From The Silky Mitten State: New York's playoff success has relied heavily on its special teams. Can their five-on-five game match that of the Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final?

Tonight, at what New Yorkers claim to be the world's most famous arena, the puck will drop on Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final between the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers.

It's a match-up between the two irrefutable top teams in the East, but the two teams vary in their methods of domination.  Florida is a deep, five-on-five steamroller, pugnacious, irascible, and seemingly undeniable.  New York has leaned on its superstars, special teams, and goaltending to make it to within four wins of the Stanley Cup having lost just twice in the postseason.

Thus far, the Rangers have (clearly) done enough to at five-on-five to make it this far, but heading into this series with Florida (whom I believe to be the league's best team), my biggest question is whether New York can survive at five-on-five against the Ice Cats.

Nine of the Rangers' 19 postseason five-on-five goals have been scored by one line (Alexis Lafreniere, Vincent Trocheck, and Artemi Panarin), and I'm curious to see whether that unit can maintain that production against an opponent with some of the league's best shutdown players in Aleksander Barkov and Gustav Forsling.

On the latest episode of The Silky Mitten State, my co-host Connor Earegood and I discussed this dynamic.  You can check out a sample of that conversation via the video above and then go to Apple Podcasts or Spotify for the full episode:

Sign Up for THN's Red Wings Round Table

To check out THN Detroit's new Red Wings forum, use this link to sign up for a free account and start posting!

Also from THN Detroit

These Former Red Wings are Unrestricted Free Agents. Could Any of them Return to Detroit?

The Red Wings Could Trade their First Round Pick; Here’s Why they Shouldn’t

Around the League: Conference Final Field Assures Fresh Stanley Cup Champion

Breaking: Danielson Debuts for Griffins in Game 2

Must Watch: Raymond Continues Strong Worlds Campaign with Snipe vs. France

Nichushkin Suspension Raises Serious Doubts About Efficacy of Player Assistance Program

The Red Wings Could've Had Wyatt Johnston and Brock Faber; What this Teaches us About Rebuild Trades

Who is the Red Wings Most Important Prospect?

Breaking: Red Wings Prospect Danielson Joins Griffins

What Are the Red Wings' Best Trade Assets Heading into the Offseason?