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Get your game notes: Rangers at Kings

New York Rangers v Los Angeles Kings

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 7: Anze Kopitar #11 of the Los Angeles Kings skates with the puck against Marc Staal #18 of the New York Rangers at Staples Center on October 7, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NHLI via Getty Images)

NHLI via Getty Images

Tonight on NBC, it’s the Los Angeles Kings hosting the New York Rangers at 8 p.m. ET in the first game of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final. Following are some game notes, as compiled by the NHL on NBC research team:

• The Kings needed an NHL-record 21 games to reach the Stanley Cup Final, while the Rangers needed 20. The NHL record for games played in an entire postseason is 26 games, done by two teams, the Flyers in 1987 and Flames (coached by current Kings coach Darryl Sutter) in 2004. Both of those teams lost in seven games in the Stanley Cup Final, Philadelphia to Edmonton (coached by current Rangers GM Glen Sather) and Calgary to Tampa Bay (led by current Rangers Martin St. Louis and Brad Richards.)

• The Kings will have home-ice advantage for the first time in franchise history in the Stanley Cup Final (three series), and just the second time overall since the beginning of the 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs (22 series). The only other time Los Angeles started a series at home during that span was in the 2013 Western Conference Semifinals vs. San Jose, a series the Kings won in seven games.

• The Stanley Cup Final will feature two of the top goaltenders in the NHL: Henrik Lundqvist and Jonathan Quick. In the last three postseasons (since 2012), Quick leads the NHL in playoff games played (59), wins (37) and shutouts (7), while posting a 2.05 GAA and .928 save%. During that span, Lundqvist is second in playoff games played (52) and shutouts (6), and third in wins (27), with a 1.98 GAA and .931 save%.

• In Game 1, Lundqvist will be making his 87th straight playoff start between the pipes. He has started every game for the Rangers since Game 3 of the 2006 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series vs. New Jersey. Lundqvist, who set the franchise record for career playoff wins (42) in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final, ranks third all-time for most consecutive playoff starts by a goalie for one team. Elias Sports Bureau

Consecutive goalie starts, with one team (playoffs, before Game 1)

194 (active) – Martin Brodeur (NJ)
133 – Patrick Roy (COL)
86 (active) – Lundqvist (NYR)
79 – Marc-Andre Fleury (PIT)
78 – Jacques Plante (MTL)

• The Rangers and Kings have the same number of goals from their top four centers this postseason, but the Kings have a substantial edge in points and faceoff percentage.

Chart

• St. Louis (6-7—13), Stepan (5-8—13) and Ryan McDonagh (3-10—13) lead the Rangers in scoring this postseason. Five different Kings players have 16 or more points: Kopitar (5-19—24, leads playoffs), Carter (9-13—22), Marian Gaborik (12-7—19), Justin Williams (7-11—18) and Drew Doughty (4-12—16). During the Conference Finals, Carter (5-6-11) and McDonagh (2-8—10) led all players in points.

• The Rangers are 34/36 (94.4%) on the penalty kill in their last 11 games (five vs. Pittsburgh, six vs. Montreal). They will face a stiff challenge from a Kings team that has at least one power-play goal in seven of nine home games this postseason and is 9/30 (30.0%) overall on home ice.

• Since the Stanley Cup Final went to a best-of-7 format in 1939, Game 1 winners have won 57 of 74 series (77.0%). In their most recent Cup Final appearances, the Rangers (1994) lost Game 1 at home to Vancouver (3-2, OT), while the Kings (2012) won Game 1 away to New Jersey (2-1, OT); both teams later won those series. In the last five Cup Finals, the winner of Game 1 has lost two of those series: the Detroit Red Wings vs. Pittsburgh in 2009 and the Vancouver Canucks (coached by current Rangers coach Alain Vigneault) vs. Boston in 2011. This postseason, the Rangers are 3-0 in Game 1s, while the Kings are 1-2.