The race for the two wild-card playoff spots in the NHL’s Eastern Conference is full of surprises.

The U.

This seems so fitting.

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots for his first shutout of the postseason, Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and an assist and the Florida Panthers beat the New York Rangers 3-0 on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final.

The New York Rangers are in the Eastern Conference Final for the second time in three seasons after a big performance from Chris Kreider.

The Rangers and Hurricanes were among the top special teams units during the regular season.

The New York Rangers are one win away from the advancing after beating the Washington Capitals 3-1 to take a 3-0 lead in their first-round series.

Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad each had a goal and an assist and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers held on to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 Tuesday night for a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Adam Fox scored 36 seconds into overtime and the New York Rangers became the first NHL team to clinch a playoff spot this season, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-5 following a wild third period.

The two Stadium Series games at MetLife Stadium this weekend increase the NHL’s total of outdoor games to 41.

The New York Rangers are still dealing with disappointment as they head into the offseason after a first-round exit from the playoffs.

Chris Kreider had another power-play goal and two assists as the New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils 5-2 to force a deciding Game 7 in their first-round series.

The New York Rangers have been in a similar position before in this postseason — looking to reverse the momentum back home after dropping two games on the road.

Ondrej Palat scored with 42 seconds left and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Rangers 3-2 on Sunday to cut their deficit in the Eastern Conference finals to 2-1.

Mika Zibanejad scored in the third period, Igor Shesterkin stopped 29 shots and the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 to take a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

The New York Rangers’ third line has been making valuable contributions all season, and the trio’s success in Game 1 against Tampa Bay is a big reason the team finally has a lead during a postseason series.

Filip Chytil scored twice in the second period and the New York Rangers routed the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2 on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The Carolina Hurricanes lost goaltender Antti Raanta and rookie forward Seth Jarvis to injuries in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series against the New York Rangers.

Igor Shesterkin stopped 37 shots and became the fifth goalie to have two assists in a playoff game, Filip Chytil scored twice in the second period and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 to force a deciding Game 7 in their second-round series.

Vincent Trocheck buried a short-handed goal, Teuvo Teravainen had a rare power-play score for Carolina and the Hurricanes beat the New York Rangers 3-1 on Thursday night to take a 3-2 lead in the second-round playoff series.

Andrew Copp had a goal and two assists, and Frank Vatrano and Adam Fox each had a goal and an assist as the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 in Game 4 to even their second-round series.

Mika Zibanejad had a goal and an assist, Igor Shesterkin stopped 43 shots, and the New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 in Game 3 of their second-round playoff series.

The start of the NHL playoffs included more penalties called than any other first round in almost a decade.

Artemi Panarin scored a power-play goal 4:46 into overtime and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The New York Rangers will play the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the NHL playoffs.

The New York Rangers were on the brink of elimination when they came back from Pittsburgh earlier in the week after two bad losses on the road.

Chris Kreider’s long slap shot bounced over Louis Domingue and into the net with 1:28 left and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 to push their thrilling first-round series to a deciding Game 7.

Evgeni Malkin scored on a deflection 5:58 into the third overtime, giving the Pittsburgh Penguins a 4-3 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 1 of their first-round series.

Seth Jarvis and Jordan Staal scored third-period goals and Frederik Andersen made 28 saves as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Rangers 4-2 in a showdown for first place in the Metropolitan Division.

Tony DeAngelo had a goal and two assists against his former team as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Rangers 6-3.

Timo Meier set a San Jose franchise record with five goals on Monday, and the Sharks used a huge first period to beat the Los Angeles Kings 6-2.

Mika Zibanejad had his eighth career hat trick, Igor Shesterkin stopped 38 shots for his second shutout of the season and the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0.

Artemi Panarin scored the first of New York’s three third-period goals with 8:25 left and the Rangers beat the Boston Bruins 5-2 to give coach Gerard Gallant the best start in his first 20 games as coach.

The New York Rangers and top center Mika Zibanejad have agreed to an eight-year contract worth $68 million.

Gerard Gallant expects the New York Rangers to take a big step in his first season as coach.

The New York Rangers say president John Davidson and general manager Jeff Gorton are out.

Washington's Tom Wilson has been fined $5,000 by the NHL for roughing New York Rangers forward Pavel Buchnevich.

Pavel Buchnevich celebrated his birthday with his first career hat trick and the New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils 6-3 on Saturday for their third win over their Hudson River rivals in five days.

New York Rangers' Mika Zibanejad (93) scores against Philadelphia Flyers' Carter Hart (79) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, March 17, 2021, in New York. (Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via AP)NEW YORK – Mika Zibanejad had three goals and three assists in New York’s seven-goal second period, and the Rangers beat the Philadelphia Flyers 9-0 Wednesday night. Hartford Wolf Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch and associate head coach Gord Murphy, and Rangers associate general manager Chris Drury were behind the bench. Ad“You didn’t have much time to think about it,” Knoblauch said when asked about pregame preparation as the acting head coach. “Nothing about this game was any good,” Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said.

New York Rangers' Chris Kreider celebrates his goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)BOSTON – Chris Kreider scored his team-leading 14th goal, Artemi Panarin had an assist in his first game back since leaving the team, and the New York Rangers beat the Boston Bruins 4-0 Saturday to halt a three-game losing streak. “You put him in the lineup and then it looks like we have more swagger,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “You see a game like that and it's: ‘Are we tired or are we out of shape?’” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. Ad“I think right away we couldn't sustain our game,” Boston forward Nick Ritchie said.

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenire (13) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021, in Washington. Also seen are Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) and Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93). (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Alexis Lafrenière scored his second NHL goal, Artemi Panarin had two assists and the New York Rangers made the best of a new-look lineup, beating the Washington Capitals 4-1 Saturday for their second consecutive victory. Panarin set up Lafrenière on the doorstep late in the second period, and his shot provided the rebound for Chris Kreider's power-play goal in the first. He's the second Rangers player in league protocol, along with injured forward Filip Chytil.

It was the first day of training camp for Laviolette and the Washington Capitals and most of the NHL. Camps are now open for the league's 31 teams and they will last just 10 days. “You get a fresh start,” said Jeff Skinner of the Buffalo Sabres, who haven't played a game since March. “Most players would argue that camps are a little bit long anyway," Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler said. “I’ve been told from our team and from the league, when a player is not on the ice during training camp, we’re supposed to say he’s not available today,” Philadelphia coach Alain Vigneault said.