Henrik Lundqvist Rangers
Henrik Lundqvist is 33-40 in his playoff career. Reuters

The New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers will decide their first-round playoff series with a Game Seven at Madison Square Garden. It’s the first of three such contests that are scheduled for Wednesday night.

New York had a chance to advance to the second round on Tuesday, but didn’t come close in their Game Six matchup. The Rangers lost in Philadelphia, 5-2, the most lopsided game of the series. The Flyers took a 4-0 lead in the second period, and the contest was essentially over before the Rangers scored their first goal.

The power play, which has haunted New York for the entire series, was a glaring weakness in the team’s loss. The Rangers failed to score on all five of their power play opportunities, while Philadelphia took advantage of two of their three chances.

Special teams has been anything but a strength of the Rangers, through six games. They rank 12th among playoff teams, scoring on 10.7 percent of power play opportunities. That number would be much lower, if it weren’t for the way New York began the series. They are unsuccessful in their last 20 chances.

Philadelphia, on the other hand, has been much more efficient in that area. They are second in the postseason, scoring six times in 19 opportunities.

Without the power play, the Flyers’ offensive hasn’t generated much of anything against New York. Even with their offensive explosion on Tuesday, the team has still only scored 15 goals in the series, 40 percent of which have come from the power play.

The contest falls largely on the shoulders of Henrik Lundqvist. The Rangers goalie is consistently one of the best in the NHL, but has never reached a Stanley Cup Finals. He’s saved 91 percent of the shots that have come his way in the series.

On Tuesday, the Rangers lost their 12th straight game, when leading a postseason series. The two teams have alternated victories, throughout the first round. New York has won 13-of-15 series in which they have held a 3-2 lead.

Player To Watch: Henrik Lundqvist

Time: 7:00 p.m. ET

Place: Madison Square Garden

TV Channel: NBC Sports Network

Online Stream: NBC Sports Live Extra

Betting Odds: Rangers-155, Flyers+135

Prediction: Rangers over Flyers, 3-2