New York Rangers Head Back to Tampa for Game Six

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

GAME FIVE

Rangers     1

Lightning   3

FINAL

Backs to the Wall, Rangers Face Elimination, Again!

Tampa Bay has outplayed the Rangers in eight of the last nine periods.

Any remaining spots of rust have been polished over.

The Rangers look slower, a step behind, and lack sixty-minute discipline.

To be fair, they've played 19 games in 38 days, which is a lot, and it has taken the Lightning everything they have to beat them.

Nevertheless, the education of the young Rangers continues ...

These boys must first learn how to finish.  The Rangers failed to protect a two-goal lead in game three, and with 0:42 left in regulation, yielded the game-winning goal.  They once again failed to effectively close out the second period in game five, allowing the game-tying goal at the 17:34 mark, and like game three, could not push into overtime, surrendering the go-ahead goal at 18:10 of the third.

Ryan Lindgren scored the game's first goal simply because he put the puck on the net, nothing more, nothing less.  The Rangers had their chances, some better than others.  Just ask Ryan Strome.  But in truth, the Rangers are no longer making Andrei Vasilevskiy work for his saves.  They hardly drive down the slot, no passing from behind the net, and, like I've been saying, a lot of predictability.

Ryan Reaves was a healthy scratch in favor of Kevin Rooney, an apparent attempt by Coach Gallant to muster more offense.  Reaves would have proved helpful after the final whistle.  Rooney threw his body around and got off two SOGs in under ten minutes on ice.  Overall, Blueshirt centermen had ten SOGs but no points.  Only one Ranger forward, Artemi Panarin, had as many as three SOGs.

Meanwhile, the refs seem less interested in blowing their whistle these days - advantage Bolts.  Tampa handed the Rangers just one power-play opportunity midway through the second period.  Lindgren's goal aside, game five was the latest example of the Blueshirt's dearth of scoring at even strength. 

Something needs to change quickly as the Rangers head to Tampa for game six.

If the first two rounds demonstrated anything, the Rangers played exceptionally well when faced with elimination - three straight must-win games against Pittsburgh, two against Carolina, and here we go again against Tampa.  But can the Rangers pull it off, again, against the defending back-to-back Stanley Cup champions?

That's a lot of noise!

We all know what needs to be done.  

Some better luck wouldn't hurt.

Otherwise, I expect all the New York City transplants and retirees to don their jerseys and make a ruckus at Amalie Arena.

New York Rangers Seize Two Game Lead Over Tampa Bay Lightning

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

GAME TWO

Lightning   2

Rangers     4

FINAL

Into Enemy Territory, They Go

Pack your sunscreen!  

It's on to Tampa Bay for games three and four.  Life is different down there.  Expect changes.  The Bolts are the defending two-time Stanley Cup champions.  That means something.  Exactly what remains to be seen.  But rest assured, a two-game series lead means little unless you finish.

That being said, the Rangers appear to be getting better with each passing game and have yet to reach their peak.  Their stars are shining brightly, the kids are improving with every shift, and the blueliners are performing very well.  

In case anyone forgot, Carolina was the stingiest regular-season team in hockey, not the Lightning.  The Rangers jumped that hurdle.  After the Hurricanes, you guessed it, the Rangers yielded the second-fewest goals.

Speaking of which, the opposition would have even fewer goals if not for Ryan Lindgren, who has now tipped three pucks past Igor Shesterkin.  Nikita Kucherov's shot at 2:41 of the first period was a frisbee until tipped by Lindgren.  Afterwhich the puck toppled end over end until it found the back of the net.  Corey Perry never touched it.  However, that Tampa Bay power-play opportunity should never have been.  Ryan Reaves and Pat Maroon should have been sent to the box, or none of them, not just Reaves. 

But the resilient Rangers answered right back.  K'Andre Miller tied the game at the 5:59 mark on a setup from Chris Kreider.  The shot was initially blocked by Brandon Hagel.  But Miller secured his own rebound and scored on Andrei Vasilevskiy's glove side.  

It's good to see K'Andre's efforts rewarded for such brilliant defensive play throughout the playoffs.  Miller and the blueliners have been stellar.  Jacob Trouba laid another big hit, this time to Anthony Cirelli.  Adam Fox continues to be the master of puck possession and movement, and all you need to do with Ryan Lindgren is wind him up and see him go.

The Kid Line once again announced their presence with authority.  With time winding down in the first period, Kaapo Kakko tipped in a perfect feed from Adam Fox, giving the Rangers a 2-1 lead.  Filip Chytil also assisted in the play.  The kids created numerous other scoring opportunities.

After a scoreless second period, Tampa committed one of the cardinal sins of hockey by allowing a goal inside the first two minutes of the third period.  At the 1:21 mark, Mika Zibanejad scored from the left wing, beating Vasilevskiy once again high on his blocker side.  Chris Kreider registered his second assist.  It was the game's decisive goal as Nicholas Paul scored at 17:58 to bring the Bolts within one.

Igor Shesterkin was the hero, again, stopping 29 of 31 shots.  He is by far outclassing Andrei Vasilevskiy in the net.

Hello Sunshine State ... and all the relocated New Yorkers and retirees just waiting to don their Rangers jerseys and storm Amalie Arena.

New York Rangers Zap Tampa Bay Lightning in Game One

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

I - NYR 6; TBL 2

Kid Line Short Circuits the Bolts

Was Tampa rusty after a nine-day break?

Perhaps ...

Do I expect more from them as the series progresses?

Absolutely.

But in no way will I minimize what the Rangers accomplished on Wednesday.  It was a stellar effort.  They were on the attack early, won the faceoff battle, and converted on the power play while killing off three.  

Moreover, it was smartly played hockey.  Mika Zibanejad faked a shot and fed Chris Kreider.  Filip Chytil hopped back to create a better passing angle for Kaapo Kakko, the now-famous "shift," or Ryan Reaves waiting for the right moment to send a message; it all wreaked of cohesiveness.

The Kreider/Zibanejad/Vatrano line scored the Rangers' first two goals.  Vatrano chipped the puck along the boards into the offensive zone in the opening moments.  Mika Zibanejad retrieved it in the right circle and passed it to a waiting Chris Kreider in the slot, who wristed it past Andrei Vasilevskiy at 1:11 of the first period.  Seven minutes later, Steven Stamkos tied the game at one.  Then at 7:50 of the second period, Frank Vatrano received the puck from Adam Fox and unleashed a sneaky shot from the slot for a 2-1 Rangers lead.  

As expected, Tampa tied the game at two.  

But then came the Kid Line to the rescue.  

They say that lightning doesn't strike the same spot twice.  That is unless you're Filip Chytil.  The Rangers' 23-year-old center is on fire.  He scored at 10:09 of the second period on feeds from Alexis LaFreniere and Kaapo Kakko.  A little over five minutes later, Chytil scored again off a cross-seam pass by K'Andre Miller.  He now has five goals in his last three games.

Artemi Panarin made his deliveries in the third period.  The Bread Man scored just 0:30 into the period on feeds from Andrew Copp and Jacob Trouba.  Panarin then assisted on Mika Zibanejad's power-play goal at the 6:06 mark.

Ryan Reaves and the fourth line very strategically notified Tampa that they aren't putting up with any crap in the closing minutes.

... a complete team effort.

My heart stooped when I saw Igor Shesterkin lying face down on the ice.  It appeared as if Nikita Kucherov buried his stick into the neck of Shesterkin.  But Igor rubbed it off to stop 37 of 39 shots on goal.

Some say Vasilevkiy was rusty.  I say he was perplexed.  The Rangers had him moving left and right.

By game seven of the first round, it finally dawned on the Blueshirts that their best scoring opportunities were shooting top shelf.  

Kreider scored high, blocker side moving right.  Vatrano also scored high on the blocker side.  Both Chytil goals were high glove side while moving left.  Artemi Panarin's goal mimicked Kreider and Vatrano, high on the blocker side.  Mika Zibanejad's power-play goal in third was likewise high on the blocker side, which confirmed Andrei Vasilevskiy has his issues.

Not all of that was rust.

New York Rangers and Hurricanes Head Back to North Carolina Tied at Two

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS

GAME FOUR

Hurricanes   1

Rangers        4

FINAL

Smurfs Need Not Apply

Midway through the first period, Jacob Trouba laid a big neutral zone hit on Max Domi which his linemate Steven Lorentz took exception.  Trouba in turn took out Lorentz post-haste, and both served five for fighting.

On that note, Alexis LaFreniere and Ryan Strome seem to enjoy when things get touchy, as do K'Andre Miller and Ryan Lindgren.  We know Chris Kreider handles himself very well.  The additions of Andrew Copp, Tyler Motte, Frank Vatrano (and even the injured Barclay Goodrow) have also elevated this team's grittiness and toughness.

But make no mistake, for the second game in a row, Ryan Reaves let Domi, Tony DeAngelo, and all the other Canes know the Rangers aren't putting up with any of their crap.

The Rangers followed the winning recipe from game three: front-line scoring and goals on the power play.  I also left off saying they needed to go top shelf on Antti Raanta.  At the very least, they have him shifting left and right.

A pair of breakaway attempts by Alexis LaFreniere and Artemi Panarin was stopped cold by Antti Raanta; LaFreniere tried going five-hole, and Panarin resorted to his backhand.  Mika Zibanejad later received a pass from Chris Kreider and was likewise stuffed by Raanta.  Filip Chytil even attempted a wrap-around to no avail.  My point is that the Rangers need to elevate like Andrew Copp did in the third period when he took a feed from Ryan Strome and scored mid-level.

Ryan Lindgren gets it.  He took two shots that ended up in the back of the net.  The first came from the left circle and was tipped by Adam Fox.  The next came in the second period when Mika Zibanejad cleaned up a rebound that got behind Raanta.  Both shots were high and caused trouble.

Frank Vatrano opened the scoring with a power-play goal at 13:31 of the first period.  The Rangers were 1/4 on the night but now have two PP goals in their last two games.  Carolina was held scoreless in two opportunities.

Mika Zibanejad came to play with another goal and assist.  More importantly, four Ranger centermen joined together for three goals and seven points.  

However, Artemi Panarin remains lost in space.

Long live Igor Shesterkin!

Back to North Carolina ...

N.Y. Rangers: Blueshirts Suffer Sixth Period Heartbreak

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS

GAME ONE

Penguins   4

Rangers     3

3/ot

Strong Start and Long Night Comes to Bitter End

It would be hypocritical of me to criticize Coach Gallant.  These young players must first learn how to lose in the playoffs if they are to win a Stanley Cup.  Lest we forget, the rebuilding process is still in progress.  This is the last stage of that process.  Tuesday's loss will prove invaluable.  But, no, it makes me feel no better today, and yes, Coach Gallant ignored the matchups.  

The Penguins double-shift; it's what they do.  Forward lines; blueline pairings; it doesn't matter; they've done it for years.  Coach stuck with his four-line rotation while the Pens kept pressing the kids with their first line, and it worked, evidenced by two second-period goals.

Igor Shesterkin was brilliant.  I'm not entertaining anything to the contrary.  He faced 84 shots in 105:58 minutes.  Ryan Reaves led all skaters with eight big hits.  Yeah, Chris Kreider's goal should have been the knockout punch.  Sure, Pittsburgh scored on a five on three power-play, and you can argue that Kaapo Kakko got screwed out of a goal for goalie interference.  But, again, there is no better teacher than experience and five-plus periods of chaos on ice was quite an indoctrination, to say the least.

Once you go into double/ triple overtime ... fuggedaboudit.

Pittsburgh is a battle-tested team.  

The Rangers played a hell of a first period but didn't sustain.

Game two is Thursday.  The Rangers need to figure out a way of freeing up Artemi Panarin and stay away from penalties.  Pittsburgh committed one penalty all game in the first ten minutes of the first period.  Afterwhich, the tide of the game changed.

Next lesson: Finish!