Game Preview: Jets at Rangers

The Winnipeg Jets of the Southeast Division…

Tonight the Rangers face off against the Winnipeg Jets, a team that is also struggling to find some consistency in this lockout shortened season. Aside from their records, the comparisons pretty much end there between these two teams. The Jets just play a different brand of hockey.

Claude Noel has the Jets playing a passive 1-2-2 forecheck. Their game plan is to sick back in the neutral zone and score off of transition rushes. This really isn’t a team that is going to press the issue with an aggressive forecheck and heavy hitting below the goal line like the Blueshirts. In a sense, the Jets are similar to the Canadiens, but they are not nearly as good at executing their system.

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Max Pacioretty escapes suspension from the NHL, evidence says he should have been

According to Renaud Lavoie of RDS, Max Pacioretty will not be suspended or disciplined of any form for his hit on Ryan McDonagh during last night’s 3-0 defeat in Montreal. At this point Brendan Shannahan has not released his customary videos explaining his thought process to today’s events.

Here’s what we know.

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X-Rays negative on Girardi, fans can exhale (kinda)

First things first, apologies for not having a goal breakdown for you guys. Last night was one of those rare nights where none of the five of us were available to write it. Then again, an angry drunk recap is probably not the best thing for the Rangers fan base right now.

For those of you unaware, Girardi took a rocket of a slap shot last night from P.K. Subban off his right ankle in the closing minutes of the game. He was unable to leave the ice under his own power. With that said, we were able to get some good news. According to Bob McKenzie, X-Rays on Girardi are negative. Whether or not he’ll miss any time is  still up in the air, but for now we’ve all dodged a bullet.

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Hockey Systems 101: Defensive zone strategies

If you’ve been coming to this website for a while, hopefully you’ve been reading all of my hockey systems posts. To date, we have discussed forechecking, puck possession strategies, powerplay strategies, penalty killing and face-off tactics. We’ve also covered Tortorella’s systems and philosophies with great depth, which you can read about here.

The one aspect of a hockey system we really haven’t talked about much are defensive zone strategies. The three most common systems are the strong-side overload, low zone collapse and man-on-man coverage.

Unlike other aspects of a hockey system, defensive zone strategies are not really implemented in a “one size fits all” approach anymore. The game has evolved. More and more teams are using certain strategies for specific game situations.

Strong-Side Overload  Read more »

Game 13: Islanders vs. Rangers

2012-2013 Records: Islanders (4-7-1), Rangers (7-5-0)

NYR Leading Scorer: Rick Nash (3-7-10)
NYI Leading Scorer: John Tavares (7-8-15)

NYR Goaltender: Henrik Lundqvist (11 GP, 2.48 GAA, .912 SV%)
NYI Goaltender:  Evgeni Nabokov (10 GP, 3.00 GAA, .897 SV%)

New York Rangers Tickets.

Rangers Lines: 

Marian Gaborik-Brad Richards-Ryan Callahan
Carl Hagelin-Derek Stepan-Rick Nash
JT Miller-Brian Boyle-Taylor Pyatt
Arron Asham-Jeff Halpern-Darroll Powe

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Marc Staal-Anton Stralman
Michael Del Zotto-Matt Gilroy

Marty Biron

Scratches/Injuries:  Mike Sauer (concussion), Chris Kreider (healthy), Stu Bickel (healthy)

Preview: 

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Rangers pass the 12 game mark, time to review

Source: NJ Star Ledger

The Rangers win in Boston marked the night we’ve been talking about since they opened the season with three losses in four games. Following those losses, fans were ready to can Torts, trade Gabby and torch everything Glen’s built over the last few years. Premature panic compelled Dave to write an article titled, “One game does not make a season. I preached patience and suggested we needed to wait until at least the 12 game mark before we could analyze what kind of team we had. Well, game 12 has come and gone and I think we’re all ready for an evaluation.

Here are some initial thoughts…

Key Strengths

Rick Nash is better than advertised

Never mind the 10 points in 12 games, or the fact he leads all Rangers in offense, what Nash brings to the table goes beyond the score sheet.  He not only draws coverage, opening up space for his linemates, but he also consistently beats the coverage on his own.

Gomez used to skate right into blueline traps and cough the puck up over and over again. Nash skates through traps, around them, even under them – that assist to Hags the other night was Nashty nasty. I haven’t seen a player this dynamic with the puck, since Jagr circa 2006. Rick Nash is the real deal.

Our offense finally has some depth/balance

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Game 12: Rangers at Bruins

2012-2013 Records: Boston (8-1-1), Rangers (6-5-0)

NYR Leading Scorer: Marian Gaborik (6-3-9), Brad Richards (2-7-9), Rick Nash (3-6-9)
BOS Leading Scorer: David Krejci (3-7-10)

NYR Goaltender: Henrik Lundqvist (10 GP, 2.44 GAA, .911 SV%)
BOS Goaltender:  Tuukka Rask (8 GP, 1.97 GAA, .922 SV%)

New York Rangers Tickets.

Rangers Lines (unconfirmed): 

Taylor Pyatt-Brad Richards-Marian Gaborik
Carl Hagelin-Derek Stepan-Rick Nash
Chris Kreider-J.T. Miller-Ryan Callahan
Arron Asham-Jeff Halpern-Darroll Powe

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Marc Staal-Anton Stralman
Michael Del Zotto-Matt Gilroy

Henrik Lundqvist

Probable Scratches/Injuries:  Mike Sauer (concussion), Brian Boyle (healthy), Steve Eminger (healthy), Stu Bickel (healthy)

Preview: 

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Game 11: Lightning at Rangers

2012-2013 Records: Tampa (6-4-0), Rangers (5-5-0)

NYR Leading Scorer: Marian Gaborik (6-3-9) and Brad Richards (2-7-9)
TBL Leading Scorer: Steve Stamkos (7-10-17)

NYR Goaltender: Henrik Lundqvist (9 GP, 2.61 GAA, .907 SV%)
TBL Goaltender:  Mathieu Garon (2 GP, 2.03 GAA, .939 SV%)

New York Rangers Tickets.

Rangers Lines: 

From practice courtesy of Andrew Gross:

Taylor Pyatt-Brad Richards-Marian Gaborik
Carl Hagelin-Derek Stepan-Rick Nash
Chris Kreider-J.T. Miller-Ryan Callahan
Arron Asham-Jeff Halpern-Darroll Powe

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Marc Staal-Anton Stralman
Michael Del Zotto-Matt Gilroy

Henrik Lundqvist

Probable Scratches/Injuries:  Mike Sauer (concussion), Brian Boyle (healthy), Steve Eminger (healthy), Stu Bickel (healthy)

Preview: 

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Breaking down the Rangers latest moves

Rob Carr/Getty Images

Today we are going to take a deeper look at the Rangers recent moves. Though the team played better in Tampa the other night, the bottom six hasn’t been very consistent and clearly Torts and Sather thought a change was needed. Below we’ve put together a qualitative analysis, or as Dave likes to call it – the eye test. If there’s an interest in the quantitative/advanced stats-type stuff. Let us know. Dave can whip that together.

Rangers trade C/LW Mike Rupp for C/LW Darroll Powe & RW Nick Palmieri

What the Rangers lose – Size, fights, veteran leadership

I was one of the few advocates of having a guy like Mike Rupp in the lineup. Most people who didn’t play organized hockey growing up have a hard time evaluating 4th line guys, so I get the disconnect some fans had with his presence in the lineup. For me, Rupp was exactly what you need from a 4th line role player.

Rupper was a leader in the locker room, as evidenced by Torts constantly seeking Rupp’s input at key times (shown in 24/7). He stood up for his teammates (remember Tomas Kopecky sucker punching MDZ last year? Rupp was the first guy in). He also played well in a limited role during the playoffs, bringing a good forecheck and puck management.

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Game 8: Rangers at Tampa Bay

2012-2013 Records: Tampa (6-1-0), Rangers (3-4-0)

NYR Leading Scorer: Marian Gaborik (5-3-8)
TBL Leading Scorer: Steve Stamkos (5-9-14)

NYR Goaltender: Martin Biron (1 GP, 1.95 GAA, .95 SV%)
TBL Goaltender: Mathieu Garon (1 GP, 1.00 GAA, .972 SV%)

New York Rangers Tickets.

Rangers Lines:

Rick Nash-Brad Richards-Marian Gaborik
Carl Hagelin-Derek Stepan-Taylor Pyatt
Jeff Halpern-Brian Boyle-Arron Asham
Stu Bickel-Benn Ferriero-Mike Rupp

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Marc Staal-Michael Del Zotto
Matt Gilroy-Anton Stralman

Martin Biron

Probable Scratches/Injuries:  Mike Sauer (concussion), Chris Kreider (ankle), Steve Eminger (healthy), Ryan Callahan (shoulder)

Preview: The Lightning are really firing on all cylinders right now. They are not just winning games. They are beating teams with conviction. In 7 games, they’ve only once failed to score 4+ goals.

And it’s not just the big three (Stamkos, Lecavalier, St. Louis) that are finding twine. Tampa is also getting scoring from their defense and their unheralded secondary forwards like the diminutive Cory Conacher (5’8 175 lb ). An undrafted player out of Canisius College (um where?), Cory is having a breakout rookie campaign with 12 points in 7 games.

As for their systems, Tampa is more than “just another trap team”. Guy Boucher has the Lightning running a 1-3-1 forecheck. Contrary to what the media will tell you, the 1-3-1 can be an aggressive forecheck or a neutral zone trap depending on the puck’s location. However, unlike other trap teams, Boucher also gives his defensemen free reign to join the rush. So they are not a traditional “defense first” team.

Overall, Tampa just feasts on transition rushes. The Rangers are really going to have to elevate their game tonight. Everyone on this roster will have a tough matchup, so it will be imperative that they stay disciplined and manage the puck well.

Fun Fact: Tampa is home to the most strip clubs per square mile.

Crazy Thought: More power play goals would be nice.

Opposition Blog: Bolts By The Bay