Rangers and Sabres likely to play Winter Classic at Citi Field

Posted on March 15, 2017 by Derek
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The rumored 2018 NHL Winter Classic is expected to be played at Citi Field. Home of the Mets where the Sabres would host the Rangers. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy SNYRangers.

The rumors have been circulating for a while regarding next year’s Winter Classic. It looks like the Rangers and Sabres will likely be playing at Citi Field in January 2018. If true, it would be the first Winter Classic for Buffalo since its inception when they hosted the Penguins in its 2008 debut on New Years Day. A game won by Sidney Crosby in a shootout at Ralph Wilson Stadium with snow falling.

If it is confirmed by the NHL, the Sabres would be the home team in Queens. You gotta love it. Similar to how the Rangers were the road team in the Coors Light Stadium Series at Yankee Stadium with separate games against the Islanders and Devils, they would be guests despite more of a local following. The only time they participated in the Winter Classic was 2012 when they defeated the Flyers 3-2 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. A game which was memorable for Mike Rupp scoring twice and Henrik Lundqvist preserving the win by stopping Daniel Briere on a penalty shot with 19.6 seconds remaining.

2018 would mark the 10th ever NHL Winter Classic. A classic outdoor pond hockey game hosted in a variety of historic baseball stadiums such as Fenway Park, Wrigley Field and Busch Stadium along with football stadiums such as Ralph Wilson, Heinz Field and Michigan Stadium. The visiting team has won six of the nine games. Two have been decided in a shootout and one in overtime.

The idea of having the Sabres in the game is cool. Young American Jack Eichel is one of the game’s brightest new stars. In his second season, the 20-year old center who went second overall in the famed 2015 NHL Draft which saw the Oilers grab Connor McDavid first overall has been on fire in the second half. Since the All-Star break, Eichel has 27 points (8-19-27). After having a recent 11-game point streak (5-11-16) snapped, he’s responded with two goals and an assist in Buffalo’s last two games.

Featuring Eichel in the big game is great. The Sabres are still in the process of rebuilding. They have some good young players including defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, Jake McCabe along with forwards Evander Kane, Kyle Okposo, Ryan O’Reilly and Sam Reinhart. By next calendar year, 2016 first round pick Alex Nylander should be a part of it.

The Rangers’ biggest star remains Henrik Lundqvist. Even in the twilight of a brilliant career that’s seen him win 30-or-more games for the 11th time and crack the top 10 all-time with his 404th career win, he’s their most marketable player. With a young nucleus that includes Kevin Hayes, Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller, Ryan McDonagh, Brady Skjei, Derek Stepan, Mika Zibanejad, Mats Zuccarello along with youngsters Pavel Buchnevich and Jimmy Vesey, the Blueshirts should remain competitive in a tough Metro Division.

With Lundqvist and current Buffalo starter Robin Lehner, it could be an all Swedish affair in goal. The biggest selling point is Eichel, who will get the chance to be in the spotlight with the Sabres in front of a national audience.

Citi Field is a nice venue. A better stadium than Shea. So, it should be a unique setting. I wonder if notorious Rangers fan Matt Harvey will be on hand to drop the ceremonial first puck with David Wright. We’ll see.

As for the Islanders not getting the game, I actually like the idea of Buffalo hosting. But I can definitely see how this might stick in the craw of Islander fans. Especially with uncertainty surrounding their current venue Barclays Center. There’s even been talk about building a new arena adjacent to Citi Field in Queens. Hopefully, the Islanders will get things figured out so their long-term future remains in New York.

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Hard Hits: Why not Brad Marchand for Hart?

Posted on March 15, 2017 by Derek
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Brad Marchand showed what he could do with Sidney Crosby for Canada in the World Cup. Now he’s proving he belongs in the Hart discussion with Crosby and Connor McDavid. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NHL Public Relations.

As I sit here and ponder what’s been at times a confusing and long hockey season with less than a month left in the regular season, I wonder about something else. The Hart Trophy race. For weeks, it’s been basically a two horse race between the Pens’ Sidney Crosby and Oilers’ Connor McDavid.

What if I told you there were other choices the professional writers hockey association or whatever it’s called should consider? It’s easy to vote for Crosby, who’s the best player in the game. With the impressive 74 points in 62 games including a league leading 35 goals. McDavid is up to a league leading 76 points with a league best 52 assists while leading the Oilers on the verge of their first postseason since ’05-06.

Most would argue Evgeni Malkin or Brent Burns for the third candidate. Malkin quietly with one of his best years in a while way over a point-per-game at a similar clip to teammate Crosby with 72 points in 61 games. They really are an amazing 1-2 punch made scarier by the electric Phil Kessel (21-40-61). Meanwhile, Mr. Burns leads all NHL defensemen with 27 goals, 43 assists and 70 points on the Sharks to rank seventh in scoring. He hasn’t lit the lamp in a while. I want to see him get those last three goals for 30.

While most of the discussion has centered around Crosby, McDavid and Burns, here comes Patrick Kane in his race car passing Crosby as if he were standing still. With another goal and two assists in a 4-2 win at Montreal, the rating MVP is now tied with McDavid for the league lead in points with 76. What’s more? Up to 31 goals, he’s closing fast on Crosby, Malkin and Max Pacioretty in the Rocket Richard race. It hasn’t been a Hart year for Kane. But someone forgot to tell him. All he’s been doing is scoring at a ridiculous clip. Since February, Showtime has 27 points including 16 goals and 11 assists with two hat tricks.

While Kane continues his all out assault leading the Blackhawks past the suddenly slumping Wild into the West’s top spot, there is another candidate emerging in the East for a team that isn’t at the top of their division. His name is Brad Marchand. Already, I can hear the bleeps from hockey fans who hate Marchand and aren’t Bruins fans. I don’t like Boston either or some of the antics Marchand pulls. But that doesn’t make him less of a candidate.

You have to be blind or oblivious not to see what he’s doing for the Bruins. It really started when Marchand got to play with Crosby for Team Canada in the World Cup of Hockey helping them win the championship over Team Europe. It was then that they realized how good he is. He’s a royal pain in the ass. But this guy is ridiculously skilled to go with his Claude Lemieux snarl. The difference is he’s a lot better than Claude was in helping the Canadiens, Devils and Avalanche win Stanley Cups.

Marchand has been on fire. A third period hat trick led the Bruins past the Canucks 6-3 on Monday night. He did it by scoring two beauties both on backhands with the second one of the best goals of the season on a ridiculous fake and deke, backhand tuck job. Then finished off the hat trick in style with the turnaround shot from the red line into an empty net. That tied him with Crosby for the league lead with 35 goals. He also has the same amount of points (74) but in eight more games.

So, how long has Marchand been doing this? Since Jan. 24, he has 29 points including a jaw dropping 18 goals with 11 assists- including four two-goal games and one hat trick. Three of his seven game-winning goals have come during the torrid stretch. Twenty of his 35 goals have come on the road which puts him one ahead of Crosby to lead all players in road goals. His three shorthanded goals tie him for second. Since entering the league, nobody has more shorthanded goals (22) than Marchand.

After registering only an assist in his first 20 games during ’09-10, he played a pivotal role on the Bruins first Stanley Cup championship team since 1972. In ’10-11, Marchand finished with 21 goals and 20 assists for 41 points with 51 penalty minutes, a plus-25 rating and five shorthanded goals in his first full season. He followed it up by scoring 11 times with eight helpers for 19 points with 40 PIM to help Boston win their sixth Cup. The 19 points ranked third in team scoring in his first postseason as mostly a 22-year old before turning 23.

He’s been a permanent fixture playing alongside one of the game’s best two-way centers Patrice Bergeron. Arguably the best face-off man, Bergeron’s been one of the most consistent players since he entered the league as an 18-year old in ’03-04. With a core that included David Krejci, captain Zdeno Chara, former Bruins Milan Lucic and Tyler Seguin along with Tuukka Rask, they nearly won a second Cup in three years before falling in six to the Blackhawks in the 2013 playoffs.

The organization has made some tough decisions since. That included trading away the very talented Seguin to the Stars for a less impressive package that resulted in Reilly Smith becoming underachieving Jimmy Hayes with Loui Eriksson leaving for the Canucks last summer. Imagine if they didn’t butcher that. They made the right decision parting with the bruising Lucic who was moved to the Kings for Colin Miller, Martin Jones and a 2015 first round pick that became Jakub Zboril. Jones was sent to the Sharks for AHLer Sean Kuraly and a 2016 first round pick that became Trent Frederic.

The most controversial was dealing Dougie Hamilton to Calgary for three picks including a first rounder (Zachary Senyshyn) and two second rounders (Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson) and Jeremy Lauzon with the latter two taking part in the recent U20 World Junior Championship.

They dismissed popular Cup winning coach Claude Julien after a decade. He of course landed on his feet with Montreal where the Habs are battling the Senators for first in the Atlantic Division. Interim coach Bruce Cassidy has done a good job with the B’s. Since taking over, he’s instilled a more offensive system that’s benefited Marchand along with other Bruins including evolving scoring forward David Pastrnak and center Ryan Spooner seeing hikes in production.

Without Marchand, the Bruins aren’t where they are in the standings. The 28-year old from Halifax leads them in almost every major statistical category including goals (35), tied for first in assists (39), points (74), plus/minus (19), tied for first in power play goals (8), shorthanded goals (3) and game-winners (7) with a team best 17.5 shooting percentage.

He’ll never get the accolades of a Crosby, McDavid, Kane or even Jonathan Toews because he’s viewed differently. Even if Crosby and Malkin mix it up, they’re not viewed as dirty players. But guys who get the uniform dirty and don’t back down. Neither does Marchand. But he has gotten away with stuff which is what makes him a lightning rod.

MVP candidate? Are you sure we have the right guy? I unequivocally say yes. But will he even be one of the three choices when it’s all said and done. Probably not. Like everything, it’s too political. It would be like the NBA doing the right thing and giving the MVP to the more complete Kawhi Leonard or LeBron James over stat masters James Harden and Russell Westbrook.

Say Marchand wins the Richard and somehow wins the Art Ross. Shouldn’t he merit serious consideration? You betcha.

BODY CHECKS

-When the Islanders are reliant on Thomas Greiss solely, they look bad when they go to J.F. Berube and he gives up four goals including a couple of awful ones forcing Greiss back in for a 10th consecutive game in an ugly 8-4 home loss to the Hurricanes at Barclays Center. Greiss wasn’t ready and it wasn’t pretty. A defeat that could’ve been even more costly had they not bounced back from two down to beat Carolina in the rematch 3-2 in overtime on captain John Tavares’ game-winner. Will they reconsider recalling Jaroslav Halak for a start down the stretch?

-Rookie Josh Ho-Sang looks good so far recording a goal and assist for his fifth and sixth points since his recall from Bridgeport. A night after scoring his first goal in his home debut, he made a great drop for Tavares on the winner. So far, so good for the 21-year old former 2014 first round pick. He is 3-3-6 in eight games with a minus-four rating. But interim coach Doug Weight hasn’t been shy about using Ho-Sang in key situations including three-on-three. Full marks.

-Ho-Sang becomes the latest Jewish hockey player. Current NHLers Mike Cammalleri, Zach Hyman and Jason Zucker are also Jewish. Former NHLer Eric Nystrom– son of Islanders Cup hero Bobby- was also Jewish. Ex-Devil David Warsofsky was also Jewish.

-Mathieu Schneider remains the most successful carving out an All-Star career while playing for 10 NHL teams including the Islanders and Rangers. He won a Stanley Cup with Montreal in ’92-93, the World Cup with Team USA (’96) and was inducted into the Jewish International Hall of Fame in 2014. A year later, he went into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.

-Remember Rick Nash the superstar who used to score highlight reel goals? I guess $7.8 million and injuries don’t get you much these days. Nash and Marian Gaborik are shells of themselves. Both were once dynamite finishers. Now, they’re overpaid and hanging on. Nash still has something left. Gaborik probably doesn’t.

-I got through one period of the Devils/Coyotes before turning the channel. They were so awful giving up three goals in a lopsided first to a rebuilding Arizona that it reminded me of the Dark Ages watching the Rangers skate around aimlessly between ’97-98-’03-04. Surely, this isn’t what’s become of hockey in Newark?

-With his 20th goal in a frustrating loss at San Jose, Jack Eichel is up to 48 points in 49 games. Unfortunately, it’ll be remembered for this unfortunate sequence:

He didn’t take kindly to the mishap slamming the boards by the bench a couple of times. Who could blame him? What if Eichel didn’t have that freak injury in practice before the season. Where might the Sabres be?

-The Maple Leafs could be too inconsistent to take advantage of the Islanders one goalie system. How else to explain a 7-2 no show against the Panthers? Auston Matthews has suddenly gone cold at the wrong time.

–Patrik Laine looks to have all but sealed the Calder scoring his 33rd the other night. He has 60 points in 62 games for Winnipeg. Matthews remains at 31 goals and 56 for Toronto with Mitch Marner stuck on 54. With a goal and two assists, Zach Werenski hit 10 goals and 33 helpers for the season as a first-year defenseman for playoff-bound Columbus. He’s also a plus-20 at the age of 19.

-Meanwhile, Matt Murray has 26 wins with only 8 regulation losses with a 2.33 goals-against-average, .925 save percentage and four shutouts for the Pens. Matthew Tkachuk has 44 points for the playoff bound Flames. Sebastian Aho is up to 20 goals and 18 assists for the Canes as a 19-year old rookie. Brady Skjei has 32 points including 29 helpers as the Rangers’ second most consistent defenseman on the Rangers back end.

-What it all proves is that this year’s Rookie Class is a deep one with a bright future.

-We neglected to mention Nikita Kucherov of Tampa who’s on a tear. Tied with the Islanders for the final wildcard on Victor Hedman’s OT winner in a 2-1 victory over Ottawa, Kucherov is carrying his team. He’s got 22 points over his last 11 games for the Bolts, who have two fewer ROW (30) than the Isles’ 32. Each team has 13 left while Toronto has 14 remaining with 30 ROW. Florida has 71 points with 14 left while the Flyers have 70 with 14 to go.

-Who will be Las Vegas’ first goalie? Antti Raanta or Scott Darling? Or will it be Ben Bishop? Place your bets.

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Bolted In

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Derek
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Antti Raanta can only look on as the Rangers fell to the Lightning and Brayden Point 3-2 in a very winnable game that saw them slip to 15-18-2 when out-shooting opponents. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NYRangers.

With the all too predictable March blizzard after daylight savings having started up an hour ago, I guess we really are Bolted In. Hence the appropriate title given the Rangers losing a winnable game against a shorthanded Lightning 3-2 at where else but MSG. Well, at least they’re making sure they won’t have home ice since they suck at it.

If you can’t beat a Tampa team minus Steven Stamkos, Tyler Johnson, Ryan Callahan and Cedric Paquette, then why bother showing up for these “home games.” I couldn’t even tell you some of the names on the Lightning roster who were among the 18 skaters. A game in which they dominated the first period 13-3 in shots but wound up tied at one. A game in which they permitted only 16 total shots but weren’t as effective the final two periods. Shots were 15-13 Rangers after one.

Honestly, it doesn’t matter. As long as they wind up avoiding the 2/3 match-up in the Metro which now could be between the Caps, Pens and Blue Jackets with Washington suddenly not themselves since <ahem> “difference maker” Kevin Shattenkirk. I hope the Rangers are paying attention.

It may not matter who they draw if they can’t figure out how to defend home ice. Even if they do win away from MSG in the first round, they’ll have to win at home too to advance. The Atlantic is tightening up. Six points separate first Montreal from third Boston with Ottawa two out with two games at hand. Who knows who the Rangers will wind up with.

Having now played 70 games, they remain locked into the first wildcard sitting fourth in the Metro with 90 points. Four behind Columbus who won 5-3 over the Flyers and five behind the Caps and Pens- 4-3 shootout losers at red hot Calgary in a very entertaining game that tied them with Washington in points. But Pittsburgh has three less regulation and overtime wins. Each team has 14 left as do the Jackets, whose 42 ROW are one fewer than the Caps making them a realistic threat to win the division.

On a night when Steven Kampfer continued to impress scoring his first goal in the NHL in two years on a nice one-time blast set up by Mats Zuccarello and Chris Kreider (career high 48 points), they managed to lose because of some miscalculations. Take the Tampa first goal. A Lightning like strike 1:50 later with Brayden Point connecting on a power play from Nikita Kucherov (21 points in last 10) and Jonathan Drouin. The penalty on Brendan Smith wasn’t. Just a made up trip. But the penalty kill has to do a better job. Tampa is lethal on the man-advantage and proved it by converting their only chance of the first.

That was enough to settle them down. They played much better the last 40 minutes. Jon Cooper adjusted by having his guys stand up at the blue line and take away the home run pass and Rangers’ speed. The annoying Gabriel Dumont was able to deflect home a Jason Garrison shot by Antti Raanta at 5:04 of the second for a 2-1 lead.

The same Garrison lost control of the puck in his own zone leading directly to Michael Grabner slipping one past veteran Peter Budaj for his team-leading 27th unassisted at 10:22. His first goal in 10 games and already his third point since returning. He had two helpers in Sunday’s win at Detroit. Grabner makes things happen. That’s why general manager Jeff Gorton has to find a way to keep him.

There were only three penalties. Two on the Rangers and one on the Lightning. Despite Derek Stepan creating a perfect chance by faking and dishing across for a wide open Mika Zibanejad, he couldn’t bury it. Pavel Buchnevich also came away frustrated during a five-on-five shift when Zibanejad all but set him up but narrowly missed hanging his head on the bench. Rick Nash continues to create chances but never finishes. It’s become a broken record. He better figure it out soon.

Budaj made some key saves to give the Bolts the win. He finished with 26 and came through. Raanta really wasn’t at fault but allowed three goals on 16 shots. So, he wasn’t all too pleased following the game. The Lightning winner a direct result of Ryan McDonagh failing to take an open Point on the doorstep. Of course, Marc Staal got blamed for it because he gets blamed for everything. But it was the captain who didn’t check Point allowing him to tap home a Ondrej Palat feed from Kucherov for the game-winner with 6:39 left.

The Rangers were unable to tie it with Raanta pulled for an extra attacker. Tampa did a good job defending with the puck behind the net as time ran off. It was a frustrating loss. Anytime you lose to a team minus some of its best players- especially at center- it’s not positive.

So, in a game where they held a 28-16 shots edge although it was pretty misleading after a lopsided first, they lost again when out-shooting the opponent. What does that make it now? 15-18-2. But the fancy stats people are happy. They still were upset over Raanta standing on his head in a 1-0 overtime shutout win at Tampa a week ago. Maybe they can fret over how our team once again lost on home ice with 12 more shots and 14 more face-off wins (37-23).

You really can’t make it up. Can someone explain to me why Grabner, Kevin Hayes and J.T. Miller weren’t out at the end? They were the most effective trio. Save me the crap about how it must be Kreider, Stepan and Zuccarello. Not that they were bad. But compared to the Hayes unit, it wasn’t close.

Sometimes, you gotta deviate from your game plan. Vigneault finally used Brady Skjei with McDonagh late. That’s the only way he even gets real minutes with our top defenseman. Another game in which he didn’t play enough unless you think 16:42 in 22 shifts is good for our second best blue liner.

Tanner Glass played with the same energy he always does. He makes things happen. But I’m sure some chart person will blame him for being on for a goal against. Glass does all the little things no one else does. Finishes checks. Creates scoring chances due to his physical element. He was right in Dumont’s face when he tried to take liberties with Skjei post-whistle.

Is it the end of the world? No. They lost. Now, they get to shovel snow or whatever until the next game on Friday against Florida. Then at the Wild Saturday for another fun back-to-back.  Hopefully, they’ll give a more complete effort.

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Rangers host Lightning and red hot Kucherov

Posted on March 13, 2017 by Derek

Tonight, the Rangers return home for the second game of a back-to-back when they play host to the Lightning. Even after the trades of Ben Bishop and Brian Boyle and the predictable loss of former Black & Blueshirt Ryan Callahan, Tampa is still competing for the final wildcard with the Maple Leafs and Islanders.

The Bolts enter with 73 points, trailing the Leafs by three with 15 games remaining. They need the game more than the Rangers, who sit comfortably in the first wildcard with 90 points and 13 games left following yesterday’s 4-1 win over the Red Wings. A game highlighted by Ryan McDonagh’s two goals. Probably his best of the season. Derek Stepan scored his first goal in 24 games on the power play. Michael Grabner returned earning a pair of assists while reigniting Kevin Hayes (17th goal) and J.T. Miller (primary assist on Hayes’ goal). Antti Raanta made 23 saves with his biggest coming on Gustav Nyquist with the game tied. He won his career high 14th.

It’s mostly about slowing down red hot Lightning Bolt Nikita Kucherov. The ultra talented Russian has been on fire posting an unreal 18 points (10-8-18) over his last nine games. During that span, eight of his 10 goals have come on the power play including a hat trick in an exciting home win over Ottawa on 2/27 in which all three goals were off wicked one-timers. Easily one of the game’s brightest stars, he’s carrying the Lightning right now. His 67 points (31-36-67) in 60 contests are almost on par with Pens tandem Sidney Crosby (72 in 61) and Evgeni Malkin (71 in 60). Without him, the Lightning would be sunk.

They have also gotten great play out of top defenseman Victor Hedman. His 58 points (13-45-58) rank third among NHL defensemen trailing only Norris frontrunner Brent Burns (70) and two-time Norris winner Erik Karlsson (62). He needs one more goal for a new career high and has already achieved career bests in assists (45) and points (58). Most of his damage has come on the man-advantage where Hedman has produced 31 power play points including 27 power play assists. It looks like finally he’ll get some recognition as a candidate for the Norris.

Andrei Vasilevskiy has been brilliant since taking over the number one goalie for the departed Bishop. He gets the night off with recently acquired Peter Budaj getting the nod against Raanta.

For the Rangers, there are no changes to the lineup. Same lines:

Nash-Zibanejad-Buchnevich

Kreider-Stepan-Zuccarello

Grabner-Hayes-Miller

Glass-Lindberg-Vesey

Staal-McDonagh

Smith-Holden

Skjei-Kampfer

Raanta

 

Here is what Tampa looks like. Both Tyler Johnson and Craig Paquette are out.

Palat-Point-Kucherov

Gourde-Drouin-Killorn

Namestnikov-Froese-Erne

Brown-McKegg-Dumont

Hedman-Dotchin

Garrison-Stralman

Coburn-Sjustr

Budaj

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McDonagh’s pair and Stepan ends drought in Rangers 4-1 win over Red Wings

Posted on March 12, 2017 by Derek
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The scoreboard of Joe Louis Arena reads Rangers 4, Red Wings 1 in what was the final game they’ll play there. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NYRangers.

The final game at Joe Louis Arena was a happy one. The Rangers came away with a satisfying 4-1 victory over the hapless Red Wings in what is sure to be the first season there won’t be any playoffs since ’88-89. All great streaks must come to an end. For the Winged Wheel, it’ll be about ping pong balls in an NHL lottery featuring top prospects Nolan Patrick and Nico Hischier.

It was a game that brought back memories of playoffs past. Both American leaders Ryan McDonagh and Derek Stepan scored. The captain recorded his second career two-goal game scoring shorthanded and at even strength. He became the first Rangers defenseman to score twice with one shorthanded since Michal Rozsival in ’07. That should make some of our Jekyll & Hyde fans all warm and fuzzy. 😉

The bigger story is Stepan, who finally ended his 23-game goal drought by scoring on the power play to put an exclamation point on the Rangers’ NHL-leading 25th road win. He had been getting close the past few games missing a chance point blank and clanging the post in a frustrating one-goal loss at Carolina. Since Alain Vigneault reunited Chris Kreider and Mats Zuccarello with him, Stepan has been playing better. Fittingly, his power play goal came on an assist from old USA buddy Kreider. He shanked it but such is the case when you finally get one. Well deserved.

It really was all about the Americans for the Blueshirts. Kevin Hayes had a goal and assist while sidekick J.T. Miller set up his 17th late in the second to give the team a two-goal lead against a fragile defensive team. The Red Wings make our defense look like world beaters. They cannot defend at all. They had some sloppy turnovers and blown coverages resulting in Ranger goals.

Detroit didn’t help Petr Mrazek at all. He was basically by himself. That resulted in four goals on 31 shots. None of which he stood a chance. The Rangers took full advantage of some big mistakes. That’s what the Red Wings have become. Not much different from what I saw from another former perennial team that resides in Newark in a dreadful first period during a one-goal loss to lowly Arizona.

The Rangers took what they were given. With Steven Kampfer off for tripping, a strong defensive play by McDonagh trapped two Red Wings. Michael Grabner handed off for Hayes, who had all sorts of time and space with Mike Green backing off on a poorly executed switch. Hayes calmly pushed a backhand pass in front for a cutting McDonagh, who beat Green to the spot for the tip in for a shorthanded goal at 19:33. It was McDonagh’s first goal in 11 since a 2-1 home win over the Caps on 2/19.

Making his first start since Henrik Lundqvist went down with a hip strain, Antti Raanta was cool, calm and collected. He finished with 23 saves in picking up his career best 14th win of the season. With the first of four sets of back-to-backs, Vigneault has hinted that Raanta will see the bulk of the action. Why not? He’s one of the most dependable number two goalies in the game. It’s any guess whether Raanta becomes the Las Vegas starter following the season. But he along with Lundqvist give the Rangers a formidable 1-2 punch.

The one goal Raanta allowed he had no chance on. With Marc Staal off for a weak call for ‘elbowing,’ the Red Wings made some great passing resulting in a nice one-time and a bang from ex-Islander Frans Nielsen to tie the game on the power play at 5:35 of the second period. The passing was started by Justin Abdelkader and then Gustav Nyquist, who threaded the needle to Nielsen for his 14th.

But in a period where they didn’t play that badly, Detroit fell apart late. They allowed two consecutive goals in a 37-second span. The first one came on an awful turnover by Tomas Tatar. It led to McDonagh getting three chances. With help from Pavel Buchnevich and Staal behind the net, they dug out the puck and put it back in front for an easy McDonagh finish for his second of the game. It was only Staal’s sixth assist of the season. But always nice to see the much maligned gritty vet contributing. He got his nose dirty. Buchnevich picked up a helper too.

Leading by one, the Rangers exposed some poor defense by Detroit in transition. Grabner led Miller into the Red Wing zone. It was basically a two-on-two. But Abdelkader got lost in coverage allowing Hayes an easy lane to the net. That resulted in a bullet pass across from Miller for an easy Hayes slam dunk making it 3-1 with 2:33 to go. Grabner already making a difference recording a pair of assists in his return. No coincidence that Hayes and Miller looked better and got on the score sheet.

The Blueshirts took a couple of early minor penalties in the third. One by former Red Wing Brendan Smith (delay of game) and the other by Stepan (high-stick). It didn’t matter. After a couple of close calls on the first power play, Detroit did nothing on the second. In fact, they only got seven total shots on Raanta in the period.

It was a bad penalty by Dylan Larkin for tripping in the offensive zone that finally led to Stepan’s first goal since 1/17. The Red Wings again overplayed and were exposed when Kreider came out in front and was able to dish across for a wide open Stepan, who finally got one to go for lucky number 13 at 16:01 to the bench’s excitement. It was fitting that it would be Kreider, who would get the puck to Stepan. They’ve played together since teaming to win a gold medal at the IIHF U20 World Junior Championship. Mats Zuccarello notched a helper.

They did what they had to do. Picked up two points against a bad team that’s headed for a rebuild. Detroit will play in a new arena next season. Who knows when they’ll be a playoff caliber team again. It could be a while.

BONY 3 Stars:

3rd Star-Michael Grabner, NYR (2 assists in return, 3 shots, +2 in 22 shifts-15:52)

2nd Star-Kevin Hayes, NYR (goal-17th, assist, +2 in 22 shifts-14:48)

1st Star-Ryan McDonagh, NYR (2nd career 2-goal game-4th, 5th including team’s 9th SHG, +2 in 26 shifts-22:25)

 

Notes: Shots were 31-24 Rangers and attempts were 47-43 Red Wings with the hosts missing the net 16 times. Teams only combined for 14 blocked shots (7 each). … Rangers led in hits 26-19 paced by Tanner Glass (6), who quietly had an effective game forcing a couple of turnovers that caused Rangers scoring chances. … Staal had one of his better games finishing plus-two with a helper in 23 shifts (19:34) while paired with McDonagh. … Kampfer also had a solid game drawing a retaliatory penalty on a clean hit and trusted enough to log 15:11 in 22 shifts going plus-one while working with Brady Skjei. … Key Stat: Giveaways NYR-6 DET-11. … Face-offs went to the Red Wings 25-22 paced by Nielsen (9-and-4). Oscar Lindberg went 5-and-3 for the Blueshirts, who return home to host the Lightning Monday before the traditional March blizzard. Be safe!

A very pleased Stepan talks about finally scoring to end his drought and going to old pal Martin St. Louis for advice:

The winning netminder Raanta talks about “playing more” with a grin:

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Grabner and Nash return at Detroit

Posted on March 12, 2017 by Derek

The Rangers and Red Wings will drop the puck in a few minutes. The third and final match-up between the classic Original Six rivals will be the final game the Rangers play at Joe Louis Arena. Barring a miracle, the 14th place Red Wings won’t be extending their playoff streak to 26. It’ll finally end.

The first two games saw the teams combine for four total goals. Detroit took the first match at MSG 2-1 thanks to Jimmy Howard. The Rangers took the second match at The Joe 1-0 thanks to Henrik Lundqvist and overtime hero J.T. Miller. It’ll be Antti Raanta against Petr Mrazek. Raanta’s first game as the starter with Lundqvist out at least two weeks.

The game is the first of four back-to-backs in the next two weeks. The Rangers return home tomorrow to host the Lightning, who are very much in play for the second wildcard following another win on Saturday combined with an Islanders loss at St. Louis. Toronto is back in the second wildcard by a point over the Isles with the Bolts within three despite less ROW. All three have 15 games left as well as the fading Panthers.

Meanwhile, Detroit has dropped out with 63 points. One better than the awful Devils, who have lost 10 straight games. Gone are the days when both teams dominated the competition. Now that they’re in the same conference, that’s no longer the case. They’re playing for the lottery and ping pong balls.

The Rangers get back two forwards into the lineup. Michael Grabner and Rick Nash return. Grabner will be reunited on the third line with Miller and Kevin Hayes. Both have struggled since he went down. Nash missed a game but is back to play with Mika Zibanejad and Pavel Buchnevich.

The fourth line will be Oscar Lindberg centering Tanner Glass and Jimmy Vesey. That means Brandon Pirri is finally out of the lineup. Hopefully, it’s for good. He just hasn’t brought anything since his good start. Matt Puempel is also out. Derek Stepan stays with Chris Kreider and Mats Zuccarello. Maybe Stepan will finally find the back of the net.

Alain Vigneault is sticking with his current D pairings even though Marc Staal and Ryan McDonagh together is awkward. They don’t belong together. At least Nick Holden and Brendan Smith seem to have chemistry. Brady Skjei sticks with Steven Kampfer. He better play more than 15 minutes.

The game has already started. So, I’ll go watch and post a recap later.

 

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Devils hit new low with winless streak

Posted on March 12, 2017 by hasan4978

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Every time you think things can’t possibly get worse for the Devils they find a new low, such as their current ten-game winless streak which has crested in back-to-back regulation losses to the worst teams in the NHL at Colorado and Arizona.  Truth be told there’s been nothing worth either watching or writing about the Devils for weeks.  My last full game watched – or even close to one – was the back-to-back blown lead home fiascoes against the Rangers and Canadiens that I attended almost three weeks ago.  Though I couldn’t help watching the end of last night’s game which was kind of hilarious all around.  After their AHL lineup with preseason motivation surrendered a 4-0 lead to the Coyotes, the Devils put on the ultimate tease getting to within 5-4, and having the GREAT Taylor Hall have an opportunity to tie the game on a penalty shot late in the third period.  However, if you’re a Devils fan and you’ve been paying attention at all to this team or to Hall’s dissapointing lack of goalscoring the last few months (seven goals in 42 games), you just knew he was missing this one too, which he did.  And with what little the games mean at this point I couldn’t help but laugh.

Honestly to a degree I feel a little sorry for Hall, who must have thought he was finally escaping purgatory getting out of Edmonton only to get trapped in a purgatory just as bad while the Oilers are on pace to break their long playoff drought without him.  But only a little, Hall certainly hasn’t helped the cause much since early in the season and is floating around just as bad as anyone else during this stretch.  Granted he’s a good playmaker and you can only control a little bit how often your fellow stonehands forwards put the puck in the net, but on this team he’s got to initiate a little more, the way he did early in the season during the Devils’ 9-3-3 start (that was really this season?!).  Since then, the Devils have gone 16-28-9 as the team has crash-landed at last place in the entire Eastern Conference.  In a sign of the times, just above them in 14th place is the Detroit Red Wings.  Not too long ago the Devils and Red Wings were both the gold standard for winning and consistency.  Now it’s all about who can win more ping-pong balls.

More than anything else this is the reason I just don’t watch later in lost seasons.  I don’t get into actively rooting for THE TANK.  Yes it’s better at this point for the Devils to lose and get more ping-pong balls in that sense but what people overlook in their myopic focus on the draft (besides the fact it is far more of a lottery than it was 5-10 years ago and just as variable as the NBA’s draft now) is that the more the team stinks now, the less one single draft pick is going to fix all our ills.  Especially in a non-generational player draft.  And this idea that people just want to see the young players play well and still lose is a canard…it doesn’t work that way folks.  You can’t have your cake and eat it too.  If you’re losing this much down the stretch it means the young players you have aren’t doing the job, and that the vets who aren’t getting traded anytime soon anyway because of contract status/NTC’s aren’t being part of the solution either – or enhancing the little trade value they do have.

In that sense, perhaps the most dissapointing development in the 2015-16 season is the lack of it from most of the young forwards including Pavel Zacha (who granted was playing well before his concussion a couple weeks ago, but has been listless since his return to the lineup), along with the regression of Miles Wood after he set the world on fire his first few games here, his development’s stagnated.  Not to mention the neverending inconsistencies of the young defensemen, such as Damon Severson.  Granted he actually had a good game last night with two assists and 29 points in 67 games is fair production overall, but given that point total his – by far – team worst -26 is doubly dissapointing.  Among all the rookies, only defenseman Steven Santini doesn’t look like he’s been trapped in the vortex of suck afflicting 90% of our roster right now.  However even he’s not going to drive play on the offensive end with seven points in 31 games, Severson himself is the only defenseman that can consistently contribute offensively but he’s been horrid defensively.

While the kids’ lack of development is troubling, so is the horrid play of the few vets we do have.  I’ve already gotten into Hall, but even his goal shortage doesn’t compare to Mike Cammalleri, who’s scored a pathetic one goal – ONE! – in his last 37 games.  This is a guy who scored 27 goals (in 68 games) as recently as two years ago, with nearly a point a game last year.  This year, there’s just no nice way to say this…he’s been a pile of trash with just ten goals and 30 points in 55 games, and most of that production came in an eight-game binge between November and December when he actually as nine of those goals and 14 points.  In his other 46 games?  ONE goal, and 15 assists.  For a guy I’ve always thought of as a pro’s pro, this fall from grace evokes memories of late-career Jamie Langenbrunner, but even Langs was never the force offensively Camm was in his prime.

There’s hardly any vets you can point to that are playing well though, other than Travis Zajac, but you can’t exactly count on him for consistent offensive production either.  Adam Henrique’s continuing his pattern of a bad season following a good one.  Andy Greene, well perhaps other things have been influencing his down year given his dad’s recent passing.  And Cory Schneider…sigh.  I almost broke my recent silence to vent about big-game Cory again blowing late leads in the back-to-back meltdowns against the Rangers and Habs last month that ended my last vestige of caring about anything this season.  He’s clearly given up on the season too with another indifferent performance in Arizona last night, followed by overdue frustration boiling over after being pulled.

Assuming Cory still has the trade value he might have had coming into this season, the Devils may have to take a long look this offseason at whether keeping Cory around is best for either him or the team in the long run.  If you’re not going to make a big step forward this offseason in terms of bringing in talent via trade/FA, then what’s really the point of keeping any of these vets around merely to improve to 8th/10th in the draft lottery in the process?  Other than Kyle Palmieri – who barely counts as a vet – who of these guys has really had a positive influence on things this season?  Sure at least none of them embarass themselves on Twitter or off the ice but at some point you need more from these guys on the ice and in the locker room.

And you need more from the coaching staff in terms of getting these guys ready to play and developing the younger players.  I don’t want to kill John Hynes for this recent stretch, every team that’s out of it (when reality sets in that they are indeed out of it) goes through a period like this where they just don’t want to play anymore.  Clearly coaching isn’t the source of the problem but at the moment it doesn’t seem to be part of the solution either.  Especially when Hynes does minor-league things like not calling a timeout late in the Habs game after his players on the ice went through a long shift before an icing, presumably to save it for the video review that may or may not have happened in the last three minutes of regulation with a one-goal lead.  It’s one thing to save your timeout in the first two periods but with three minutes left in a one-goal game, really?
With almost no time left at that point your priority’s protecting the lead, not worrying about a hypothetical that may or may not happen.

Just like with my football Jets in the second half, now this season’s become a crawl to the end, hoping for a better draft pick and no serious injuries while I pay as little attention as possible.  Although as a season ticket holder who is going to have more trouble selling tickets in these futile last weeks, I may have to go to a few games just because.  Tuesday won’t be one of them though, even if the NHL dictates the game be played despite the doom and gloom weather forecasts.  Devils-Winnipeg in late March isn’t exactly worth braving a snowstorm for whether it turns out to be 6 inches or a worst-case scenario of 18 inches of snow.  Nine of the team’s last fourteen games are going to be at the Rock, in an ideal world I’m maybe at three or four of those games – one I’m already going to with a friend and the home finale on April 8 being two – but that depends on how many tickets I can sell/find a sucker to go with.  Either way it just isn’t really worth watching when the team’s asthetically horrifying to watch, and when losing is more meaningful than winning.

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Hip injury to Lundqvist not end of world for Rangers

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Derek

Henrik Lundqvist

The Rangers will be without Henrik Lundqvist when they visit Detroit tomorrow night. The franchise netminder injured himself in a recent 5-2 road win at Florida this past Tuesday. A game in which he was super making 43 saves to reach 30 wins for the 11th time in 12 seasons passing Grant Fuhr for number 10 on the all-time wins list with 404.

Apparently, Lundqvist suffered a hip strain and will be sidelined two to three weeks. So, the 35-year old will sit and watch from the press box while dependable backup Antti Raanta takes over in net. The 27-year old Finnish goalie has been stellar. In his second season on Broadway, he’s 13-6-0 with a 2.33 goals-against-average, .922 save percentage with a team-leading three shutouts.

So, losing Lundqvist for a stretch in March isn’t the end of the world. He can rehab while Raanta assumes the mantle. With 14 games remaining, the Rangers still have five sets of back-to-backs including four the rest of the month starting with Detroit and Tampa 3/12-13 and ending with Anaheim and San Jose 3/25-26 as part of a tough three games in four days stretch in California.

That means Hartford recall Magnus Hellberg is gonna have to start a game or two. The team can’t just ride Raanta with so many games over such a short span. Acquired from Nashville on July 1, 2015 in exchange for a 2017 sixth round pick, the 25-year old has never started an NHL game. He’s gotten in three with the Predators and Rangers. So, the question for coach Alain Vigneault is will he trust Hellberg enough to start him and rest Raanta during one of the back-to-backs. He’ll need to.

The only concern for Lundqvist is how quickly he recovers from the hip injury. He was playing better challenging shooters and had carried the team when they stopped scoring. You worry about rust with a veteran goalie who likes work. When April rolls around, the Blueshirts will have four games left between 4/2-9 including the final back-to-back against Ottawa and Pittsburgh to conclude the regular season.

The last time he had an injury this late was during ’14-15 when he missed two months due to a sprained blood vessel in his neck that actually was life threatening. It’s hard to believe he played the next game which coincidentally was a win over Florida before the serious nature of the injury was discovered. That year, the team had Cam Talbot as a great replacement who carried them down the stretch to a President’s Trophy.

Lundqvist was able to successfully return going 5-2-0 down the stretch. He got the team past the Flyers and Capitals in seven with a closely contested Eastern Conference Semifinal one of the franchise’s most memorable series. For a second straight year, Lundqvist helped the Rangers rally from a 3-1 series deficit in the second round stunning the Caps in Game 5 on Chris Kreider’s tying goal and Ryan McDonagh’s game-winner. Both set up by Derek Stepan. After hanging on in Game 6, it was Stepan’s overtime winner that sent the Rangers to a second straight Conference Final.

Without Lundqvist, the comebacks against the Pens and Caps in consecutive years don’t happen. Unfortunately, it was more of a cruel ending in 2015 with the team getting shutout 2-0 in Game 7 at MSG by the Lightning. A perplexing series where the road team won five of the seven games.

So, what’s in store this time? It’s hard to say. This team isn’t going to be the favorite. The favorites are the Pens and Caps. Both have loaded rosters with better star talent, scoring, team defense and arguably better goaltending. Hard to admit. But until Braden Holtby proves himself along with playoff choker Alexander Ovechkin, who knows about Washington. They haven’t exactly lit the world on fire since overpaying for Kevin Shattenkirk. They’re 3-2-0 since getting him having lost two straight.

The Pens and Blue Jackets are only three behind the Caps for first. Each have 16 games remaining. Washington holds the first tiebreaker with 43 ROW compared to 41 ROW for Columbus and 39 for Pittsburgh. Both are four up on the idle Blueshirts, who are in comfortable position in the first wildcard with 88 points. Thirteen more than the Islanders and 14 better than the Maple Leafs. Toronto is battling the Islanders for the final wildcard with the Lightning lurking behind while the Flyers are still alive but need to outpoint them due to only 25 ROW. A bad 2-1 loss to Boston didn’t help losing on a last second goal from Drew Stafford.

As long as the Rangers take care of business, they should be fine. It continues to look like they’ll wind up with the first wildcard and draw either the Canadiens or Senators. That’s only a two point difference with Ottawa holding two games in hand.

At this point, I don’t care who they draw. Whoever it is, it won’t be easy. Obviously, avoiding the 2/3 match-up in the Metro is probably better because it means either Pittsburgh or Columbus. But they didn’t beat Montreal once and split with Ottawa with one game left. So, there is no guarantee.

A healthy Lundqvist is the key. A couple of weeks off and some game action to sharpen up isn’t necessarily bad. He is the workhorse once the postseason starts. I’m not opposed to Raanta replacing him if he’s off and it comes down to that. But most likely, it’s Lundqvist’s show again. He’s proven capable of taking this team deep getting them to three Final Four appearances.

The more pressing concern is the defense and Vigneault’s use of Tanner Glass, who played over Pavel Buchnevich in the final minute of a frustrating 4-3 loss at Carolina. You have to wonder why Brady Skjei got less ice-time than Marc Staal. Skjei should be getting over 20 minutes at this point proving he’s fully capable of a top four role. Instead, Vigneault continues to lean on his vets including Staal, who can use a blow once Dan Girardi returns. Nick Holden gets more ice-time and key acquisition Brendan Smith has been solid.

Nobody can predict how this season will turn out. It’s already better than it was expected to be. But the scoring has been inconsistent lately. The need for Stepan to end his scoring drought is great along with J.T. Miller getting out of his funk. Kevin Hayes scored in the win over Florida but needs to get back to the form we saw through January. Mika Zibanejad has shown signs netting his first two power play goals at Carolina. Rick Nash seems to get chances every night he plays. But isn’t burying them.

Chris Kreider is up to 26 goals. He needs four for his first 30-goal season. He’s taken the punishment and been more consistent. But with so few finishers, are the Rangers good enough to make a run? Getting Michael Grabner back can only help. The chemistry he had with Hayes and Miller was instrumental. Even though he hadn’t finished prior to his injury, his 26 markers exceeded expectations. When he and Jesper Fast return, the Rangers become much tougher up front. As long as Vigneault understands Glass must come out along with ineffective Brandon Pirri.

A fourth line of Oscar Lindberg, Jimmy Vesey and Fast is capable of contributing offensively without losing much defensively. For the first time since Brian Boyle left for Tampa, the Rangers are four lines deep. It will all depend on Lundqvist and a team defense which leans heavily on Ryan McDonagh, who hasn’t always been lights out.

Thankfully, Raanta will fill in the same way Talbot did. That will allow Lundqvist to take his time before being cleared to return. Never a bad thing with a goalie in their mid-30’s. He should be fresh. Maybe the injury is a blessing in disguise. We’ll find out.

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Replay challenge screws Rangers in 4-3 loss to Canes

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Derek
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A controversial Sebastian Aho power play goal thanks to the idiots in Toronto and the refs hurt the Rangers in a frustrating 4-3 loss at Carolina. Aho also notched the game-winner. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NHLCanes.

I don’t normally blame refs for losses. Anyone that knows me knows this. I will usually put the blame where it belongs. On the team. The Rangers were in a winning position up 3-2 on not one. Not two. But THREE POWER PLAY GOALS! Say that again. That’s a month’s worth. Who knows when they’ll score one on man-advantage again?

On PPG’s from Chris Kreider (team-tying 26th) and two from Mika Zibanejad (10, 11), the Rangers were ahead by one against the Hurricanes. They led in shots 29-12 with one period to go. But all hell broke loose literally in Raleigh when a botched video review cost them their timeout for the joke that is the coach’s challenge. Sure enough, the blind mice ruled that Sebastian Aho’s power play goal counted. Even with contact in front from Canes bust Elias Lindholm on Antti Raanta which was easy to see, Toronto didn’t overturn it. Or they wouldn’t.

Alain Vigneault lost his timeout. He was steamed. He told John Giannone he felt 100 percent right that it was the wrong call. They said it was a good goal despite Raanta’s feet being in the blue paint due to his mask being outside even though it was contacted. That’s gotta be one of the cheesiest, lamest explanations I’ve ever heard. It’s like the ridiculous Magic Bullet Theory which any brain surgeon knows is the biggest lie ever told by our government. But they say physics can prove it. Sure. The same way Raanta wasn’t impeded by that scrub Lindholm and couldn’t pick up Aho’s shot which tied the score.

Honestly, the NHL can go piss off. This whole coach’s challenge thing is a joke. It’s a circus that continues to confuse players, coaches and infuriate fans. Even if their play in the third didn’t merit a win because they stunk and fittingly lost the game in which they scored three power play goals, the Rangers got screwed. They got absolutely robbed, jobbed and any other adjective you can use that’s clean or vulgar.

It doesn’t fully explain the third period. It was the third game in four nights. So, they had to be tired. But they should’ve still won. Instead, for the 17th time when they out-shot the opposition, they lost. They’re now 15-17-2 when they have more shots than opponents. This one went in favor of them 43-30 and the attempts were 71-50. This is who they are. They do better when they’re out-shot. They’re 27-6-0 when opponents out-shoot them and 1-0-0 when shots are even.

You can’t take penalties when you’re up. The Rangers did and paid the price. Nick Holden first which led to Aho’s very controversial tying goal which is still mystifying. Our great captain Ryan McDonagh didn’t get an explanation. How is that possible? Blueseat Blogs’ Dave Shapiro had the best look at the goal that wasn’t:

https://twitter.com/BlueSeatBlogs/status/840022631621525504

There it is plain as day. Lindholm elbows Raanta at the edge of the crease as Aho’s shot goes past him. So, tell me how he had a chance to stop it. Unbelievable.

As for Aho’s second power play goal, that was predictable. Zibanejad took a bad penalty and the Canes were opportunistic and made the Rangers pay. Basically, a low scoring team flipped the script. This is what the Rangers do to opponents. But tonight, the fell victim to their own strategy. Rope a dope.

I am not going to bother getting into the rest of the game. For the most part, the Rangers were the better team except for a nightmarish sequence that emulated last year when they gave up two straight goals in a 39-second span. Ranger killer Jeff Skinner scored and Valentin Zykov scored what else but his first NHL goal as our D melted down. Both were the end result of sloppy turnovers from forwards and poor coverage in front.

The positive was that Derek Stepan had another good game assisting on two of the goals. That included a brilliant no look backhand feed from behind the net to Kreider for his power play tally that made it 1-0 on a five-on-three. They still took too long to shoot and score. But the power play goal gave them a huge confidence boost that continued during the game. Previously, they were 1 for their last 40.

Stepan finished with a game high 10 shots. He admitted that he’s been pressing prior to the game. I guess it’s hard not to think about his goal drought which is now up to 23. He’s never gone this long without a goal. His worst stretch was 18 during a very good rookie season. Stepan played well though with the two assists. Unfortunately, he has no puck luck with his shot ringing off the goalpost with a chance to tie it.

As long as he continues to stay aggressive and play better, it’s only a matter of time. He’s a smart enough player who understands the game. And he’s gotten much better in the last three.

The final point is on Vigneault. He loves Tanner Glass. As fans, we all do. We respect what he brings. He hasn’t been a liability so far since his recall, outplaying the hideous Brandon Pirri and Matt Puempel, whose turnover led to the Canes’ second goal. Having Glass out in the final minute on the Zibanejad line replacing Pavel Buchnevich is inexplicable. Even if Glass forced Cam Ward to make a couple of stops, it’s the wrong decision.

No disrespect to Glass, who always hustles and plays hard. If only every Blueshirt played as hard as him consistently. But you cannot have him out down a goal. Buchnevich is much more dangerous and talented. It is ridiculous that he didn’t take that shift yet the same coach had Buchnevich out for an empty net goal protecting a lead the other night.

I don’t get it. No one does. As for the injuries, everyone has them this time of year. Rick Nash was out and so was Henrik Lundqvist. They still should’ve won. Instead, they lost a winnable road game dropping their away record to 24-9-0. Now, they get a couple of days off before visiting Detroit in Brendan Smith’s homecoming.

I’m still flabbergasted at the refs for tonight. But as Vigneault said, their game wasn’t good enough in the third. That’s why they lost. Does it really matter? Whoever they draw in the first round won’t be any picnic. Maybe the plan is to get the first wildcard. The Islanders played for it last year and beat Florida. We’ll see.

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Classy athlete Lundqvist now top 10 in wins remains Rangers’ best

Posted on March 8, 2017 by Derek
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Henrik Lundqvist remains a champion that has made the Rangers so competitive over the last decade. He now is in the top 10 all-time in wins after a 43 save performance against Florida for number 404 passing Grant Fuhr. AP Photo via Getty Images courtesy NYRangers.

In last night’s 5-2 victory over the Panthers, Henrik Lundqvist passed Grant Fuhr for 10th all-time in wins with number 404. The 35-year old affable Swede did it in style making 43 saves to lead the Rangers to another road win. Their second in succession following a brilliant performance from Antti Raanta in a 1-0 overtime triumph at Tampa Bay.

The win also gave Lundqvist 30 for the 11th time in 12 seasons. Even in what’s been at times a challenging season in which he’s gone through slumps, Lundqvist remains the backbone of this franchise. When on, he can still steal games. He’s going to have to in the upcoming playoffs. A certainty with the team up to 88 points with 15 games left. They’re tied with the Penguins in points for third in the Metro but Pittsburgh has three games at hand including one tonight at Winnipeg. The Blue Jackets’ 2-0 shutout of the Devils completed a sweep putting them into second with 90.

After getting a night off following three losses in his last four in which he permitted four or more in each defeat, Lundqvist was much sharper. He made some big stops to turn away the Panthers. Especially during the final two periods. Florida out-shot the Rangers 38-17 but were only able to beat him twice. Both coming on point blank chances. One with Thomas Vanek retrieving a loose puck in front and firing home his first as a Panther. The other from Aaron Ekblad on a power play late in regulation when he shot through Brendan Smith for his 10th cutting it to 4-2 with 3:26 remaining.

Pavel Buchnevich would seal it with an empty netter for his eighth off a good defensive play from Rick Nash with 1:45 left. When it was over and Lundqvist made one last stop before retrieving the puck, his teammates came over to congratulate him. A prideful Lundqvist talked about being proud to reporters afterwards:

Lundqvist was out challenging shooters. He also got a bit lucky sticking out the left pad at the last split second to deny Aleksander Barkov on the doorstep. A terrific save from a terrific goalie who’s been a classy Ranger. He’s probably one of the classiest New York athletes in recent memory. Think Derek Jeter and Eli Manning. David Wright too. He’s there win or lose and is accountable.

There’s no doubting his leadership. It’s why he’s so immensely popular with teammates, coaches and fans. There’s just not enough positives you can say for how Lundqvist goes about his business. A determined athlete who gets it. He wants to win. He came close once in 2014 with the Rangers falling to the Kings in gut wrenching fashion. Getting back has proven much harder. The third period of Game 7 at MSG against the Lightning the following year still a fresh wound for Blueshirt faithful.

What will it take for Lundqvist to climb the top of the mountain? He’s not getting any younger. The team is again good. But questions remain as to whether they’re playoff tough enough to go through either an unforgiving Metro with potential opponents Pittsburgh/Columbus and Washington or the Atlantic with Montreal winning all three match-ups and humiliating this past Saturday.

That was enough for the organization to recall Tanner Glass. Having been exiled to Hartford where he played in the AHL, the proud vet who’s played for Alain Vigneault in Vancouver and now New York has returned with a point to prove.

In the win at Tampa, he got into an early scrum battling for a rebound and then had a lengthy bout with Luke Witkowski which was one of the best fights of the season. Last night was his best game as a Ranger. He scored his first goal since 3/21/16 also against the Panthers by parking himself in front and rebounding home a Oscar Lindberg shot. He was all smiles as excited teammates mobbed him. It was definitely a feel good moment.

Glass was a catalyst in the victory. After missing an assignment on Vanek’s goal, he atoned for it by getting in on the forecheck and helping set up Nick Holden’s huge goal less than two minutes later. The goal wouldn’t have been possible without Glass perfectly setting a screen on Florida goalie James Reimer just as Holden shot. Reimer never saw it. Florida challenged but to no avail. Glass never made contact with Reimer. It was just a great job of getting in front which allowed Holden to notch his 10th to restore a three-goal lead. He finished with a goal and assist earning the Broadway Hat.

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There isn’t a more deserving guy. Glass will never be the most talented player. A fringe player who at best is a 13th forward who can inject energy and physicality when he plays, he’s a popular teammate. They appreciate his effort, hustle and heart.

It’s not worth discussing the opposition from the Corsi community who only view hockey through statistical charts. I’m not advocating keeping Glass in the lineup once Michael Grabner and Jesper Fast return. Obviously with Grabner the leading goalscorer, he’ll go back in. I’d bench Brandon Pirri. He brings nothing and the power play is in such a bad funk, there’s no point playing him. Until Fast is ready to go from a separated shoulder, Glass stays in over Matt Puempel, who you can plug depending on the match-up.

The challenge for Vigneault is what to do once both Fast and Grabner are healthy. Jimmy Vesey is currently on the third line with Kevin Hayes and Miller. With Buchnevich regaining his spot in the top six with Mika Zibanejad and Nash, does Vesey move down to the fourth line for Grabner to reunite with Hayes and Miller? Undoubtedly. A fourth line of Vesey, Oscar Lindberg and Fast should be good enough to play consistently. But Vesey isn’t a fourth liner. Hopefully, he’ll fit in.

The Rangers are at their best when Lundqvist is standing on his head. Ditto for Raanta. They’ve now been out-shot by opponents in 33 games. Their record in those contests is a remarkable 27-6-0. With this team, it’s not about quantity. But quality. In games where they out-shoot the opponent, they’re 15-16-2. On even shots, they’re 1-0-0. When you add it all up, it can be attributed to timely saves from one of the league’s best goalie tandems, leading to offense.

What does it all mean? The Rangers likely will need Lundqvist to steal a series. There’s no guarantee they will make it out of the first round. None of the potential opponents will be easy. All have had success against them. They’re going to need great goaltending. At 35, Lundqvist isn’t washed up. But he’s also not the same goalie he was during his Vezina season in ’11-12. It’s about staying aggressive and challenging shooters. When he does, that bodes well.

The defense remains a puzzle. Brendan Smith played his best game as a Blueshirt finishing plus-three with three blocked shots while taking the front of the net away. He was paired with Holden, who’s looked better since Smith was teamed with him. For a second consecutive game, Ryan McDonagh worked with Marc Staal. The captain shifted to the right side and made it work logging 23:12 with three blocks and a plus-one in 30 shifts. Brady Skjei was sensational getting the primary assist on Hayes’ breakaway goal which ended a 10-game drought. Skjei did well in 19-plus minutes with the more defensive oriented Steven Kampfer, who filled in admirably in 13:30 with his point shot redirected by Chris Kreider for his 25th which started the scoring.

Dan Girardi is closer to returning than Kevin Klein, whose back remains an issue. Once Girardi is ready, he’ll replace Kampfer. As for Klein, I don’t know if we will ever see him again in the lineup. Unless Vigneault realizes Staal can use a breather, Klein might not be in the top six again. Especially with Smith an upgrade who can play either side. As for Adam Clendening, he’s slipped to ninth on the depth chart behind Kampfer. It looks like it’s over for him. Even if he was treated unfairly, he was never the answer.

If the Rangers are to make a run, it’ll be due to Lundqvist with Raanta in reserve just in case. That is a possibility that didn’t exist earlier in his career. Especially if he has a couple of bad games against say Montreal. Then Raanta has to be considered. It’s hard to believe I just typed that for a goalie who now ranks in the top 10 all-time in wins. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that.

One thing that must change is the offense. Last night was a step in the right direction. They scored four goals or more for the first time since posting four in an overtime win at the Devils on 2/25. They’ve only scored three times or better twice in the last 11. Prior to that stretch, they got four each in wins over Calgary, Anaheim, Nashville and Colorado between 2/5-11 followed up by three in a 3-2 win at Columbus on 2/13.

At least Hayes finally got off the snide when he converted a breakaway goal for his first in 11. Derek Stepan remains stuck on 12 goals. His goal drought up to 22. He’s looked on the verge the previous two games. But if there was a glaring example of how mental it’s become, how about the wild miss off a perfect Mats Zuccarello set up with a gaping net. He’s gotta bury that. The Rangers need Stepan desperately.

For all the accolades Zibanejad’s received for his overtime heroics and shootout theatrics, he doesn’t have a goal in regulation since Jan. 17 when he tallied twice versus Dallas in a 7-6 home loss. Also the last game Stepan scored in getting two. The only center pulling their weight is Lindberg, who’s scored three times over the last 10. He had two assists in Wednesday’s win. He’s gotten better since the New Year scoring all five of his goals with a two-point effort in a 5-4 win over Columbus on Jan. 7 starting his season. Eleven (5-6-11) of his 15 points have come since January. He also is over 50.0 percent on face-offs going 9-and-4 against Florida.

Simply put, the Rangers’ top three pivots must start scoring. They can’t be this inept. Miller has also cooled considerably. While he still leads them in points with 49, he has only one goal and two assists in the last 11. He did pick up a helper last night. Maybe that will get him going. When he and Hayes are scoring, the team becomes a lot better. Both are key penalty killers who have combined for four of their eight shorthanded goals. Their chemistry is undeniable.

It will be interesting to see how they finish the season. It’s pick your poison in the first round. What remains unchanged is Lundqvist’s importance to the team’s success. They’ll need to continue playing with the same edge they have in the last two adding to a league-leading road win total which is now up to 24-8-0.

The organization is lucky to have Lundqvist. A fact no one can deny. He’s blessed us with the playoffs in every year except one since coming over from Sweden as an unknown seventh round pick in 2000. Regardless of how it turns out, he’s a champion.

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