NY Rangers remain underdogs to the Carolina Hurricanes in their best-of-five qualification series

• The Rangers’ record doesn’t reflect how much they improved as season wore on

• Read why the underdog Rangers have an advantage with a rookie in the net

Twenty-nine months ago, the New York Rangers formally announced they were committing to a rebuild. They missed the playoffs in 2017-18, 2018-19 and were not in a playoff position when the NHL paused the 2019-20 season in March.

The Rangers’ points percentage of .564 ranked 11th in the Eastern Conference, and 18th in the NHL.

But when you drill down on the Rangers’ season, it’s easy to reach the conclusion that they may have the best opportunity to pull off an upset against the Carolina Hurricanes in the best-of-five qualifier round. Game 1 of the best-of-five takes place Saturday, Aug. 1, at 12:00 noon ET. 

Hurricanes vs Rangers Series Odds

Odds taken July 27th.

The Hurricanes reached the Eastern Conference Final in 2019, and they were one of the NHL’s most consistent teams this season (19-12-2 at home and 19-13-3 on the road). Their +29 goal-differential was sixth-best in the NHL.

But here are reasons why the Rangers are a good value bet to win the series.

Bad History 

Although the Hurricanes finished ahead of New York in the standings, they never showed they could beat the Rangers. New York was 4-0 against the Hurricanes this season, out-scoring them 17-9.

The Hurricanes have a mental block when it comes to facing the Rangers, evidenced by the fact they haven’t won a season series against New York since 2005-06. Since 2006-07, the Rangers are 37-14-1 against Carolina.

Goalie Story

Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin, 24, played so impressively down the stretch that it has fueled speculation that future Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist will be bought out after the season.

Shesterkin’s 10-2 record and .932 save percentage added another layer of confidence to this young Rangers’ squad. The Russian is 6-foot-2, and seems to fill the net post-to-post when he sets up in the crease. The Rangers play with a more noticeable swagger when he is starting.  He is to the Rangers what Andrei Vasilevskiy is to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

 By contrast,  Carolina goalie Petr Mrazek has been somewhere between adequate and dependable for the ‘Canes. He was 21-16 this season with a .905 save percentage. He has a career .886 save percentage against the Rangers.

Ouch, This Will Hurt

Carolina defenseman Dougie Hamilton, having the best season of his career, suffered an undisclosed injury last week during a practice. He’s expected to be sidelined for at least the start of the series against the Rangers.

Hamilton is 6-foot-6 and boasts a sizzling slap shot. He posted 14 goals and 40 points in 47 games. When he’s in the lineup, the ‘Canes defense is among the league’s best. The defensive group is still strong without Hamilton, but loses considerable offensive flair.

Earlier this season, Hamilton suffered a broken leg. However, his current injury is reportedly not connected to that injury. 

Hurricanes' Dougie Hamilton still unfit to play with undisclosed injury. https://t.co/a8ujhS394O pic.twitter.com/i2nQ2dkr0s

— theScore (@theScore) July 27, 2020

Rest of the Story

Even though the Hurricanes were better than the Rangers start to finish in the regular-season, the Rangers looked stronger down the stretch.

The Rangers were better offensively (3.33 goals per game to 3.19 for the ‘Canes) and went 11-6 in their final 17 games. The Hurricanes were 8-8 in their final 16, with a couple of overtime-loss points added in.

 The Hurricanes have reasonable scoring depth, led by Sebastian Aho who had 38 goals and 66 points.

Artemi Panarin officially announced by the #NHL as a Hart Trophy finalist with Leon Draisaitl and Nathan MacKinnon. #NYR pic.twitter.com/MZDFc9G7fK

— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) July 21, 2020

But the Rangers are led by MVP candidate Artemi Panarin who had 32 goals and 63 assists. He can take over a series like no other forward who will be on the ice. The elusive winger had nine points in four games against Carolina this season. The Rangers also have big center Mika Zibanejad who totaled 41 goals and 34 assists this season.

 The ‘Canes counter with dynamic forward Andrei Svechnikov, 20, who someday will be among the NHL’s most dangerous scorers. But he’s not quite there yet.

Pick: New York Rangers (+110)