It's That Time Again: Rangers @ Devils Game 1

It's that time of year again, folks. It's that time of year where we get to see hockey on TV every night. It's that time of year where we see guys go all-out every night. It's that time of year where legends are made. And, since the lockout, it's been the time of year where we get to once again see the Blueshirts suit up for a playoff run.

2006 saw the Rangers crash and burn after surprisingly holding the Atlantic Division lead for most of the year. As everyone remembers, we lost to this year's first round opponent, the Devils, in a 4 game sweep in which we saw Jagr injure his shoulder.

2007 was the most exciting year for the Rangers ever since that Cinderella 1997 playoff run. Although they at one point sat at 12th in the Eastern Conference, they roared back after the All-Star break. After sweeping the Thrashers out of the first round, something no one expected, they gave Buffalo a damn good run for their money.

This year? Well, obviously, the natural expectation is a Conference Finals appearance. But we all know the playoffs are a whole new season and absolutely anything can happen. I'm excited for another playoff season, no matter how the Rangers finish.

Interesting stat that just ran down SportCenter's ticker: the Rangers have lost 11 of their last 12 Game 1's (the outlier being in the Atlanta series). Keeping in mind that those Game 1's include the 1994 Devils and Canucks series, the 1995 Nordiques series, the 1996 Habs series, and the 1997 Panthers and Devils series. Remind me who won those series again?

Let's Go Rangers!

Meh, It's Still Kinda Like Home Ice Anyway (Updated with Full First Round Schedule)

Well, what can be said about today's SO loss to the Devils? Did it give them home-ice advantage, sure (even though 40-50% of their crowd is Ranger fans, anyway). Did it negate our psychological advantage over them, yeah I guess. Does it matter? I honestly don't know. The Rangers have rebounded from huge losses this year (the blown 5-goal lead at Montreal, for example) just fine. They'll put this one behind them and gear up for at least 4 games with the Devils.

How much has Jagr stepped up his play? A third period tying goal today was absolutely huge. Maybe he has been saving it for the playoffs after all. And after a shaky first period, the much-improved Henrik Lundqvist looked great. He absolutely stoned Zach Parise with his glove on the late Devils power play. That one made me jump out of my seat.

Here's the schedule for the first round (thanks to Steve Zipay). Gone are the days where teams would play 3 games in 4 days. Check it out:

Game 1 (in NJ) Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Game 2 (in NJ) Friday, 7 p.m.
Game 3 (in NY) Sunday, TBA
Game 4 (in NY) Wednesday, TBA
Game 5 (in NJ) Friday, TBA (if needed)
Game 6 (in NY) Sunday, TBA (if needed)
Game 7 (in NJ) Tuesday, TBA (if needed)