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After Monday night’s sloppy loss in Toronto, the Rangers are looking to exact revenge on the Leafs tonight in the series finale at The Garden. There is a lot at stake tonight for the Rangers, who are sitting in the 8th spot in the East. They trail the Islanders by two points (with a game in hand), and are tied with Winnipeg (with two games in hand). A win tonight moves them to 6th, tied in points with the Islanders and Senators. The Rangers would have the tiebreaker (ROW/head to head) on both.
On the ice, the Leafs are a strong skating 2-1-2 forechecking team, similar to the Rangers. However, once they get a late lead, they will drop guys back in the neutral zone and trap. In the defensive zone, the Leafs generally play a collapsing box, which is also used by the Rangers and leaves the point men open for opportunities. Their powerplay (umbrella) is fairly standard. On the kill, the Leafs will rotate between a diamond (when the Rangers are playing an umbrella PP) and wedge + 1 (when the Rangers are playing a 1-3-1). They may also use the wedge+1 when the Rangers are using an umbrella to change it up.
For more on Tortorella’s systems read here.
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Frank Franklin II/Associated Press
The Rangers are in Toronto tonight to begin a home-and-home with the Maple Leafs at a very critical point of the season. These are the last two contests between the clubs (the Rangers won the first meeting), and the Rangers sit four points back of the Leafs for fifth in the conference. If the Rangers win both contests, they will leapfrog the Leafs, and possibly the Sens, in the standings. All in all, it’s a pretty big pair of games.
On the ice, the Leafs are a strong skating 2-1-2 forechecking team, similar to the Rangers. However, once they get a late lead, they will drop guys back in the neutral zone and trap. In the defensive zone, the Leafs generally play a collapsing box, which is also used by the Rangers and leaves the point men open for opportunities. Their powerplay (umbrella) is fairly standard. On the kill, the Leafs will rotate between a diamond (when the Rangers are playing an umbrella PP) and wedge + 1 (when the Rangers are playing a 1-3-1). They may also use the wedge+1 when the Rangers are using an umbrella to change it up.
For more on Tortorella’s systems read here.
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Bruce Bennett — Getty Images
The Rangers are in Carolina to play their second game in as many days and third in four days. That stretch is tough for any team, but the Rangers had to do this with their first two games against the Penguins, of which they took three of four points. Taking three much-needed points against the Penguins was a huge boost to the Rangers, but they need to avoid the trap game tonight against Carolina, who is in complete free fall mode, losing three in a row and have gone 1-9-1 in their last eleven.
On the ice, the Canes play a 1-2-2 hybrid trap, meaning they may forecheck when the opportunity presents itself, but will mainly play a trapping style. Based on the score, they may switch to a 2-1-2 forecheck to pressure the defense and cause turnovers to get back in the game.
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Can the new guys (and Boyle) do it again?
For the fourth and final time this season, the Rangers and Penguins will square off in what could be a first-round playoff preview. The Penguins took the first two games in decisive fashion, but the Rangers demolished the Penguins just the other day. The new guys all made a contribution, and the Penguins are still with their injury woes.
As of today, the Rangers sit in 8th place in the Eastern Conference with 39 points, one point behind the Islanders (OTL against Washington last night) and tied in points with the Devils (hold the tie breaker). The Jets (38 points) and Flyers (37 points) are dangerously close in that rear-view mirror as well. Every point matters at this stage of the season.
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Photo credit: AP
The Penguins are in town tonight to open the first of a home-and-home with the Rangers. The good news: No Crosby, they just lost, and they are playing the second of back-to-back games. The bad news: They are still really, really good, and got better by adding Brendan Morrow, Douglass Murray, and Jarome Iginla.
But these are the new look Rangers. Marian Gaborik is in Columbus. Ryane Clowe, Derek Brassard, Derek Dorset, and John Moore are in New York. Chris Kreider and JT Miller are in Connecticut. We don’t know what these new-look Rangers are capable of, but they can’t be any softer than the previous 2013 version.
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Jason Szenes for The New York Times
Another day, another game against a Canadian team that the Rangers can’t seem to beat. On Thursday the Senators completed the season sweep of the Rangers (0-2-1). Saturday was Montreal’s turn (0-3-0). Today, the Jets come in hoping to make it three sweeps in a row (Rangers are currently 0-2-0). The Jets are a team that the Rangers are fully capable of beating, and need to do so tonight to at least gain ground on a team that can fall behind the Rangers very quickly, as they sit just three points ahead of the Blueshirts.
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, which burned the Rangers in each of their last two meetings. Winnipeg also plays a low zone collapse in their own end zone, but they tend to over commit on the puck carrier and often get burned themselves in the process. But, the Rangers have really failed to capitalize on this.
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Photo credit: AP
The Rangers are in Montreal tonight to face the Canadiens for the final time this season. Luckily, this will be the last time the Rangers play Montreal, as for some reason they just can’t beat them. They’ve lost both games against the Habs this year, losing by scores of 3-1 and 3-0, with the blanking coming in Montreal. The Rangers haven’t won there in recent memory (64-199-40-2 overall).
Under Michel Therrien, the Canadiens have switched to a 1-2-2 forecheck, but do use a 2-1-2 style infrequently based on the score and puck location. In the defensive zone, the Canadiens overload the boards first, then collapse low based on puck location. It’s actually very interesting, as Therrien said they overload because of their team size (note: small), and they use their speed to their advantage to outnumber the opponent on the wall and force turnovers. This is a style that has given the Rangers trouble all year.
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The Rangers are in Ottawa tonight for their third and final matchup against a Senators team that gives them trouble every game. The Rangers have gone 0-1-1 against Ottawa this season, and are at least looking to even that out and gain another two points in the standings. The Sens are without pretty much every single star player, but they still find a way to win, which is impressive.
The Sens forechecking strategy is a bit complex, as they are a hybrid aggressive forechecking/lock team. When they are trailing or tied, they’ll send two or three guys after the puck in a 2-1-2 forecheck. When they are ahead though, they lock it up with a 1-1-3 forecheck, a variation of the 2-3 lock. A 1-1-3 is how you would expect, with one guy deep, one guy high to pounce on a turnover, and three guys back at the blueline to protect against odd man rushes.
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Barton Silverman/The New York Times
The Rangers are in Philly tonight to take on the Flyers for the fourth and final time this season. The Rangers have taken two games (1/29: 2-1, 3/5: 4-2) and dropped one (1/24: 2-1) so far, and a win tonight would seal the season series with the Flyers. It would also help the Rangers in playoff positioning, as they need every point they can get.
As we’ve discussed before, Peter Laviolette throws two different forechecking looks at the opposition. The first look is the 2-1-2 forecheck, and once the Flyers get a lead, they tend to switch to a more conservative 2-3 left wing lock. Both systems send two forecheckers into the zone, but the 2-3 leaves three guys back, while the 2-1-2 sends an additional forechecker around the blue line and leaves two guys back.
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Jason Szenes/The New York Times
The Rangers are going for the series sweep tonight against Washington, as the Caps come to town for their third and final matchup. The Rangers have taken each of the first two games by scores of 2-1 and 4-1, and need to get back on track after a letdown game against the lowly Florida Panthers.
On the ice, the Caps still play the 1-2-2 forecheck, but they don’t necessarily use it as a trap. While this system is generally passive, the Caps use it in conjunction with a 2-1-2, making it a more aggressive hybrid forecheck. In the defensive zone, Oates continues with this hybrid theme and alternates between an overload defensive strategy and a collapsing strategy. On special teams, the Caps use a combination of a 1-3-1 and an umbrella powerplay, and use a diamond penalty kill.
For more on Torts’ systems, click here.
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