Playoffs Slipping Away, Draft Position Gets Better

If you have been here long, you know that I am one of the more optimistic Rangers fans. I always try to find the silver lining, and look at the positives. I just can’t do it anymore for this season, not after last night’s embarrassing display of nonchalance and indifference. This team just does not have what it takes to make the playoffs. Sure, they sit in 9th place in the conference, just three points back of the Bruins, but the Bruins have two games in hand on the Rangers. The loss of Marc Savard will hurt them, but their defense and goaltending should help weather that loss. At this point, I’m torn between rooting for the Rangers to win, or hoping they get a lottery pick.

The Rangers have fifteen remaining games, of which seven are against playoff teams, five are against non-playoff teams, and three are against teams in the hunt. As per SportsClubStats (s/t to Jordan for that one), in order to be guaranteed a spot in the playoffs, they will need to finish 10-2-3. To at least have a 70% shot at making the playoffs, they will need to finish 10-4-1. The moral of the story here is that the Rangers need to win 10 games to even be in the playoff hunt come April. It’s doable, but unlikely, especially considering what we’ve seen from the Rangers the past few games.

When looking at the draft position, each of the #10 (Atlanta), #11 (Tampa Bay), #12 (Florida), and #13 (Carolina) seeds have games in hand on the Rangers. Of those teams, Atlanta, TB, and Florida can leap frog ahead of the Rangers if they win these games in hand. They also play these three teams once a piece before the season ends. Those three games will have a huge bearing on where the Rangers sit come draft season, or whether the Rangers make the playoffs. Looking at the Western Conference, the only team below the Rangers is Columbus (Edmonton doesn’t count). They sit four points back of the Rangers, with no games in hand. It’s possible that they leap frog the Rangers too, especially if our beloved Blueshirts fail to show up for the remaining fifteen games.

In the end, I can’t root against the Rangers, it’s not in my blood. So I will be cheering for them, and hoping they make the playoffs. But the possibility of someone like Tyler Seguin, or Cam Fowler, or Vladimir Tarasenko is very tempting (Side note: Columbus plays Atlanta tonight, and for those hoping for a lottery pick, pray for an OT game). Any one of those players would greatly improve the Rangers and fill a gigantic hole on the team. Plus, there’s a very good chance they are NHL ready and could make a solid impact next season. But still, I cannot root against the Rangers, even if I think their playoff hopes have been crushed.

Much Needed Point

The negatives of last night’s game have been talked and vented about all night. Let’s not harp on them. If you told me this morning that the Rangers got completely dominated, out shot 55-16, and STILL managed to get a point, then I will consider it a win. So focus on that.

Before the Ottawa win, I wrote that the Rangers would probably need 30 points to make the playoffs. They have the first 3 out of a possible 4 so far, and every point is going to matter.

The loss sucks, it does, but let’s look at the positives from the game. They got a point, and Hank was ridiculous. He looks well rested after the Olympics, which we will need to make the playoffs.

Jokinen Nets Two, Finns Win Bronze

Fresh off their embarrassing 6-1 loss in the semi finals to Team USA, Team Finland rebounded nicely in the bronze medal game last night, defeating Team Slovakia to win the Bronze medal. The Finns showed some tremendous poise, netting four goals in the third period to erase a 3-1 deficit to win 5-3.

The comeback was led by Rangers center Olli Jokinen, who scored two goals two minutes apart. These goals tied the game, and then gave the Finns the lead for good. Valterri Filpulla Valtteri Filppula added an empty netter to seal the deal for the Finns.

Rangers forward Marian Gaborik, who suffered a lower body injury in the semi finals game, scored a goal for the Slovaks.

Team USA faces off against Team Canada for the gold today at 3pm.

Status Quo

During last night’s 4-2 loss against the Penguins, our beloved Blueshirts simply looked overwhelmed. The fact is, they can’t skate with the Pens, score with the Pens, or play defense with the Pens. Well, these are your 2009-2010 New York Rangers: inconsistent, lacking offense, and unable to compete against the elite. You know what, I’m fine with this. Sure, if they make the playoffs, they are one-and-done, but there are plenty of positives to look forward to.

This team has two superstars in Henrik Lundqvist and Marian Gaborik that will provide steady primary scoring and stellar netminding for years to come. The Rangers have a young defensive core in Marc Staal and Michael Del Zotto, with Dan Girardi and Matt Gilroy filling out the young blue line. They have a young core of forwards in Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan and Artem Anisimov, of which big things are expected of the latter. They have pest-extraordinaire Sean Avery, who quieted critics (including myself) with his selfless play and leadership that none thought possible.

The Rangers have scoring help on the way in Evgeny Grachev and Derek Stepan. Further down the road there are Ethan Werek and Chris Kreider. They have more defensive help coming from Bobby Sanguinetti. Further down the road, they have Ryan McDonagh, who will fill that gaping hole of physical, stay at home defenseman.

The present may be bleak, but the future is bright. Remember, the Rangers are rebuilding, and doing so in New York, without tanking a season, and without missing the playoffs. Appreciate this team for what it is, and expect great things in the near future.

Well That Was Just Awful

I stopped watching the Ranger game when it was 5-0. I guess I’m a glutton for punishment. There was no effort, no desire, and no will to win against a team that is fighting the Rangers for a playoff spot. This prompted a rather blunt comment from Sean Avery, who hit the nail on the head:

“You can say it’s a lack of preparation, but that’s BS; it’s a lack of competitiveness,” Sean Avery, perhaps the Blueshirts’ best player, told The Post. “We do not play hard enough. I don’t have the explanation for it. I don’t know if it’s us not holding each other accountable, or what, but it’s a total lack of respect for our fans and the organization. It’s a joke.”

After scoring 14 goals in five periods, the Rangers have been shutout in their previous two games. The three games before, they scored just 1 goal. In seven games, the Rangers have been shutout a whopping FOUR times. That’s unacceptable, no matter how putrid the offense is. Even the Minnesota Wild haven’t gone through a stretch like that.

The Rangers are simply not a consistent enough team to be a true playoff contender.

Give Girardi a Break

Thursday night’s game was an utter embarrassment for the Rangers. They didn’t show up, they forgot how to plya hockey, and worst of all, they let Marian Gaborik take a beating from caveman Dan Carcillo. This topic has been beaten to death, but I didn’t have time to write something yesterday, so you all are going to have to deal with one more post on this.

Much was made over Dan Girardi’s lack of effort in standing up for Gaborik as he took a beating. Yes, the proper play was to take the third man in penalty, get a game misconduct, and protect Gaborik. But give the kid a break. Girardi did not want to put the Rangers down an additional man, and play the remainder of the game with just five defensemen, in a 1-0 game that has serious playoff implications. It was a split second decision.

The next time the Rangers face the Flyers is on March 14, a game that I will be attending. You can bet your house that the Rangers will not forget what happened on Tursday night. There will be retribution, and I guarantee you will see Donald Brashear in the lineup that night.

For now, the Rangers need to focus on their poor effort during the game. They just flat out did not show up. Tonight is another important game with playoff implications against Montreal, who have not forgotten the 6-2 drubbing last week (another game I attended). You can expect them to come out with a much different game plan, one that will counter the relentless forecheck that caused so many turnovers that game. Tonight’s game is a must win.

Holy Rout Batman!

The Rangers did what we thought to be impossible this season, they scored eight goals last night. The two amazing things here: 1) the goals were scored by eight different players, and 2) none of those eight players were Marian Gaborik. Sure, he had four assists, but when the Rangers score eight, you expect Gaborik to have at least five. I think the Rangers secondary scoring has finally emerged. In a game where both Aaron Voros and Christopher Higgins score, you know the game was lopsided.

Kudos to Aaron Voros, who not only has earned his playing time, has done the most he can with it. He plays hard, he goes to the dirty areas, and he was rewarded last night with much-deserved powerplay time and a goal. Five minutes later, he got dropped by Ryan Malone. I guess he didn’t like that Voros scored his first goal in 417 days against them, or that it was his first of the season, or that it was 7-2 at that point. Take your pick.

How about that top line? Two goals and six assists combined between Brandon Dubinsky (Gordie Howe hat trick, +3), Vinny Prospal (1G, 1A, +3) and Marian Gaborik (4A, +3).

The powerplay woke up, going two for four. The penalty kill was strong again, killing off four of five penalties. The Rangers could do no wrong last night. Even in face-offs, where they trailed by as many as 14 going into the third period, wound up being 34-26 in favor of the Lightning. The Rangers didn’t play perfect hockey, but it damn near perfect, and have outscored the opposition 14-4 in the past two games, and 14-2 in the past five periods.

The Rangers have a tough task ahead of them on Thursday, when they face the surging Flyers. The Flyers sit last in the Atlantic, but 9th in the playoff picture. That’s right, the Atlantic Division is that strong. More on that later. For now, sit back, relax, and watch highlights of the past two games.

Notes From Last Night

I was at last night’s game, but arrived late because I was watching the Jets game nearby. Just a few things I noticed from last night’s game:

• Wade Redden fought?
• That was a hell of an offensive explosion in the last 40 minutes of the game. I wonder what Torts said to the team.
• Did Wade Redden really fight?
• Ryan Callahan is here to stay. This kid may not be a point-per-game guy, but I’ll take 40 points a year with the way he plays the game. He will be the captain of this team when Drury leaves.
• Did Wade Redden actually win a fight?
• Last night’s game was as scrappy as they come. It looked like there was a lot of bad blood between these two teams. I can’t wait until they play each other again.
• Did Wade Redden really get a cheer from the crowd for his fight?
• What a stupid penalty by Avery that led to the Gionta goal. Stupid stupid penalty. They need to stop doing that.
• I can now say I witnessed a Wade Redden fight.
• Let’s hope this six-goal outburst wasn’t an illusion. The last time the Rangers had an outburst like this (seven in a row against Columbus), they lost the next three by a combined score of 18-6.

Wade Redden won a fight!

Update 11:35am: Here’s the Redden fight:

One Hundred Forty Five Minutes

The last time the Rangers scored a goal was 37 seconds into the third period against Boston 3 games ago. All in all, that is 145 minutes straight of scoreless hockey for the New York Rangers. It seems a lot worse than it actually is though. They played a solid third period against Boston and the best game of the year against the Devils. Last night though was a clunker. It was a trap game, and the Rangers couldn’t muster any quality chances on net against a rookie goalie.

The Rangers are going to have games like last night. It happens. It was the first time they lost a game in regulation since the Flyers game. That’s still a good streak, and it has vaulted the Rangers from out of the playoffs to the #6 seed. With back to back games against St. Louis and Montreal, it is essential that the Rangers take last night’s game as a bump in the road, and collect at least three points out of four.

Last night stunk, but no team wins them all.

Johnson Impressed

With the demotion of former backup Steve Valliquette, the Rangers had a revolving door of backups, with every Hartford goalie getting the call at one point to back up Henrik Lundqvist, stay a week, then get sent back down to get some playing time. Chad Johnson got the start last night, and it was the first time a backup started a game in months.

Johnson not only impressed, but was stellar in his NHL starting debut. He shook off a shaky two periods against Philly, and really showed why he was the most impressive goalie not named Lundqvist in training camp. He was cool, calm, and collected in the face of a myriad of difficult shots. He stopped 31 of 33 shots, with a handful requiring acrobatics that are worthy of Lundqvist status.

Nueve-Dos will be seeing more action if he continues this type of play. That can only be a good thing for the Rangers, as it will give Lundqvist, who has played 70+ games in every year except his first, a much needed break. Maybe it will help him be fresher for the playoffs, should the Rangers qualify. The Rangers may have struck gold here with Johnson, as he appears to be a very capable backup. Should he develop into more than a backup, well that’s a solid trade chip for them as well. And to think, all it cost them was a fifth round pick.