Blog Archives
Rangers aim to get back on track with important game against the Panthers
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
After a disappointing California road trip that exposed many of the team’s flaws, the Rangers (40-24-8) enter the home stretch with just 10 games remaining, playing three of the next four games at MSG. They start tonight against the Florida Panthers (40-23-9), who sit in first place in the Atlantic Division.
In their last game out, Henrik Lundqvist kept his team in the game for a long time despite being completely outplayed. The Sharks totaled 52 shots on goal, two times as many shots as the Rangers had, and scored four times. That put the Rangers at 3-4-2 in the last nine games.
And while the Rangers are significantly cooling down, other teams are starting to heat up. The playoff picture in the Metropolitan is very tight. The Rangers currently sit in third place, tied with the Penguins in games played, wins and points. But Pittsburgh have won six straight games and eight of the last 10. The Blueshirts are three points ahead of the Islanders for the first wild card spot, but the Isles have two games in hand. And the Red Wings trail the Rangers by five points with no games in hand for the last Wild Card spot. Read the rest of this entry
Enough with the optimism, the Rangers are not well prepared for the playoffs
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
For the most part, I may be one of the most optimistic Ranger fans out there. But this season has tested my patience, and yesterday’s pathetic performance against the San Jose Sharks was the tipping point.
The Rangers gave up 52 shots against the Sharks, with 47 of them coming at Henrik Lundqvist in 49 minutes. They had almost no extended periods of pressure or possession. They had half of the amount of shots on goal that the Sharks had, and the team finished as a -21 in Corsi For.
After this game, the Rangers are now 3-5-1 in their last nine games, and their last 10 games won’t be a walk in the park. They still have to take on the Penguins, the Islanders, the Bruins, the Panthers and the Lightning. At the rate they’re playing now, there’s a chance that Pittsburgh and the Islanders, both of which have at least one game in hand, could surpass the Rangers and put them in a wild card spot. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers embarrassed by San Jose in final game of road trip; Time for a reality check
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
After faltering late against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday, the Rangers (40-23-8) played one of their worst games of the season, getting completely and utterly dominated by the hottest team in the NHL, the San Jose Sharks (39-25-6). New York closed out the road trip with a 4-1 loss at the SAP Center.
Almost everything about this game was terrible. The puck movement from the defense was awful, with the tangent of Girardi and Staal playing decidedly bad tonight. They allowed 52 shots on net. FIFTY TWO! They only had 26 shots on net. There were potentially two extended offensive zone shifts for the Rangers in the entire game. Only the fourth line finished positive in possession, and the team was collectively a -21 Corsi For. Nothing positive came from this game, and the Rangers limped through this road trip with a 1-1-1 record. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers close out Cali road trip against the San Jose Sharks
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Following a disappointing loss at the hands of the LA Kings, blowing another third period lead, the Rangers (40-23-8) will finish off their three game road trip against the San Jose Sharks (39-25-6) at the SAP Center.
On Thursday, the Rangers took a 3-1 lead into the third period against the Los Angeles Kings. One of the goals looked as if there could have been goaltender interference (but the NHL still doesn’t have a standard for it), and the other goal came from Anze Kopitar with less than five minutes to play. In overtime, Kopitar scored the game winner, and the Rangers threw away a win.
If you told me before the road trip started that the Rangers would get three out of four points against the Ducks and Kings, I would have been thrilled. But it’s the way in which they lost the point that frustrates me. This team is fragile and there’s no other way of saying it. They’re mentally fragile and often fall apart in adversity. They have given up 15 goals that have tied the game or given the other team the lead with five minutes or less to play in the game. And they’ve been playing horribly lately, generating no possession, unable to transition or carry the puck through the neutral zone, and they’ve been getting heavily outshot. Anyone who isn’t worried about this team, should be. Read the rest of this entry
NHL expansion looms; Having fun with a hypothetical expansion draft this summer
John Dundon
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
This past summer talks between the National Hockey League and potential expansion franchises in either Las Vegas or Quebec City (or both) had heated up significantly. For expansion to occur it would mean that an expansion draft would have to take place for the first time since 2000. It has been reported that the league is likely to announce plans for expansion as early as June of this year, before the NHL entry draft.
TSN’s Darren Dreger has reported that if an expansion draft were to take place, each team would have the right to protect several key players of their choosing. Dreger tweeted Wednesday that teams would be given the option of protecting either: A) three defensemen, seven forwards and one goalie OR B) eight skaters and one goalie. There are a lot of smaller details that have not yet been nailed down by the league, but this would likely be the main framework of an expansion draft.
While there are a lot of areas lacking clarity, the league has begun notifying teams on the potential ideas for the draft itself. It is expected that if there is a one team expansion, each team will lose one player. In the event of a two team expansion, each team loses two. It sounds like something out of a video game. It has also been speculated that players with no-move clauses will NOT be eligible for the potential drafters. The feeling among teams is that one expansion bid will be accepted by the Board of Governors and Las Vegas will be the next NHL city. Read the rest of this entry
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