Peter Laviolette spoke about the Rangers’ upcoming playoff break with an trepidation that seemed to be with this team’s head coach since its run to the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals.
Of course, this is not the case.
It’s only his first year with the club, and he was behind the bench of the team his Blueshirts just eliminated in the first round of this year’s playoffs, the Capitals, two years ago.
But Laviolette views the reset his team is about to have as if he saw first-hand how the third-round game against the Lightning played out, with the Rangers taking a 2-0 lead into the series after playing Game 1 a day after Game 7 against the Lightning. Hurricanes.
Tampa Bay then reeled off four straight wins once its fresh legs shook off the cold.
“It looked like we had six days until that first game of the playoffs and it was really good for our group,” Laviolette said after the Rangers’ series win Sunday night in Washington. “We were able to rest from the start because the schedule was every other day for a month. It gave a lot of time to prepare and then came time to work on things on the ice and so there’s some real value in that, where you can start watching both opponents until you know who you are actually going to play against. . So there’s some value in that and I think the rest is important. Series that have not yet ended and could possibly continue could have value there.
“But there are probably a lot of facts and evidence behind the fact that a team that already has seven and needs to come off an overtime win in Game 7 and advance to the next series, is perfectly on point with his match. It can go either way.
Whether the extra rest will be a benefit or a detriment remains to be seen, but the Rangers were scheduled to be off Monday and Tuesday before returning to practice Wednesday.
The Rangers could begin their second round series this weekend.
They will face the winner of the Islanders and Hurricanes, who will get a second chance to close out the series Tuesday night in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The way the Rangers have trained throughout the season should help keep their minds and bodies competitive, but a loftier task awaits them no matter who their opponent is.
“Of course it is important,” said Igor Shesterkin. “We have (a few) extra days to rest, and that’s always good. It’s more time to practice and (to) build our confidence and see who we’ll play in the next round.
New York Post
