Hurricanes vs. Rangers Odds
| Hurricanes Odds | -135 |
| Rangers Odds | +110 |
| Over/Under | 5.5 (-115 / -105) |
| Time | 7 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN+ |
| Odds updated as of Tuesday afternoon via BetMGM. Get up-to-the-minute NHL Odds here. | |
The top two teams in the Metropolitan Division will go head to head when the Carolina Hurricanes visit the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
Both sides have clinched a playoff berth and have nine games remaining on their schedules. Surprisingly, just two points now separate the clubs in the standings, and the Rangers are talking about making a push for first place.
So it's a true four-point game on tap at Madison Square Garden.
Here's the latest on the Rangers and the Hurricanes and your best bet for the game.
Hurricanes Slumping After Strong Start
After looking like they had first place locked up in the Metro, the Hurricanes' win rate has dipped a bit over the last month.
After a 3-1 victory over Philadelphia on March 12, their record was 41-12-5, their Goal Differential was +61, and they held an eight-point lead in their division over the Rangers and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Since then, the Hurricanes have raised their Goal Differential to +68 but have gone an uncharacteristic 6-6-3. They've lost three of their last five and have gone 2-3-1 on the road over the last month.
Carolina's underlying numbers at five-on-five remain elite, but scoring has dropped — in no small part due to a grim five-on-five shooting percentage of 7.79% and an ineffective Power Play that has been clicking at just 13.2%.
Carolina's goaltending has been strong. Freddie Andersen is now tied with the Rangers' Igor Shesterkin for the league's lowest Goals-Against Average, at 2.07. He also sits second behind Shesterkin in Goals Saved Above Expected in all situations. But lately, if the Canes don't score more than two goals, they don't win.
Tight to the salary cap, the Hurricanes were limited in the moves they could make to improve their roster at the trade deadline. New addition Max Domi hasn't done much to spark the offense, with four assists in 10 games.
On the injury front, Carolina is missing forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi as well as defenseman Brendan Smith, who's day-to-day with an undisclosed issue.
Rangers Looking to Extend Winning Streak
The Rangers come into Tuesday's game riding a three-game winning streak after the club gave up two goals in total against New Jersey, Pittsburgh and Ottawa. Since going through a bit of a rough patch by his standards, Igor Shesterkin was outstanding in the latter two games, particularly the shutout of Pittsburgh.
Tuesday's game is the first of a back-to-back set for the Rangers, who will also play in Philadelphia on Wednesday. Coach Gerard Gallant is cagey about his goaltending deployment — and used Alexandar Georgiev in both of his team's earlier matchups against Carolina this season, which were also both in back-to-back situations. It may be best not to assume that Shesterkin will start on Tuesday.
The Rangers don't boast the same elite puck possession numbers as the Hurricanes but have improved as the season has progressed. Since March 13, they rank 13th overall in Expected Goals Share, at 51.55%.
New York's recent scoring rate is basically on par with Carolina's, at 3.21 goals per game vs. 3.13. But they're trending up while the Canes are trending down, and the Rangers' Power Play is connecting at 25.8%, led by Chris Kreider's league-leading 25 Power-Play goals.
On the injury front, Kaapo Kakko and Chris Rooney both returned to the lineup against Ottawa on Saturday after long injury absences, but forwards Filip Chytil and trade-deadline acquisition Tyler Motte are now both sidelined with upper-body injuries.
Hurricanes vs. Rangers Pick
The Rangers and Hurricanes have met in Raleigh twice so far this season. Both times, the matchup was Georgiev vs. Andersen. The Canes logged a 6-3 win on Jan. 21, then Georgiev picked up his only shutout of the year in a 2-0 win on Mar. 20.
They'll finish off the season series back at MSG on Apr 26.
Georgiev is now 2-2-0 in his career against Carolina, and Shesterkin is 1-0-0.
Right now, no matter which goaltender Gallant decides to tap, the Rangers are a confident bunch and not content just making the playoffs. They're targeting first place in their division and aiming to make some noise — and have some enough offensive juice flowing that they should be able to out-score the stingiest team in the NHL.
The Rangers are the home team, the hot hand, and available at plus money on Tuesday night. That all adds up to a high-value wager.
Pick: Rangers Moneyline (+110) | Play down to +100
