Gerard Gallant wanted no part of it.
The expression on the face of the Rangers’ coach told you all you needed to know about how much he disliked the question.
It was a question about the expectation and pressure on this Rangers team bettering what it accomplished a year ago when it gained valuable experience as it advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals before being eliminated.
“I don’t worry about any of that,’’ Gallant said Monday after his team’s final practice before Tuesday night’s playoff opener against the Devils at the Prudential Center. “I worry about getting ready for Game 1 and playing. I don’t worry about expectations. It’s my job to get our team ready to play best we can.”
The fact is the Rangers, with 852 games of collective postseason experience on their roster, enter this series with more postseason experience than the Devils.
“It’s obviously nice that we’ve got the experience,’’ defenseman Ryan Lindgren said. “We know what it takes to go decently far in the playoffs. But, you can kind of look at it the other way, too: We were in a similar spot as [the Devils] last year and we were able to make a pretty good run.’’
Indeed, the Rangers entered the postseason last year having not been to the playoffs in the previous four seasons, and played like a seasoned team.
“I do think experience helps,’’ Lindgren said. “We’ve got guys on this team that have won Stanley Cups and a lot of us were in the Eastern Conference Finals last year, so … it always helps when you know what it takes.’’
Gallant referred to the roller-coaster last year’s postseason was for his team, trailing the Penguins 3-1 before coming back to win in seven games, then trailing the Hurricanes 2-0 before rallying to win in seven and then leading defending-champion Tampa Bay 2-0 before succumbing in six.
“Last playoffs wasn’t easy,’’ Gallant said. “There were lots of ups and downs in those series. Sure, you learn a lot from it, but this is a new year. What did I say last year when Pittsburgh had more experience? It means nothing, and I truly believe that. It’s who’s ready to play for the next two weeks?’’
The Rangers, in midseason, added Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko, two seasoned veterans with plenty of playoff experience.
Kane has played 136 postseason games and amassed 132 points, including 52 goals. Tarasenko has played in 90 playoff games, scoring 41 goals.
“Playoff experience can go a long way,’’ forward Vincent Trocheck said.
Because the Devils haven’t been to the playoffs since 2018, their core players — most notably star Jack Hughes — will be playing in the postseason for the first time.
“The playoff experience helps a lot, because you know what to expect,’’ Rangers winger Kaapo Kakko said. “But we didn’t have that last year and we still played good, so I don’t know. It’s still the same game.’’
The Devils, it should be noted, are not without postseason experience.
Forwards Tomas Tatar (40 playoff games) and Erik Haula (61) have experience.
Dougie Hamilton has been to the playoffs six times with Boston, Calgary, and Carolina.
Defenseman Brendan Smith has been seven times.
Ondrej Palat has won two Stanley Cups with Tampa Bay and in his eight playoff appearances, he has 94 points in 138 games with 48 goals.
The Devils have four players remaining on the roster from their last playoff team in 2017-18 — Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Miles Wood and Damon Severson — but they’ve played in only 15 playoff games combined.
“We might be a little bit older and have a little bit more experience and they are more like the young and upcoming team that’s supposed to be good for a long time that’s getting their first taste of playoff action,’’ Kane said. “We have that experience, so we’ve got to lean on it and try to make difficult for them.’’