Rangers beat Devils to close out regular season

The Rangers clinched at least the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs Saturday afternoon, blanking the already-eliminated Devils easily in the regular-season finale, 4-0.

Behind Henrik Lundqvist's second shutout of the year, the Rangers finished the regular season with 26 wins and 56 points, and avoided a first-round matchup with the dangerous Pittsburgh Penguins, who lead the East with 70 points.

Depending on the outcome of games scheduled tonight, the potential first-round opponents are Boston, Montreal and Washington. The Rangers could finish where they sit now, in sixth place, and open the post-season next week against Washington, if the Ottawa Senators fail to get three points in their final two games. A seventh-place finish means playing the winner of the Northeast Division, the Bruins or Canadiens.

Derek Stepan, the team's leading scorer, and Ryan Callahan each beat Devils goaltender Johan Hedberg and added an assist in the first period, when the Blueshirts took a 2-0 lead. Rick Nash whipped in two goals in the third to give him a team-leading 21 in 44 games.

The Devils, who had been eliminated by the Rangers last Sunday,

didn't put up much resistance, and finished the season 19-19-10.

Stepan's opening goal came at 2:57, when Callahan spun behind the net and set him up for a blast with a backhand pass. Callahan, who was denied a shorthanded goal on a breakaway when Hedberg lunged out with his left skate to deny the opportunity, didn't miss on the next chance.

With Taylor Pyatt in the box for a questionable hooking penalty at 18:43, Stepan intercepted Marek Zidlicky's pass in mid-ice and fed the Rangers captain, who sped in alone and beat a diving Hedberg between the legs with 59 seconds left in the period.

Nash scored his 20th of the season at 17:23 of the second on a dish from Brad Richards, who was behind the net. Nash had a breakaway on Hedberg earlier and appeared to be pulled down by Ilya Kovalchuk, but no call was made, triggering loud jeering from the crowd at Madison Square Garden, which was in a festive mood.

At several points, the fans chanted "Marrr-tee, Marrr-tee", for Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, who dressed as a backup, to come in the game. His 21st came at 5:30 of the third after Mats Zuccarello skated around and through the offensive zone. Richards also was awarded an assist on the play.

Lundqvist, who started his 14th consecutive game, and before the game, had been voted Team MVP by the New York chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, wasn't really tested; he made only 13 stops in the first 40 minutes, and 20 for the game.