The New Jersey Devils will not have the opportunity to seek revenge on the New York Rangers this season, after their Eastern Conference rivals eliminated them from playoff contention last week. They will however be able to have an impact on what kind of first-round matchup the Rangers will face when the playoffs begin. New York could finish the regular series as either the sixth, seventh or eighth seed depending on the outcomes of other games. A loss Saturday could mean facing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round, something New York would like to avoid.
The Rangers put together an impressive late season run, going 9-3-1 down the stretch to get into the playoffs. This is their third straight playoff berth. Captain Ryan Callahan is playing a large part in the final fun. He has a season-high six-game point streak, including four goals and five assists. Goalie Henrik Lundqvist has a 1.89 goals-against average in the 13-game stretch and will likely get his 14th consecutive start against New Jersey. The Rangers will likely consider resting starters towards the end of the game. Forward Ryan Clowe already went down on Thursday with an apparent leg injury and his status is uncertain.
The New Jersey Devils are finishing out a rather disappointing season. They have won four of their last five games and hope to just finish the game with a win. During that stretch, the Devils did beat the reigning conference champions, Pittsburgh Penguins. Their motivation for this game might just be wanting the Rangers to have to suffer through a first-round series against the Penguins. Patrik Elias has seen a solid ending to the season, knocking in three goals in his past four games. While the Devils truly have nothing left to play for, their hate for New York could be enough to get them one last win.
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