N.Y. Rangers: Smooth as Glass; Blueshirts Take Game One

From the desk of: RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

2016-1017

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

Eastern Conference; Round One

GAME ONE

Rangers      2

Canadiens  0

FINAL

NEW YORK RANGERS: Rough and Tough Tanner Lends Blueshirts a Touch of Glass.

Calling all Forwards ... That's One Win for Henrik ... You Owe Him.

As expected, Montreal tried imposing their physicality upon the Rangers.  Artturi Lehkonen, Paul Byron, Steve Ott, and the rest of the Habs threw their bodies around quite liberally, out-hitting the Rangers for the game by a 53-45 margin.  In turn, those hits created a lot of takeaways.  Those takeaways in turn led to quality scoring chances.

That said, the Habs opened with a furious first period onslaught, peppering Henrik Lundqvist with 16 shots on goal.  It was a very disconcerting first 20-minutes to say the least.  But the Rangers responded with a strong second period, then put twice as many shots on goal in the third period than did Montreal.  By game's end, each team finished with 31 shots on goal apiece.

It was clear to me, the Habs were targeting Mats Zuccarello.  But to the Rangers credit, they leveled some big hits as well.  Brady Skjei and Dan Girardi come to mind.  And I also credit Alain Vigneault for starting Tanner Glass.  I thought it was a smart move, if only because he added toughness.

As it turns out, Glass scored the only meaningful goal of the game on a great backhand shot off the face-off.  Dare I say brilliant even ... because he didn't get cute and just put the damn puck on net!

Speaking of brilliant, Henrik Lundqvist made 31 saves en route to recording his tenth career playoff shutout.  And simply put, the Rangers do not escape the first period unscathed without his old school King-like performance.  Throughout the game, and particularly during that first period, our liege made several outstanding saves in heavy traffic against second chance opportunities.

Off Side:

Montreal played an undisciplined game.  After the Rangers withstood their best shot in the first session, the Habs clearly became frustrated.  However, numerous and obvious Canadien infractions went uncalled.  Lets see how the stripes potentially let this bleed into Game Two - or not.

But Montreal losing their cool didn't necessarily lead to Tanner Glass' goal.  In fact, Glass only played eight even strength minutes all night thanks to four Rangers power plays and another six minutes spent on the penalty kill.

The Rangers went 0 for 4 on the PP by the way.  But the fact Tanner Glass scored and some other forward didn't, makes me wonder...

• Five Rangers defensemen (Marc Staal, Brendan Smith, Ryan McDonagh, Nick Holden, Brady Skjei) together mustered 13 shots on goal.  

• Now take away each of Rick Nash's and Mika Zibanejad's 3 SOG, and Michael Granber's shot on an empty net, and the rest of the Rangers forwards (Kevin Hayse, Chris Kreider, Mats Zuccarello, JT Miller, Derek Stepan, Jimmy Vesey, Oscar Lindberg, Jesper Fast) only totaled nine shots on goal.

Just saying ...

The NHL's best road team this past season came through.  For the moment, home ice advantage shifts into Rangers hands.

Well done boys.

N.Y. Rangers: Strong Start Masks Weak Flank

From the desk of:  RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

Back in the City

NEW YORK RANGERS: You can lead this Tex's Ranger disciple to water, but you can't make me drink the kool-aid.

The Rangers will pay for their lack of physicality

when the Tax Man Cometh in Spring

ICYIM:

NYR: The Coach Who Cried Wolf

In the spate of three games, Tex's Rangers knocked off the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks and the Columbus Blue Jackets both on the road, then completed a sweep of their home and home against the Blue Jackets in Saturday night's season opener at Madison Square Garden.

They accumulated six quick points along the way, while doubling up their opponents by a 12 to 6 goal margin.

That's quite a first week of hockey.

Game 1: Wednesday @ Chicago - Season Opener

After a lengthy Stanley Cup banner raising ceremony, the Rangers ruined an otherwise glorious night for Blackhawk fans.  In the days leading up to the season opener, the Miller/Stalberg/Lindberg forward line generated the most concern.  As such, Oscar Lindberg dampened the mood right away with an opening goal at the 1:48 mark of the 1st. 

The Blackhawks finally tied the game at the 14:24 mark.  But he Rangers responded with two more 1st period goals by Kevin Klein and Derek Stepan providing the difference in a 3-2 victory.

Game 2: Friday @ Columbus

MattZuccs opened the scoring, but despite a 1-1 tie through two periods, the Blue Jackets arguably outplayed the Blueshirts.  Columbus, however, was unable to convert on four power play opportunities.   

The Blue Jackets out-shot the Rangers by a 23-16 margin.  In the 3rd period, Brandon Saad's finally converted Columbus' fifth PP opportunity of the game giving the Blue Jackets a 2-1 lead.

Columbus then fell apart like wet toilet paper.  The Rangers registered three unanswered goals within span of just 1:14 allowing the Rangers to escape Ohio with their second victory of the season.

Game 3: Saturday @ MSG - Home Opener

An immediate fore-check resulted in three costly Blue Jackets defensive zone turnovers. The Rangers cashed in on all three, and led 3-0 after just 5:48 of play. Two Columbus goals late in the 3rd period gave Tex's Rangers opening night game its 5-2 final score.

When the Rangers have their choreography down, sometimes Vigneault's system is a true marvel to behold.  Look no further than Columbus, whom are regarded as an early Eastern Conference favorite, not to mention one of the Conference's toughest teams.  Yet, the Rangers took them completely out of their game, sparing themselves from Columbus' more punishing style of play.

The above reflects Alain Vigneault's emphasis on effort and proper positioning on defense, effective fore-checking, puck possession, then generally staying ahead of any disruptive physicality with quick decision making and passing, and of course, skating with speed.  He wants his defensemen passing the puck out of the zone quickly, and he wants his forwards in deep.

The Rangers will play well and accumulate many points this season.  I have no doubt they'll be an upper echelon Metropolitan Division force.  But, they will continue sustaining big hits along the way.  Just remember getting hit, exchanging hits, and initiating hits, all effect games differently.

Said another way, my eyes tell me very little regarding the Rangers overall condition has changed.

Vigneault wants to stay a step ahead, but opposing forwards are still following through and punishing his defensemen nonetheless.  The blue liners are blocking pucks, getting pounded from behind, and getting pushed off the puck by bigger forwards.  Teams know it's open season on Blue Shirts.  They know retaliation, for the most part, won't come.

And frankly, Tanner Glass is not the answer - at least not by himself.  Since I'm going there, when do you actually see Marc Staal use his body to separate forwards from the puck?  He poke-checks you death, but he won't hit you, much.  How many times can Girardi get blasted from behind?  How many cheap shots will the Rangers allow their goalie to endure?  I already witnessed my first questionable indiscretion against Henrik that went unaddressed.  The next incident is just a matter of time.

Yet, the Rangers get by defensively with superior positioning, stick work, and quick exits out of the zone.

Right now, everything is great.  But over the course of the season, this style will wear on them, again. Alain Vigneault wants to get things done based on talent, and talent alone.  But I will forever maintain you can't win without a complimentary measure of toughness.

If the Rangers were tougher, they wouldn't have gone as long as they did against the Washington Capitals, whom punished the Rangers, but succumbed to their better coach and collective skill.  By Round Three however, the Rangers were bruised, battered, and spent.  Their forward lines mustered nothing in Game Seven against the Bolts.

Simply put, the Rangers never had the forwards that get deep and punish defensemen off the puck.   Instead, the Rangers forwards are the ones getting pushed off.  When I watch Rick Nash get bumped around, I just shake my head.  He lacks killer instinct in that respect.  He's great when well fed, but left to stalk his own prey, not so much (not for his size and skill).

King Henrik's Taxes:

All this means Henrik Lundqvist will once again be asked to carry the heaviest load, and make 100 saves a game.  That said, Lunqvist (now 33-yrs old) has faced 106 shots on goal, and has stopped exactly 100 through the first three games of the season.

The problem is this:

• Game One - CHI 39 SOG; NYR 29 SOG
• Game Two - CBJ 33 SOG; NYR 25 SOG
• Game Three - CBJ 34 SOG; NYR 27 SOG
• Total - Opponents 106 SOG; NYR 81 SOG

The Rangers are operating at a deficit.

Never too early to do the right thing:

Performance wise, salary cap wise, locker room wise, and particularly fan wise, Dan Boyle has officially become the 800-pound gorilla on the roster.  He is a problem.

Meanwhile, there's a potential solution. Some of what the Rangers lack physically, and on defense, could potentially be addressed by giving Dylan McIlrath regular ice time.  It's not so much a case of Boyle's inadequacies, it's just that McIlrath addresses more important, physical matters that ultimately affect everyone, most importantly Henrik Lundqvist.

And let's face it - McIlrath can't do any worse.  Three games into the season may seem hasty, but this issue has lingered far longer than that.

The Rangers don't have to eat his salary, just make Boyle the odd man out.

N.Y. Rangers: Final Showdown Versus Capitals - Game 7

From the desk of:  RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

In Henrik We Trust

Series tied 3-3

I - WAS 2; NYR 1

II - NYR 3; WAS 2

III - WAS 1; NYR 0

IV - WAS 2; NYR 1

V - NYR 2; WAS 1*

VI - NYR 4; WAS 3

*overtime

VII - Wednesday Night

GAME SEVEN

Washington Capitals

vs.

NEW YORK RANGERS

from

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

33rd Street @ 8th Avenue

N.Y.C.

NEW YORK RANGERS: Both Head Coaches Have Previously Banged on the Door, But Failed to Break it Down.  Both Have Much to Prove With Their Respective New Teams, But Only One Can Win.

With a Game 7 loss, Washington stands poised to become the same old Capitals again.

Right?

Maybe....

The Capitals have Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen - two defensemen extremely familiar with Washington's present dilemma.  If anyone can impart upon the Capitals what to expect Wednesday night, it should be them.  They manned Pittsburgh's blue line last season when the Penguins had the Rangers down three games to one, and wound up losing the series.  Orpik and Niskanen are now potentially 60:00 minutes from reliving that nightmare.

Maybe...

These are Barry Trotz' Capitals now.  I respect what he's brought to Washington.  He believes in defense, more defense, physicality, and on-ice accountability - a throwback to John Tortorella's system.  His changes took time to take effect, but the Capitals finished the regular season as the Eastern Conference 4th seed, and by now feel the full heat he's generating behind the bench.

In the coach's own words, Trotz said he wants Ovechkin doing what Ovechkin does best when he has the puck, but doing what Coach Trotz demands when playing without the puck.  Never mind that Ovechkin only has 2 goals in the series, and none since Game 2.  He's capable of sudden offensive outbursts at any time, and against any team.

"We're going to come back, and win this series.  We're going to play our game and we're going to come back and we're going to play Montreal or Tampa." - Alex Ovechkin after Game 6.

The main thing is that Alex Ovechkin is listening to his coach - something I do not think Bruce Boudreau, Dale Hunter, or Adam Oates ever accomplished, and which could very well be a huge reason why Washington lost two previous post-season series to the Rangers in 2012 and 2013, or, will advance under Trotz this time at the expense of the Rangers.

• Speaking of Bruce Boudreau, how does Washington like him now?  He was the last Capitals head coach to defeat the Rangers in the post-season, and is presently leading the (mighty) Anaheim Ducks.

There's also the little Russian Rocket to consider now.  Evgeny Kuznetsov finished his first full season.  He will turn 23-years old on May 19th, and leads the Caps with 5 goals.  Who saw that coming?  As a centerman, he only scored 11 goals all season.  Do the Rangers need a dedicated spy on him too?

Of course, never overlook the fact Washington owns the best power play in hockey.  Alex Ovechkin led the NHL in power play goals.

For years, Barry Trotz banged on the door with Nashville, but failed to break it down.  The Capitals know that scenario well.  But, Trotz and Braden Holtby are Washington's difference makers now.

We'll see how much of a difference they'll make Wednesday night.

Now, if the Power Play Can Just Get Going 

Be Lazy, Blame Henrik 

Staring at the Blueshirt in the Mirror 

Blueshirts Should Expect Big Cap Hit in Washington 

Let's Try This Again, Shall We? 

Oh No! Not You Again? Game One

In Game 6, the Washington Capitals attacked in waves of fury, and nearly wiped out a 4-1 deficit.   But, the King withstood the fiercest siege yet brought upon his crease.  He faced 45 shots in hostile territory, and with 5:43 left in regulation, saved the Rangers from a tie game, or worse, from being completely demoralized.  At one point, Washington was out-shooting the Rangers by a 32-0 margin. Despite allowing 2 goals in the 3rd period and 3 overall, the Rangers indeed have Henrik Lundqvist to thank for keeping their season alive.  His 42 saves were a post-season high.

The Rangers waited till Game 6 to do it, but they did it nonetheless.  After two failed attempts in Games 3 and 4, then twice facing elimination, Tex's Rangers finally wrestled back home ice just in time for a decisive Game 7 showdown.

Hey!  Sometimes you have to win games by an unsightly 5-4 score, or in the case of Game 6, by a 4-3 final.  Every game can't always fall on Lundqvist to pitch a shutout.  That's not good hockey; that's not Stanley Cup hockey.

That said, see what happens when everyone cooperates?  Chris Kreider continued his romp, the power play scored a goal, and, yes, Rick Nash finally lit the lamp!

Chris Kreider did it again.  He has become the consistent scoring threat the Rangers sorely needed while Nash suffers through his post-season malaise.  He opened Game 6 with a stinging left jab a mere 0:40 seconds into the game, and closed out the 1st period with a straight right at the 19:59 mark. Kreider is now tied with Derick Brassard with a team leading 5 goals, while 4 of them have come this series.  All of them have been clutch.

The skill has always been there.  It's his mind that wasn't always properly focused.  One of the biggest differences in Kreider's game has been his ability to avoid taking stupid penalties.  He was second on the team (behind Tanner Glass) with 88 penalty minutes during the regular season, which limited his ice time to an average of 15:43 minutes a game.  Kreider has only served a mere 4:00 penalty minutes in 11 post-season games played thus far, which has allowed him to average 17:32 minutes of ice time.  Free from the penalty box, he is second behind Derick Brassard with a 17.2 shooting percentage.

Rick Nash's goal was not only the result of patience, strength, and stick-handling skill.  His second goal of the playoffs scored at the wee 0:54 mark of the 3rd period was very significant, unlike the inconsequential goal he netted against Pittsburgh.  At the time, it made Game 6 a 3-1 affair in favor of the Rangers.  The Rangers then got outscored 2-1, and grossly out-shot from that moment forward.

There's no denying Rick Nash has been playing a very effective game within a game, but without beating a dead horse, he was brought to Broadway for the purpose of scoring goals - many goals - playoffs goals.  Of course, there would be no better time than Game 7 for Rick Nash to reemerge as the team's top scoring threat.

There's a lot of pressure on Alain Vigneault.  Wednesday's game is perhaps the most important one of his short Rangers career.  The Rangers might have been content with just reaching the Stanley Cup finals last season.  This season, however, they set a franchise mark for wins and points, and captured a President's Trophy.  With that comes weighted expectations.  Meanwhile, his failure to win a Cup with Vancouver remains an 800 lbs. gorilla in the room.

Alain Vigneault's Rangers have thus far been characterized by resiliency and fortitude, and have been more effective at making game-to-game adjustments than Barry Trotz and the Capitals have.  As the home team, Alain Vigneault will have the advantage of final change, while the Rangers get the slight advantage on face-offs.

For the series, the Rangers are losing the face-off battle by a 167-203 margin.  The Rangers won the face-off battle in Games 2 and 5, but only barely.  In the Rangers Game 3 loss, the Capitals had their way with a 40-18 mark.  Face-offs mean puck possession - that's the name of Alain Vigneault's game.

Like it, or lump it - the Rangers must turn up their physicality.  They must go into the corners and other dirty zones of the ice, and earn their possessions.  They must fight for those 50/50 pucks, win more battles along the boards, and continue creating disturbances in front of Braden Holtby.

May the better team advance.  Or, should I say, may the better system prevail.




Mike

N.Y. Rangers: Blueshirts Should Expect Big Cap Hit In Washington

From the desk of:  RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

(circa 2009 playoffs)

Alex Ovechkin is clearly the series' most tenacious player.  

He has elevated his performance to stupid levels, 

and perhaps is just getting started, or, as he puts it,

All Night Long!

*          *          *          *

2014-2015

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

Eastern Conference Semi Finals

Series tied 1-1

I - WAS 2; NYR 1

II - NYR 3; WAS 2

III - MONDAY

GAME THREE

NEW YORK RANGERS

vs.

Washington Capitals

from

Some Conglomo Named Arena

D.C.

Tex's Rangers March on Washington for Game Three.  We Should Know Very Early On What Kind of Night it Will Be.

A perturbed Alain Vigneault said the team would make adjustments after Game One, and they did.  In Game Two, Tex's Rangers more resembled the President trophy winners they are.

When you give up a goal at 19:58 of the final period, as they did in Game One, that doesn't leave much time to respond.

The next best way to answer back I guess would be to score at 0:38 in the opening period of the very next game, like Chris Kreider did in Game Two.

With the way things have been going, two Rangers goals in the 1st period, and the game winner in the 3rd, could be considered an offensive explosion.

There must be something about Game Two's.  The Rangers hadn't scored more than 2 goals in a game since they lost Game Two by a 4-3 margin to the Penguins in round one.

Maybe Washington's continuing play after a big Game 7 win over the Islanders, and the Rangers rust for lack of action prior to Game One against the Caps explained Thursday's outcome.  And maybe going seven games, plus one, finally caught up with Washington (if just for a game), as they only managed 4 shots on goal in the 1st period.  Meanwhile, the Rangers played a far crisper game, seemingly got their timing and legs back, and maintained possession of the puck.

In any event, the series is now even.  The Caps did what they needed to do - steal a game on the road. 

Next mission critical for Tex's Rangers - wrestle back home ice advantage by taking a game in Washington.

JUST WING IT: In Hockey, Being Mr. October is a Bad Thing.

Derick Brassard continues having best season of his career, and is presently the Rangers top performer in the post-season.  He has 4 goals and 5 points in 7 playoffs games, leads the team with a plus-4, has 2-points on the PP, and leads the team with a 22.2 shooting percentage.

If you look around the tournament, Tampa's Tyler Johnson is just having a stupid post-season with 7 goals, the Ducks Corey Perry has 5 goals, Zach Parise, Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Derick Brassard all have 4 goals each.

To that effect, Killjoy phoned in, and said he will not be sold on Mats Zuccarello's absence as any kind of excuse for Rick Nash's poor production.  He knows, MatsZucs is a spark plug.  The fact remains that Nash needs to be better - 

...an old battle cry at this point.

In Rick Nash's defense, Steven Stamkos has yet to score a goal in the post-season, and only has 3 assists in 8 games.  In 7 games, at least Nash has one goal and 5 points.

• Update: Don't look now, but Stamkos finally scored his 1st goal of the playoffs Sunday against Montreal.

At the moment however, Tampa means nothing to the Rangers (yet), and Stamkos plays center, like Brassard does.  Nash is the Rangers problem, and Stamkos is theirs.  Nash plays wing, like his present opponent Alex Ovechkin, who scored an absolutely ridiculous goal in the 3rd period of Game Two, and made an equally astonishing pass that led to Joel Ward's game winner in Game One.  His Game One slap shot/goal was virtually unstoppable.  Ovechkin now has 4 goals in the post-season, one in each game against the Rangers, and 8 points overall.

...because that's what the elite players of this league are supposed to do.

• Baseball: Being dubbed Mr. October means you're an elite playoff producer - a la Reggie Jackson.  When The Boss signed Dave Winfield, the newcomer started the regular season on fire.  He then went 1 for 25 in the 1981 playoffs to earn the moniker Mr. May from Mr. Steinbrenner.

• Hockey: The opposite applies.  Players on the ice strive to be Mr. May, or better yet, Mr. June.  To be labelled Mr. October in Hockey, is, for all intents and purposes, a disparaging term.

Rick Nash isn't even in the top ten in post-season points - a list that still features two St. Louis Blues on it, but no Blueshirt.  The other top 8 scorers are still alive and playing with Minnesota, Tampa, Chicago, Anaheim, and Washington.

Talk of Nash fading away is warranted.  Let's face it, he finished the regular season poorly.  In the final 19 games of the regular season between March 2nd and April 7, Nash only registered 5 goals.   His last goal came during a losing effort in Game Two against Pittsburgh.  

Mats Zuccarello was still on the ice throughout that time.

Hey Killjoy!!  

The Rangers advanced to the NHL Finals last season despite Nash's lack of productivity, 

and seem to be moving along just fine this season.....

If the Capitals defensemen start factoring into their offense more, like they're so adept at doing, how long then can the Rangers rely on Brassard, Carl Hegelin, Derek Stepan, and Chris Kreider for consistent scoring?

When Nash chooses to utilize his size and skill, and bullies his way towards net, he is the only Ranger whom is able to go on an offensive tear seemingly at will.  Chris Kreider could, if he tried, but he has yet to learn to play a full game, and keep his head involved.

No, Martin St. Louis does not get a free pass.  He has 2 assists in 7 games, and was recently moved up to the 1st line with Nash, but to no avail.  He posted 8 goals in last year's playoffs.  This year, he turns 40-years old in June.  He has not scored a goal since April 6th.

Without Nash and St. Louis contributing, the Rangers quest to the Cup remains a bumpy ride.

And, just in case no one has noticed, Braden Holtby has played a little better than anticipated, which makes Rick Nash's contribution that much more pressing as the series shifts to Washington.

After making an initial save, Braden Holtby served up a fat rebound Chris Krieder took full advantage of.  On Dan Boyle's pp goal, Rick Nash established great position to block Holtby's view.

Rich Nash also assisted on Derick Brassard's 3rd period goal.

Nice, but not enough.

Enter the Dragon:

Henrik Lundqvist tapped into his inner Kung-Fu Panda to kick back the Washington Capitals Saturday.  He made 30 mostly brilliant saves, but perhaps none better than his martial arts kick save against Kuznetsov.

Chris Kreider's strong game was offset by Alex Ovechkin's exploits, which in effect makes Henrik Lundqvist the true savior of Game Two.

The Rangers also did themselves a huge favor by committing just one penalty.  On the other side, Washington was busy killing off four penalties.

I Will Break You:

If I understood Ovechkin correctly after Game Two, the Capitals intend to increase the physicality of the series.

Speed, puck possession, passing, a supreme effort on defense, and a superior goalie are the formula here.  Outside of Tanner Glass, no other allotments have been made for toughness.  Of course, that's been a major issue of mine.

That style didn't get the Penguins very far though, and by Game 5, they were playing it straight.  The Capitals, however, stayed aggressive, and were quite physical against the Islanders in Game 7 of their series - even committing a questionable hit or two with impunity.  The Islanders might have suffered stage fright in their series finale, but are nonetheless a tough team as well.

To a certain degree then, you have to believe the hype.  These Capitals are better defensively, and certainly more disciplined than Washington teams of the past.  And yes, they are tough as ever.

We remember what happened at the end of Game One, don't we?  Just ask Dan Boyle what happened.  The stripes do not seem to be blowing the whistle for such infractions, so, we should know very early in Game Three what kind of night it will be.

Lastly, I said it before, and it's worth saying again: Chris Kreider must play smarter, more consistent, and more physical hockey while staying out of the box.

Mike

N.Y. Rangers: Sizing Up The Penguins

From the desk of:  RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

Tex's Rangers Set All-Time Franchise Record

with 53 Victories and 113 Points

(53-22-7; 113 Points)

*

President's Trophy Winners

Metropolitan Division Champions

EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS

NEW YORK RANGERS: Alain Vigneault does not like sending messages, however, he might have to make a preemptive strike this series.

The Rangers rather manhandled the Penguins this season, to the tune of a 3-0-1 record.

The Penguins were not the team we've been accustomed to; clearly.  Pittsburgh finished 4th in the Metropolitan Division with a 43-27-12 record, just barely good enough for 8th in the Eastern Conference ahead of Boston.  They, like the Islanders, sputtered in the second half of the season.

Off-season personnel changes altered the make-up of this team, and perhaps not necessarily for the better.  They're also beset by injuries, most notably on defense, and specifically to Kris Latang.

Despite still being led by Sidney Crosby and Ivgeni Malkin, the Pens offense only ranked 19th in the NHL.  Brandon Sutter upped his offense, and Patric Hornqvist additionally stepped in to fill the scoring void left behind by James Neal and Jussi Jokinen.  However, Crosby's production was down considerably as well as that of Chris Kunitz' from last season, and Malkin has had trouble staying on the ice with consistency.

Otherwise, Pittsburgh boasted the league's 10th best defense at even strength, and were even better on the penalty kill - 3rd best.  Their power play rated 10th best.

Those numbers may mean little against the Rangers.

There's a strong case to be made for the Pens potentially winning at least one more Cup during the Sidney Crosby/Marc Andre Fleury era.  Deserved or not, there isn't a starting goalie I've held a lesser opinion of over that time.  In 62 starts this season Fleury posted a 34-20-9 record with a .920 SV% and a 2.32 GAA.  In his playoff career, he owns a 52-40 record with an inflated 2.68 SV% and a reduced .905 GAA.

Marc Andre Fleury is by far, the #1 reason why I believe the Rangers will take this series in five games.  

Previously: NYR: Henrik Lundqvist, Seizing A Legacy

You know what I always say: once is an event, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a trend.

The Capitals were the most recent to do it; the Devils did it; the Blue Jackets did it too.  And, don't think I forgot about the hit Winnipeg's Dustin Byfuglien put to the back of J.T. Miller's neck.  I can count off every incident over the last two seasons.

Of course, I'm talking about cheap shots.

In their attempts to chase down the faster Rangers, Pittsburgh can ill afford to have any of their remaining healthy blue liners spending time in the box for stupid penalties.  As noted, Latang is already out of the playoffs (with concussion symptoms).  Therefore, I say the Rangers better have their heads on a swivel, and keep an eye on forward Steve Downie.  Despite registering one his more productive seasons, Downie should not factor into the scoring much, if at all, which makes him the perfect person to instigate, and take runs at Rangers players.

Tanner Glass will be looking on with eyes wide open, I'm sure.  I'm also sure he is looking forward to being quite physical with his former team.  Alain Vigneault does not like sending messages.   However, he might have to make a preemptive strike this series (if the situation call for such action) and afford Glass some extra ice-time for the sake of keeping his own players healthy.  Downie averaged 12:26 minutes per game; Glass 10:15 minutes.



Mike

N.Y. Rangers: Killjoy Was Here

From the desk of:  RAISE GRESCH WITH THE GREATS

NEW YORK RANGERS: Eye of the (Paper) Tiger; Rising Up to the Challenge of Lesser Rivals.

...Stop the music.

Was Saturday's 4-1 victory a matter of Coach Vigneault's line shake-up, or are the Carolina Hurricanes that bad?  I'll be kind and say somewhere in the middle lies the truth.

When teams allow the Rangers to skate around, they win.  That's why they shouldn't go patting themselves on the back - not on the heels of a pair of losses to the Islanders and Canadiens.  Those teams got physical, and the Rangers fell short; very short.

#trending?

When this team gets close to being on the verge of elite, they fall flat, like they did upon returning from the west coast and getting pounded by the Islanders and Bruins.

They followed that with a three game winning streak, which included a 5-2 victory over the Pens.   However, that came during a stretch during which the Pens lost to the Devils and Islanders as well.   In other words, PITT was primed to be beaten.  As I write this, the Pens are losing again to the Predators.

I digress.

A victory over the last place Hurricanes was expected.

The next three games are against the Panthers, Bruins, and Predators.

Don't underestimate the Panthers.  For 50-minutes, they're a good team.  They're just horrible finishers, and get killed in extra innings.   Otherwise, if the Rangers aren't careful....,   you know.

Playing the Bruins again, and facing the Predators needs no back story.  So, we'll revisit this conversation on the night of Feb 7th.

Who's Fooling Who?

Chris Kreider made more noise in January than he has all season.  He scored his 11th goal of the season, during a rather dominant performance against the Canes (so take that with a grain of salt).  It was his 3rd goal in the last 6 games, and his 5th goal over 12 games in January.  He only scored 2 goals in each of the first three months of the season.

He scored 8 points in January, also the most of any month so far this season.  But the schedule belie his numbers.  During the month, Kreider scored against the Sabres, Sharks, Blue Jackets, Senators, and the Canes.  He did not score against the Ducks, Kings, Bruins, Penguins, Habs, or in two games against the Isles.

Still in the Closet

In Thursday night's game against the Canadiens, Kreider and P.K. Suppan harassed each other throughout the night.  Suppan never dropped his gloves though.  His goading didn't work as both earned plenty of time in the box.

Tanner Glass took on Brandon Prust in the 1st period, and earned a decision on points.

I recently said Tanner's penalty minutes are justified, obviously, where as Chris Kreider's are not.   The two lead the team in minutes served, however, Glass's 56:00 minutes are far less than Kreider's 79:00 minutes in the box.  Kreider gets an honest pass against Suppan, but his minutes remain unnecessarily high.

He started the season with 38:00 PM in October, but, 17 of those came in one game against Columbus.   That leaves a balance of 21:00 minutes for October.  In November he dropped down to 10:00 minutes, then down to 8:00 in December.  He finished January with 23:00 minutes served.

He can't use his size and speed, or score, if he's consistently sitting in the box.




Mike