Rangers vs. Hurricanes: 5 questions about Second Round series

PHT previews each Second Round playoff series with five questions. In this post, we explore a Metropolitan Division showdown between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers.

Game 1 – May 18: Rangers at Hurricanes, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN, SNE, SNO, SNP, TVA Sports)Game 2 – May 20: Rangers at Hurricanes, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN, SNE, SNO, SNP, TVA Sports)Game 3 – May 22: Hurricanes at Rangers, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN, Sportsnet, SN360, TVA Sports)Game 4 – May 24: Hurricanes at Rangers, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN, SNE, SNO, SNP, TVA Sports)*Game 5 – May 26: Rangers at Hurricanes, TBD*Game 6 – May 28: Hurricanes at Rangers, TBD*Game 7 – May 30: Rangers at Hurricanes, TBD

* if necessaryTBD – To Be Determined

During their series against the Bruins, the Hurricanes didn’t even have the option to start Frederik Andersen. While the situation is touch-and-go, it seems like Andersen could be available for the Hurricanes at some point (possibly as early as Game 1?) against the Rangers.

That brings up the inevitable question. Should the Hurricanes go with Andersen, if available, or roll with Antti Raanta?

Frankly, there are worse problems to have.

After being a strong backup for the Rangers, Raanta ended up being an underrated piece for the Coyotes. His time in Arizona was less a “failure,” and more the combined forces of bad injury luck, and the emergence of Darcy Kuemper. When called upon, Raanta was often very good, and sometimes brilliant. According to Hockey Reference, Raanta generated a Goals Saved Above Average of 35.5 in 104 games over four seasons with the Coyotes.

You could definitely argue that Raanta probably deserved a longer look as a starter, or at least a more overt platoon situation. (The Maple Leafs may regret pursuing Petr Mrazek instead of