Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Game 4: Rangers vs. Capitals

OPPONENT: Washington Capitals

SERIES: Wasington leads the series 2-1.

PLAYOFFS LEADING SCORER: Alex Ovechkin (2-2-4)

GOALIE: Michal Neuvirth (1.22 GAA, .950 SV%)

RANGERS LINES:

Vinny Prospal-Brandon Dubinsky-Marian Gaborik;
Ruslan Fedotenko-Artem Anisimov-Derek Stepan;
Sean Avery-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust;
Wojtek Wolski-Erik Christensen-Chris Drury

Marc Staal-Dan Girardi
Ryan McDonagh-Mike Sauer
Bryan McCabe-Matt Gilroy

Henrik Lundqvist
Chad Johnson

Scratched tonight: Derek Boogaard (concussion symptoms), Alex Frolov (knee), Martin Biron (collarbone), Ryan Callahan (ankle), and Steve Eminger (healthy)

STATE OF THE BLUESHIRTS: The Rangers won Game Three, but they are far from back in this series. As important as winning on Sunday was, winning tonight is even more important. A tied series heading back to Washington puts the Caps on their heels. It’s the same lineup tonight as it was on Sunday. Considering Bruce Boudreau’s recent comments, I expect the Garden to be rockin.

CRAZY THOUGHT: Avery gets a Gordie Howe hat trick.

OPPONENT’S BLOG: Capitals Insider

PREDICTION: Rangers 4, Caps 1

The game is at 7pm on MSG, and on 1050AM on your radio.

Brude Boudreau Disses MSG, Calls For Staal Punishment

Bruce Boudreau did nothing to hide his disdain for MSG or the result of Game Three.  In an interview with the Washington Post, Boudreau ripped MSG, saying that the Garden did not live up to the hype:

“Well, the one thing, its reputation is far better than the actual building,” the coach said. “I mean, it’s nothing. The locker rooms are horrible. The benches are horrible. There’s no room for anything. But the reputation of being in Madison Square Garden is what makes it famous. Also, our building’s a lot louder, too. So I mean, they can say what they want, but it’s not that loud in there.”

Boudreau is right about one thing, the visiting locker room in MSG is a mess, and there’s a good reason for that.  It’s the visiting locker room, why make the visitor comfortable?  As for the noise level, that’s just asking for trouble, and it’s simply not true.  The Garden may not carry noise as well as other –newer– arenas, but it is far from a quiet arena.  The Garden is notoriously loud, especially during the National Anthem.

After that, Brian McNally has a few tweets that Boudreau thinks that Marc Staal should be punished for his “dirty hit” on Mike Green:

Bruce Boudreau not happy with the hit on Mike Green yesterday by Marc Staal. “It was a dirty shot. I hope the league looks at it.”

To be honest, I don’t even know what hit he is referring to.  I don’t remember any questionable hits in the game –or in the series– that could have even be called dirty.  Considering Boudreau’s feelings for the officiating of the game, in which there were several questionable calls against the Caps in the second period, and his comments during the game to the NBC broadcast crew, it appears that he is just complaining for complainer’s sake.

Last time I checked, the Caps were still up 2-1 in the series, so why is he complaining so much?  Maybe Boudreau is just angry that the ice cream guy didn’t deliver his Haagan-Dazs to the bench or to the poor visitor’s locker room.  There’s no room for this much complaining in hockey, that’s for sure.

It will be fun to see the fans reaction to this on Wednesday.

Rangers Climb Back in Series With Late 3-2 Win

The New York Rangers returned to Madison Square Garden looking to stake a claim in the quarterfinal series with the Washington Capitals.  Down 0-2 in the series the team needed to hold serve at home this afternoon if they were going to have a viable chance to take the series.  They got just that when Brandon Dubinsky finally made a mark on the proceedings with the game winning goal.  The goal came with just 1:39 left in the game as Dubinsky made a series of moves to step out in front on the short side and the deflected puck got in behind Neuvirth to give the Rangers the win and life in the series. Dubinsky’s fake as if he was going to continue around the net was the key to the play as it froze Hannan, Alzner and Ovechkin and allowed for Dubinsky to step out and have the puck ping-pong into the net.

After playing two subpar games to open the series Dubinsky made two huge plays to help lead his team to this crucial victory.  The Rangers got back to playing to their style and it paid off as all three goals were created from hard work and their resiliency was on full display as well.  The 3-2 victory in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Washington gives the Rangers a level of hope at 2-1 that would not have existed down 3-0.  Now they will be looking to even the series on Wednesday night at MSG.

During the first period the team played their style and set the tone with physical play.  Sean Avery was the kind of spark the team needs him to be during the period and helped to key the offensive chances along with Boyle and Prust.  The problem, like the third period of Game 2, was that the Boyle, Prust, Avery line was the only one really generating any offense and the team still came out with no goals.  The Rangers had a two man advantage for 1:25 late in the period, but another passive power play failed to generate any really good chances with the time.

After another failed power play early in the second the Rangers got on the board first courtesy of a beautiful snipe from Erik Christensen with the man advantage.  The goal came 5:30 into the period and saw Christensen score from a seemingly impossible angle high to the short side.

The Rangers held the lead until Alex Ovehckin tied the score with just 59.2 seconds left in the period.  New York failed to clear the zone and in the scramble play that saw Ovechkin dive to get a call near the point and Staal take out Green in the slot, Arnott would flip a shot at the net which Ovechkin tipped in.

The air came out of MSG following the goal by Ovechkin, but there was hope momentarily when Ruslan Fedotenko appeared to score with 0.1 seconds on the clock to give the Rangers the lead back to end the second.  After review, the puck was ruled to have crossed after 0.00 on the clock, thus making it no goal and a 1-1 hockey game heading to the third.

New York took the lead again 8:01 into the third when Vinny Prospal put home an empty net rebound.  The goal was created by a cycle play from Gaborik, Prospal and Dubinsky that saw Dubinsky feed Staal with a cross ice pass to the point, Staal fired high on Neuvirth and led to the rebound for Prospal.

For the third time in the series, second in the third period, the Rangers could not hold the lead they had gained on the Capitals.  Knuble was the one with the answer this time as he scored a power play goal with 5:12 remaining in regulation.  The play was a combination of brilliance from Washington and defensive breakdowns from the Rangers.  Dubinsky failed to get his stick in the passing lane allowing a cross ice pass from Ovechkin to Backstrom that had the defense scrambling and left Knuble wide open at the top of the crease.  Dan Girardi had a breakdown on the play as well when he over pursed Ovechkin beyond the faceoff dot and being that far out of the play was unable to get back to Knuble.

• This is the version of Dubinsky the Rangers need every game, especially in the absence of Callahan.
• Brian Boyle consistently put himself in the right place to get chances, which is shown through his 9 shots on goal, but now he has to start finishing.

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Game 3: Rangers vs. Capitals

OPPONENT: Washington Capitals

SERIES: Wasington leads the series 2-0.

PLAYOFFS LEADING SCORER: Alex Semin (1-1-2)

GOALIE: Michal Neuvirth (0.43 GAA, .980 SV%)

RANGERS LINES:

Fedotenko-Dubi-Gaborik;

Prospal-Anisimov-Stepan;

Avery-Boyle-Prust;

Wolski-Christensen-Drury

Marc Staal-Dan Girardi
Ryan McDonagh-Mike Sauer
Bryan McCabe-Matt Gilroy

Henrik Lundqvist
Chad Johnson

Scratched tonight: Derek Boogaard (concussion symptoms), Alex Frolov (knee), Martin Biron (collarbone), Ryan Callahan (ankle), Mats Zuccarello (healthy), and Steve Eminger (healthy)

STATE OF THE BLUESHIRTS: Game Two wasn’t the dominating affair that Game One was, but it showed that the Caps are not going to give the Rangers much offensively. Our beloved Blueshirts are going to need to grind it out and generate chances off the cycle, something they haven’t done in the first two games. Game Three is a must win, or this is going to be a short series.

CRAZY THOUGHT: Rangers get two powerplay goals.

OPPONENT’S BLOG: Capitals Insider

PREDICTION: Rangers 3, Caps 2

The game is at 3pm on NBC, and on 1050AM on your radio.

Same Lineup, Possible New Lines For Tomorrow

As per Andrew Gross, John Tortorella is going to roll with the same lineup tomorrow, meaning Sean Avery and Matt Gilroy are going to stay while Mats Zuccarello and Steve Eminger will be the healthy scratches.  This isn’t surprising, as Gilroy has played fairly well, and Avery adds much needed grit to the lineup.  People will point to the four offsides committed by Avery as a reason he should sit, but that’s a part of the game.  It happens.

Tortorella isn’t sure of what the lines and powerplay units will be, and I’ll assume he will shed more light on that tomorrow.  Whatever he does, it better work or this is going to be a short series.

Rangers Really Missing Callahan

While Brandon Dubinsky is playing himself out of numerous dollars so far in this series, it is perhaps Dubinsky’s play (amongst many others, to be fair) that is strengthening Ryan Callahan’s bargaining position come the summer. The Rangers have lacked a consistent forecheck, lacked tenacity and have lacked a player that can combine those aspects with an offensive ability. All of that leads you back to Callahan. No doubt, Callahan’s negotiating team in the summer will be pointing towards the whole vacated by Callahan in this series. While players such as Brandon Prust have done a good job physically and players such as Gaborik are getting chances, no player on the roster – at present – is efficiently combining all those things the way Callahan can.

The Rangers are struggling mightily to score in this series and in Callahan they are missing their spark. They are missing their heart and soul leader and it has maybe shown up more than many fans may have feared. While it was to be expected, Callahan’s absence should not be an excuse as their are numerous veterans on the roster that should have the ability and presence to lead the offense. While it starts with Gaborik; Dubinsky, Anisimov (invisible so far), Wolski, Prospal and even the younger players such as Stepan have failed to make inroads into the Caps zone. The only Rangers forwards to distinguish themselves thus far have been Prust and Boyle – but for their physicality and not their offense.

The Rangers are starring down the barrel of a series sweep. They need to find some offense and they need to do so very quickly, after all you can’t expect Lundqvist to shut out the Caps four times. They need to find some offense and find it through the sources being paid to provide it. A quick series defeat would further expose the over reliance on Callahan in so many areas and will no doubt have his agent rubbing his hands in excited anticipation. Glen Sather won’t be looking forward to that meeting.

Capitals Gain 2-0 Control of Series with 2-0 Win.

The New York Rangers fell behind 2-0 in their first round series against the Washington Capitals following a 2-0 defeat in Game 2.  The effort tonight was better in the first and third period than most of the game on Wednesday, but the problem is that you have to play a full 60 minutes in the playoffs if you actually want to win the games.  There is also that pesky fact of needing to score in order to win.  After generating only one goal and 25 shots in Game 1, the Rangers offense only had 22 shots and could not beat Michal Neuvirth who recorded his first career postseason shutout.  The Rangers have responded well to adversity all season and now that will be tested again as they look to hold home ice and get into the series on Sunday afternoon.  The difference between 2-1 and 3-0 in a series goes without saying and the Rangers will either put their say on this series Sunday afternoon or likely start saying their goodbyes to the 2010-11 year.

The Rangers played a good first period tonight and carried the play for much of the first 20 minutes.  The play was tough and physical, which is exactly the way the Rangers need it to be because it allowed them to establish their forecheck and hold puck possession.  They had their chances to score whether it be Erik Christensen missing from point blank range or Gaborik having a couple of good rushes in rout to his three shot first period.  The power play was still ineffective late in the first and nearly cost the Rangers a goal when Brooks Laich broke down with Mike Knuble, but Knuble fanned on the shot to end the period tied at 0-0.

Following that strong first they played an awful second period.  The Capitals came out early with a raised level and the Rangers had no answer.  Just 2:11 into the period Jason Chimera scored the first on a beautiful passing play that saw the puck move seamlessly from Laich to Johannson and then Chimera.  The key to the play was Laich beating Gilroy behind the net.

Ryan McDonagh took his second penalty of the game just 48 seconds after the Chimera goal.  The call on McDonagh was extremely weak, but that doesn’t matter once the call is made.  Good call or bad it is up to the penalty kill to kill it off and they were unable to do that on this one.  With McDonagh in the box it meant that Matt Gilroy would be on the ice during the kill and as usual the puck finds the guy who probably shouldn’t be out there.  To be fair to Gilroy the play was unlucky, but Mike Green attempted to play the puck towards the net while the Capitals were on the power play, had it deflect off Matt Gilroy and right to Jason Arnott who buried it.  The two goals in 1:53 of action gave any Rangers fan watching the sense that the lead was going to be insurmountable given how the way the offense was going.

The Rangers were useless the rest of the second and other than the Avery, Boyle, Prust line producing chances in the third period no one did anything to threaten Neuvirth.  The fact that Neuvirth only had to make nine saves in the final 40 minutes of action shows you that the Rangers never truly deserved to win the game.

• Avery, Boyle and Prust generated a number of chances in the third period, which gives hope in some sense that they will eventually find the back of the net, but also is a problem when that trio is your best or only threating offensive group.  Avery was good in his 10:22 of ice time, but was not really used significantly until the third period.
• Gaborik was a threat in the first period, but after that he pulled a disappearing act and was not seen from again.  He is paid to score and he was not even a threat once Washington raised their level, which does not bode well for the team if that continues.

Eastern Quarterfinals Game 2: Rangers at Capitals

OPPONENT: Washington Capitals

SERIES: Wasington leads the series 1-0.

PLAYOFFS LEADING SCORER: Alex Semin (1-1-2) 

GOALIE: Michal Neuvirth (0.77 GAA, .960 SV%)

RANGERS LINES:

Vinny Prospal-Erik Christensen-Marian Gaborik
Brandon Dubinsky-Derek Stepan-Ruslan Fedotenko
Wojtek Wolski-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust
Chris Drury-Artem Anisimov-Sean Avery

Marc Staal-Dan Girardi
Ryan McDonagh-Mike Sauer
Bryan McCabe-Matt Gilroy

Henrik Lundqvist
Chad Johnson

Scratched tonight: Derek Boogaard (concussion symptoms), Alex Frolov (knee), Martin Biron (collarbone), Ryan Callahan (ankle), Mats Zuccarello (healthy), and Steve Eminger (healthy)

STATE OF THE BLUESHIRTS: The Rangers were dominated physically in the first game of the series.  That physical domination led to a gassed team in overtime, and the Caps took the game 2-1.  Tonight, the Rangers look to match that physicality by bringing Sean Avery back to the lineup.  The Rangers can ill afford to go to MSG down 0-2, so expect them to come out firing on all cylinders.  This game is a must win, or it can become a very short series.

CRAZY THOUGHT: Lundqvist gets the shutout.

OPPONENT’S BLOG: Capitals Insider

PREDICTION: Rangers 2, Caps 0

The game is at 7:30pm on MSG, and on 1050AM on your radio.

Dubinsky Needs To Step Up

Brandon Dubinsky was the Rangers best forward not named Ryan Callahan this season. Still prone to streakiness the Alaskan still managed to lead the team in scoring, play physical hockey and show a level of leadership that many thought was beyond him. He did all this in a contract year – lucky him. Well, game 1 against the Caps and Dubinsky was awful. He held on to the puck far too long, was ineffective and, much like the rest of the team, lacked a distinct physicality against very motivated Capitals.

Unlike the rest of the team however, Dubinsky is now measured differently. More is expected of him, especially if he wants a fat new contract this summer. Dubinsky needs to step up tonight in game 2 and lead the Rangers offense along with Marian Gaborik. They are both under pressure even if the types of pressure are different. Dubinsky needs to get back to playing his physical, confident brand of hockey and set the tone. When Dubinsky is on his game the Rangers are infinitely more dangerous offensively. Without question, he is needed tonight.

Dubinsky needs to have a good playoffs if he is to get his nice new deal. Glen Sather is a hard negotiator and make no mistake should Dubinsky carry his play from game 1 through the series it will be used against him when it comes to sitting down to discuss the new deal. While the converted winger has had a career regular season offensively (54 points, 24 goals) he has yet to ignite in the off season. In juniors (at Portland) Dubinsky was a point per game player beyond the regular season and in the AHL he was also an impact player. While his numbers are not bad in the NHL beyond April, he will keep being linked to the contract situation that he finds himself approaching. Some fans won’t forget that his last contract situation played out a lot longer than many expected – including his head coach.  Brandon Dubinsky stepped up a level this regular season. Starting tonight another level is needed in the playoffs; for the benefit of both himself and the Rangers. Dubi will be watched closely tonight.

Christensen, Anisimov Switch Spots

As per Andrew Gross, John Tortorella switched up his first and fourth lines, swapping Artem Anisimov and Erik Christensen. Anisimov is now centering the fourth line between Chris Drury and Sean Avery/Mats Zuccarello, and Christensen is centering the first line with Vinny Prospal and Marian Gaborik. When asked about the switch, Torts was very candid, saying that he is not putting Christensen on the first line for his defensive prowess, and that they a unit that will need to generate offense.

The move isn’t unexpected –my feelings about Christensen as a first liner aside– and this line has shown that they can generate offense. The Rangers were simply shut down on Wednesday, and they need to find a way to both break through the Caps defense, and match their physicality. Hopefully this new lineup will generate more offense from the primary scorers.

The other two lines remained intact. The lines we are looking at for tonight’s game:

Vinny Prospal-Erik Christensen-Marian Gaborik
Brandon Dubinsky-Derek Stepan-Ruslan Fedotenko
Wojtek Wolski-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust
Chris Drury-Artem Anisimov-Sean Avery/Mats Zuccarello