After making an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, is this the year that the New York Rangers make the jump to the Stanley Cup?
It’s not the exact same team that won two playoff rounds last year, but the core is still there, and they still boast the key components that should help them find success in the postseason.
It’s hard to envision a world where the Tampa Bay Lightning play for the Stanley Cup for the fourth consecutive season, meaning we should be looking elsewhere in the conference to try and find some value.
Let’s dive into the Rangers current price to win the Eastern Conference with their odds from the FanDuel Sportsbook.
Should you Buy Into Rangers Price to Win the East?The Rangers currently sit with +1000 odds to win the Eastern Conference, which has them with the sixth-shortest price. The recipe for success in the playoffs appears to revolve around good goaltending, star power, grit, and puck-moving defensemen. It’s hard to argue that the Rangers don’t embody all four of those attributes, and that should create some positivity surrounding their futures odds.
Igor Shesterkin is going to be a perennial Vezina candidate for at least the next half-decade, and he’s continued to be a big part of how the Rangers find success. It was evident in the playoffs last year that Shesterkin has the capability to not only steal games but also give the Rangers a sizable edge in goal in those respective matchups. As long as he’s healthy, there’s always going to be merit in backing the Rangers to do damage in the playoffs.
In addition to Shesterkin, there’s a great case to be made that Adam Fox is the next most important piece of this Rangers team. The former Norris trophy winner is once again making a big impact at both ends of the ice and has tallied 45 points in 46 games. Fox gives the Rangers a minute-eating defenseman who can control a game and play a big role in deciding the outcome. With him patrolling the blue line along with his strong possession brand of hockey, the Rangers have two of the most important pieces of a winning team.
Even with the East having stronger competition than the West, that shouldn’t stop bettors from taking a flyer on this Rangers team in the futures department. They simply have too many of the key pieces needed to win in the playoffs, and they showed us last year what they can do when the games begin to get tighter. With their price continuing to hover around +1000 to win the East, it’s hard not to get excited about that current price point.
Buy or Sell: Buy into Rangers to win the East.
