OK, so there are Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom in Washington; Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in Pittsburgh; John Tavares in Brooklyn; Claude Giroux in Philadelphia; Steven Stamkos in Tampa Bay; Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci in Boston…
And Derick/Derek and the Dominos in New York, where Brassard and Stepan, respectively, will attempt to answer the question in the affirmative as to whether the Rangers match up at center against the competition in the Eastern Conference.
And more to the point, does Brassard, who leads the Rangers with a personal-best 26 goals, have what it takes when it matters the most to go toe-to-toe against the opposition’s top center, which is the match most opposing coaches seek even if Alain Vigneault prefers the more checking-minded Stepan to take on that head-to-head challenge?