The Rangers return to action Thursday against a depleted Ottawa team, who are missing Jason Spezza, Erik Karlsson and Milan Michalek along with a few less critical members of their squad. The Rangers' performance, and the overall game Tuesday was so bad, coach John Tortorella said Thursday morning that he would have asked for his money back if he had been watching it. That sound you hear is the stampede of feet and calls to MSG asking for just that refund based on what Torts said.
I will get into the matchup with Ottawa in a bit, and read a href="
http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Travis-Yost/GAMEDAY-Senators-Host-Rangers-Injury-Updates-Galore/134/49458
">Travis Yost for the Senators' preview, but will comment first on the loss to Montreal.
First, thanks for the 500+ comments and for the classy Montreal fans, who had great interaction and conversation with my usual readers. People like Symba007 and Pie are why I welcome having fans of other teams as part of the comment field because they lend a new perspective and make the site even better.
The Rangers as a whole did not play that badly, they didn't play well either, but it's not as if they had their worst effort of the season. In the past, we have been through the left-wing lock, the neutral zone lock, and as a comment on the blog said, we had the icing strategy Tuesday. Montreal did a great job of clogging up the neutral zone, preventing the Rangers from generating anything, and when the Rangers looked like they might, the Canadiens iced the puck. Montreal was gassed from their win the night before and effectively utilized this strategy to slow down the game. New York didn't take advantage of that approach, failing to win enough face-offs or generate enough traffic and action on Carey Price, which further emboldened Montreal to remain with this strategy. In addition, as Eric Engels wrote, they have 20 players buying in to whatever strategy they utilize, so each of them are on the same page, making it easier to be effective nightly since everyone knows what the other one will be doing.
New York appeared to be in control after they scored on a delayed penalty via a feed from Derek Stepan - what no complaints about him lately? - to Anton Stralman. That lead though was short-lived due to what looked like a blown call by the officials. You are taught to play to and sometimes through the whistle, and yes, MDZ and the rest of the Rangers failed to do so. That said, how in the heck was that not an icing. If the claim is that Del Zotto screened the Canadien preventing from getting to the puck, then that should be an interference call. If not, then there really is no screen and the icing should have been called. I know the official on the far side called it, but MDZ likely did not hear him and even if he did, it still was a lousy call. The second goal by Montreal was due to NY not getting back on the 3-on-2, as Ryan Callahan just missed knocking it away, leaving a pair of Canadiens wide open in front of the net for the easy goal.
Too much indecision and not enough urgency throughout for New York. The execution is lacking, and when that happens, it looks as if the effort is not there. I thought Brad Richards was better, which was one of the few good signs, yet there is still so much more he needs to give and bring nightly. He looked to have a bit more jump but the passing skills he usually has seems to be a tick behind where it should be. I see all the buy out Richards chants are back in full swing, but as has been pointed out before, the amount he would be due and knowledge that it can be done after the 2014 season are reasons why that is not going to happen now. Team speed wasn't expect to be an issue with Rick Nash here, but with him out Tuesday, players like Gaborik and Kreider needed to step up, and other than a few shifts from Kreider, that wasn't the case. In addition, one could argue that lack of team speed has been a major issue to date, which is something none of us expected entering the season. Plus, everyone is so concerned with making the perfect and extra pass, opportunities to shoot, like what Marc Staal had, are squandered. They need to get pucks on the net and create traffic in front, eventually, something will break through, which also to date hasn’t happened consistently enough.
This was a game that the Rangers really missed Brandon Prust. Beyond the assist and the plus-three, the energy he brought was apparent on each shift. We all spoke at the time how we thought the Rangers couldn't give him 2.5 per for four years based on other contracts to be awarded and worries about what would happen to the cap with the CBA. What we found out is that the variance between the addition of either Asham or Halpern coupled with what Prust brought chemistry and energy wise along with his PK skills and the Rangers look to have been dead wrong in not trying to match that deal. Granted, it's one game, but look back in the first 15 games as to where the team has been lifeless and ask yourself would Prust had made a difference? I think the answer is a resounding yes.
Can we get off the Fire Torts and blow up the team soapboxes? I wrote about this after the Pittsburgh
game three weeks ago, and what I wrote then applies now. The team has not consistently played well. Richards has been a disappointment. Gaborik to a certain extent. MDZ is struggling. There is a lack of consistent spread out scoring and yet, the team is still 8-6-1. That's not a great mark by any stretch of the imagination, but there is major room for improvement and growth. I know we all had raised expectations coming off last year that were only enhanced by the addition of Nash. You can take the chemistry excuses and throw them out the window, as 15 games in should be enough time to mesh. I will still use the lack of extended training camp to get the team in Torts shape for the season as an excuse for a bit more, as I think it is a tangible reason for some of the struggles since their style of play requires that kind of effort. While the hits are still up there, at least from what I have seen, they are doing a lousy job blocking shots compared to years past. Maybe they don't want to sell out to do so. Maybe they are waiting for the playoffs to start and will then revert back to form or they are worn down from playing this style the past few seasons, but it just looks as if more shots are getting through, creating rebounds that are not being cleared. I still think that if the offense showed any form of consistency, the reigns would be taken off. But if you struggle to score, that may be why Torts is still using the same systemIn addition, the own zone coverage is still abominable and that has to be cleared up. Factor in all those points and 8-6-1 is probably where they should be. Great, no, fair, yes. Do I still think this is a good team? Yes, I do, so all of those who say maybe they aren't that good, I refuse to believe that right now despite how poorly they have played at times. That last part is the key. They haven't played well, which has been apparent to all of us. What that solution is? I don't know and I think neither does Torts and Sather because revamping this team isn't an option and what minor tweaks would you make besides a right-handed shot on the PP and for the D? Are you trading a Gaborik to get Dan Boyle? Of course not, that would be foolish. So, it may be up to the players to figure this out, and if not, there is still five weeks till the deadline where a trade could be made.
There is no question they miss Nash, but since none of us know how long he will be out or what the injury is, they better get over his absence really quickly. Hopefully it won't be long-term, but if it is, then I could see a deal being made sooner rather than later. On Nash, Downeaster had a great post this AM and Pat Leonard made some similar points on WFAN yesterday, but each of them raise more questions. The league and teams have standardized tests they must administer to any player showing signs of or believed to be concussed. Has that occurred? Why doesn’t the NHL have the rules of disclosure as the NFL and NBA? If it was a groin, wouldn't you have tested it out at the skate Tuesday? In addition, wouldn't you join your teammates in Ottawa rather than staying home and were you not allowed to fly because you have a concussion? Again, the lack of news has made the speculation even more rampant. Until some word comes out, expect the rumor mill to remain in full swing.
Tonight, the Rangers face the Senators for the first time since their Game 7 win a year ago. Just like in last year's series, Craig Anderson is standing on his head and he will likely prove to be a major factor tonight. As noted in the intro, Ottawa is extremely shorthanded tonight but Anderson has kept them in games. Kyle Turris has struggled since ascending to the top center spot while speculation centers on the availability of Daniel Alfredsson if/when Ottawa falls out of contention. In addition, Jakub Silfverberg, who like Kreider, made his North American appearance in last year's playoff series, and who like Kreider, has struggled this season, seems to be showing some signs of life lately. One other item to keep an eye is if there is any extracurricular activity towards Cark Hagelin, whose hit on Alfredsson resulted in a concussion to Alfie last year, and Chris Neil, whose hit on Brian Boyle gave him a concussion in the series.
NEW YORK LINE COMBINATIONS
Hagelin-Stepan-Gaborik
Callahan-Richards-Kreider
Pyatt-Boyle-Miller
Mashinter-Halpern-Asham/Bickel
Girardi-McDonagh
Stralman-Staal
Del Zotto-Gilroy
Lundqvist
OTTAWA LINE COMBINATIONS
Silfverberg-Turris-Alfredsson
Greening-Da Costa-Condra
Dziurzynski-Smith-Neil
Daugavins-Regin-Zibanejad
Gryba-Methot
Wiercioch-Gonchar
Phillips-Benoit
Anderson
After the game, the Rangers get an early chance for revenge as they head up to Montreal for a Saturday night contest. Given how bad Lundqvist has played in the Bell Centre, I wonder if we see Martin Biron get the nod?
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