Eastern Matchup: (3) Atlanta vs. (6) NY Rangers
| New York Rangers | Atlanta Thrashers | |
| Power Home | 0.415 | 0.478 |
| Power Away | 0.498 | 4.930 |
| Power Total | 0.456 | 0.486 |
| Goals For | 242 | 246 |
| Goals Against | 216 | 245 |
| Diff Per Game | 0.317 | 0.012 |
| PowerPlay | 18.5% (8th) | 16.5% (23rd) |
| PenaltyKill | 83.8% (12th) | 79.8% (26th) |
| PP+PK | 102.30% | 96.30% |
Key players for NY Rangers: Henrik Lundqvist, Jaromir Jagr, Sean Avery
Key players for Atlanta: Keith Tkachuk, Marian Hossa, Kari Lehtonen
Analysis: How on earth are the Thrashers the third seed? Ranked bottom 10 in both power play and penalty killing, only a single goal more for than against… even playing in a weak division, the Thrashers are lucky to be in the playoffs. This will be a first round upset.
Lundqvist was the key down the stretch and will continue to be so. He is the real deal. I was skeptical at the begining of the year (I’m skeptical of all second year goaltenders) but he’s made me a believer. I don’t think the Rangers have the depth up front or on the blueline for a long run but I would be very surprised if they didn’t make it out of the first round.
But there is some worry. Johan Hedberg is a more viable Plan B than Kevin Weekes should injuries occur. Tkachuk and Alexei Zhitnik, though expensive, have proved very valuable since the trade deadline. The Rangers are very top heavy, though their addition of Sean Avery as added more to the team than I expected.
Prediction: Rangers in six