Despite having just one night off in between series, Gerard Gallant's Rangers showed no signs of fatigue in a dominant game one win over the two-time defending champions at The Garden.
Fueled by their youth, the Kid Line paced an offensive attack that saw New York push six goals past Andrei Vasilevkiy, who gave up just three the entire series prior against the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the Blueshirts were just coming back from a do-or-die game seven in Raleigh, and still dictated the pace in a lopsided win, scoring five goals or more for the third straight game.
On the other end, the Lightning were coming off more than a week of inaction after sweeping the Panthers in the second round, leaving Gallant to assume that a much different Tampa Bay team will take the ice in Friday's game two.
"Obviously, they were a little bit rusty tonight," Gallant said. "They weren't the same, being nine days off. It makes a difference."
Gallant's group didn't have to worry about rust, as they looked razor sharp in game one. But don't expect the same Lightning in game two.
"There was a lot of sharpness," Gallant said. "Our team just kept going. We got a day off and played a game, and it looked good for us tonight."
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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