Monthly Archives: April 2016

Bobby Bevilacqua

Photo courtesy of Robert Sabo/New York Daily News

Outside of the Washington Capitals in first place, the Metropolitan Division is up for grabs, and the seeding of the team can still fluctuate and change. A few games ago, it looked like the Rangers would have the second seed locked up. But after two straight losses and late surges from the Penguins and Islanders, that’s not a guarantee anymore.

As it stands, the Rangers have about a 40% chance of finishing second in the division, a 39% chance of finishing third, and a 21% chance of getting the first Wild Card spot. So out of all three of those possibilities, which would be the most advantageous for the Rangers? What would give them the best chance of making another run in the playoffs?

Right off the bat, we can cross off the third place finish in the division. If you’re going to stay in the Metro for the first two rounds of the playoffs, you would like home ice for at least one of those rounds. So a third place finish wouldn’t be preferable. Read the rest of this entry →

Posted in In the Crease

Rangers fail to clinch playoff spot after loss to Carolina

Apr 1

Posted by robertbevilacqua95

Alexandra Russo

Photo courtesy of Getty Images.

The Rangers knew how important a win could be when they took on the Hurricanes, as they would have clinched a playoff berth with a regulation or overtime win. However, they fell short of that goal and lost 4-3 in Eric Staal’s return to Carolina.

This wound up being the first win for the Hurricanes against the Rangers in 10 games, with the Rangers nine game win streak coming to an end. That streak began in April of 2014. New York closed out the season series with a 3-1-0 record against Carolina.

Surprisingly, the Rangers started out slower than expected for a team that was competing for a playoff berth. Henrik Lundqvist came up big in the first five minutes of the game for his team. He went side to side to prevent a goal on a rebound by Brad Malone. Read the rest of this entry →

Posted in Game Recaps