With the Rangers waiting to see who their next opponent will be in the second round, they can sit back and watch the Islanders and Hurricanes battle it out in Game 5 later tonight.

The Hurricanes need one more victory to advance and set up another showdown with the Rangers. They faced each other in the same round two years ago. The home team won the first six games. But it was the Rangers who prevailed in the deciding game to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.

After defeating the Hurricanes in double overtime on Robert Bortuzzo’s goal, the Islanders look to extend the first round series. If they can, Game 6 would be back on Long Island this Thursday.

While that’s still being decided along with the Maple Leafs and Bruins, the Rangers have some time before the second round gets started.

After taking care of the Capitals in four games, they should be satisfied with how the lineup played. All 18 skaters contributed in the first round. For that reason, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette never made any changes. He stuck with the same lines and defense pairs.

The big topic remains when Filip Chytil could return. He’s been skating with the team and traveling. Chytil hasn’t played since last Nov. 2 when he collided with Jesper Fast against Carolina. He suffered a concussion.

When he returned to practice in January, he fell and had another setback. At the time, it looked like his season was over. Instead, the Rangers got good news before the regular season concluded. Chytil returned to practice and was cleared for contact.

He was unavailable to play in the last two games due to the salary cap. It was similar to the Golden Knights holding Mark Stone out until he became eligible for the playoffs. Many refer to what Vegas does as cap circumvention. But it’s within the rules. The Rangers are doing the same thing with Chytil.

There’s been plenty of anticipation for his return to the lineup. As long as they continue to have success, the Rangers should stick with the players that got them here. Unless they struggle early on in the second round, I’d expect Laviolette to stay with the same 12 forwards and 6 defensemen.

There hasn’t been a reason to make changes. That’s why Zac Jones remained the extra defenseman while Erik Gustafsson performed well enough in the first round. It’s also why Matt Rempe stayed on the fourth line over Jonny Brodzinski. Rempe’s energy was effective against the Capitals.

Of course, things could change. If they do, then Chytil will likely return to the lineup. He’d be an upgrade over Alex Wennberg on the third line. Chytil is a more gifted offensive player who’s had success with Kaapo Kakko before. In 2022, they teamed with Alexis Lafreniere to deliver some key goals during the Rangers’ postseason run that year.

Will Cuylle has proven he will play the same North/South game that’s made him a pain in the butt for opponents. His physical style creates space for linemates. If Chytil is back, it makes sense to have him play with Cuylle and Kakko.

Wennberg can slide down to the fourth line with Barclay Goodrow and Jimmy Vesey. Rempe would likely come out in that scenario.

Chytil gives Laviolette another option. He can generate offense due to his skating and ability to keep the puck moving on the forecheck. Getting offense from the third line is a key moving forward. They were an effective line in the last round but only scored one goal. That came courtesy of Kakko, whose one-timer off a Nick Jensen giveaway gave the Rangers a quick start in Game 4.

For now, we’ll have to wait and see what happens with the Islanders and Hurricanes. If that series ends tonight, Game 1 of the second round won’t start until this weekend.

It’ll be interesting to see how Laviolette handles the return of Chytil.