Penguins vs. Rangers: Game 1 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 NHL Playoffs

The New York Rangers, many fans' favorites to win the 2015 Stanley Cup, defended their home ice Thursday night. They picked up a 2-1 win in Game 1 of their first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden.

On paper, the Rangers should have no trouble dispatching the Penguins. New York amassed more points than any other team in the league (113), and Pittsburgh needed to win on the final day of the regular season just to get into the postseason.

The playoffs often serve as the great equalizer, though. Top seeds aren't untouchable, and Thursday's game was proof that New York won't have it easy as it looks to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season.

With that said, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference couldn't have asked for a better start. The Rangers needed all of 28 seconds to draw first blood.

Less than a minute into Game 1, Rick Nash delivered a slap shot to the left of goal. Marc-Andre Fleury made the relatively easy save, but the puck deflected right into the path of Derick Brassard, who found the back of the net.

Just like that, it was 1-0 to the Rangers. The goal was one second shy of tying a franchise record, per the NHL:

NHL.com's Dan Rosen wanted to make sure that Dan Girardi, who provided the assist before the assist, received his due credit for his role in the goal:

Coming into the game, the Penguins defense was a major question mark after Kris Letang's season-ending concussion he suffered March 28.

"Last year, and even previous we've had guys injured, and it seems like a lot of key guys," said defenseman Paul Martin, per USA Today's Kevin Allen. "It's finding ways to win, and guys elevating their games, and young guys showing what they can do. You hope that adversity makes us better."

The goal was an immediate reminder of Letang's absence. Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski wondered whether Fleury was expecting his defense to protect him more on the rebound:

Ryan McDonagh doubled New York's lead with a little under five minutes remaining in the first period. Taking full advantage of the power play, McDonagh found himself with tons of space and more than enough time to unleash a powerful slap shot that wriggled its way past Fleury.

The Penguins were arguably a bit lucky only being down 2-0 heading into the second period. The Rangers outshot them 13-5. Sidney Crosby was also a complete non-factor for the first 20 minutes, in no small part because Pittsburgh had four different guys go to the penalty box throughout the period. So much time spent on the penalty kill further limited Crosby's effectiveness.

Blake Comeau helped breathe some life into the Penguins with a goal 6:15 into the second period. After seeing his first shot attempt saved by Henrik Lundqvist, Comeau stayed with the play and got the last laugh.

As Pittsburgh noted, the 29-year-old was saving his first postseason goal for just the right opportunity:

Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star felt the goal came completely against the run of play:

The Penguins couldn't build on their momentum either, with New York still holding on to a slim one-goal advantage with one period to go. Liam McHugh of NBC Sports presented why that was such a big deal for the Rangers:

Things got a bit tense for New York in the third period, with the Madison Square Garden crowd on the edge of its seat. Ultimately, the Rangers held on for a nice Game 1 win.

One could argue that New York should've made more of its opportunities offensively and that it allowed Pittsburgh to stay in the game. That attitude wouldn't do justice to the Penguins, who improved a lot after their sluggish first period.

Indeed, this series is shaping up to be extremely competitive despite the two teams' respective places in the regular-season standings.

Game 2 is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Saturday night in New York.