Looks like we get 5 games against two Atlantic opponents, 4 games against the other two, and 3 against the rest of the East.
30 games against the Northeast and Southeast? Awesome. Just awesome. Honestly, they should dominate those divisions. 26-11-3 last year against those two... but that was pretty much dominance against the Southeast and mediocrity against the Northeast. Let's just pray that we get 2 home, 1 away against Montreal. The bi-annual Quebecois beatdowns are getting old.
Awesome. I heard that it was 7 against each division rival. That would have been unfair in our difficult division.
Not really anymore though. Debbies are without their best player. Brodeur is coming off rust and a year older. Philly is in a wreck with long term injuries without a captain and with a shaky goaltender and minus Jagr and with an even worse defense. Isles are the isles. Last year it a debate between us and central but this year, it's hard to make the same case EXCEPT for NYR.
Not really anymore though. Debbies are without their best player. Brodeur is coming off rust and a year older. Philly is in a wreck with long term injuries without a captain and with a shaky goaltender and minus Jagr and with an even worse defense. Isles are the isles. Last year it a debate between us and central but this year, it's hard to make the same case EXCEPT for NYR.
I'd shoot myself if we had to play the Pens 7 times though.
Pens and the Rangers are clearly the class of the East...I could see Boston finishing with the Presidents trophy though. We're better....but they have a horrendous division to play against.
I really don't like how it's 18 games versus the division.
Watch the 5 games be against the Penguins and Devils, while the 4 games will be against the Flyers, who we owned last year, and the Islanders who just plain suck.
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"Trust me I'm an expert, I watched 13 rangers games on NHL center Ice this year through streaming." -Starburst
"I don't even understand what the point of all this arguing is. Are you guys hoping that the other side is going to have an epiphany and go 'Oh, OH! You're right, we ARE going to lose this series!'" -Crease
Regardless of who they draw from the Atlantic this schedule could favor the Rangers, big time. Obviously the Western Conference is the far superior conference in terms of depth with the Kings, Canucks, Blues, Predators, Red Wings and even the Coyotes with the addition of the revamped Wild. After the Flyers and Penguins, I don't see a team in the same field as the Rangers. Shouldn't have a problem against the weak Southeast and Rangers had the Northeast's number. Would prefer to face Devs and Isles 5x as opposed to the Pens or Flyers, but that would be nit-picking.
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"Of course giving Sather cap space is like giving teenagers whiskey and car keys." - SBOB "Watching Sather build a team is like watching a blind man with no fingers trying to put together an elaborate puzzle." - Shadowtron
Sestito still on the make a wish tour. - rholt168
uneven number of games in the division is odd BUT outside of 1st place in the division you are competing for playoff spots equally with teams in the other 2 divisions as your own so the 3 vs 4/5 split is alot more balanced and fair than a 7/2 split.
How so? The Penguins will play 2 teams 5 times, the Flyers are one of them.
Devils and isles have to play 5 games against two opponents also. They'll play each other five times, but that means two other teams playing one of them each five times also. With Philly out, Rangers and Pens have to play one of them five times. Thus we play Philly and one of the devils or isles five times and can only play the pens four times.
I'd guess we play the Devils five times. It's the bigger rivalry right now and isles and Pens have built some kind of a rivalry as well after that fight game a year (or is it two already?) back.
