39-36-7

For 40 years, Sam Rosen was the voice of the NY Rangers’ color commentary. He had a basketful of curated catchphrases and a never-ending palpable love of the team and the sport of hockey. Unfortunately, the Rangers didn’t send him off with a winning season, but at least the final 2 games against the Florida teams ended it on a high note.

Since the end of the season, Coach Peter Laviolette has been fired (expected) along with an associate coach, and GM Chris Drury got a contract extension. That has not gone over well with the fanbase. It is safe to say that if he doesn’t manage to turn the team around next season, he’s done. He’s got a lot to do. First thing he needs to do is give Will Cuyle a new contract and then find a coach that can get this team moving again. Finding new defensive players is key. I expect the core to largely stay the same. The tide turned against Kreider, but we now know that, along with the back spasms, he was playing with vertigo and an injured hand. That explains his dramatic drop in play and raises another flag against Laviolette; why on earth was he still being played so much, even on the 4th line? A healthy Kreider is still a major asset.

Now we’re in the thick of the playoffs. I think there is a good chance a Canadian team could win it (Toronto). And with how Florida is stuffing Tampa Bay, they are no longer going to be underestimated. There are many terrific series going on, with the Devils being the outlier. With the injuries they had in the regular season, they only held on to have 3 more wins than the Rangers. With even more injuries, they are completely outmatched by Carolina. I don’t see them winning a game. Montreal is competing against Washington, but they just can’t close a game. I also predicted a Kings win over the Oilers, but not a sweep, which looks like it is going to happen.

With two games remaining, the Rangers are the only team with no multi-goal comeback wins.

We’ll take any good news these days. The Rangers played the Panthers last night. Went down 1-0 in the first period, then went down 3-1, and rallied back again to win 5-3. It took 81 wins for a multi-game win, but it’s better than zero! The final game of the season is Thursday vs Tampa Bay.

I wrote this title on March 28th after the Rangers blew a lead to the Ducks and lost in OT. That’s how long I’ve meant to write and haven’t mustered up the will for 2 weeks or so. The reason is that even when the Rangers have won, which has been few and far between, there still isn’t much to praise. They haven’t won more than three games in a row since November, never mounting more than two and almost always going on losing streaks after winning.

It’s been a terrible season from the start, the worst since 2017 when it was so bad the rebuild was announced. I’m not sure if a full rebuild will happen; there aren’t enough resources to do so, but a lot needs to change. I’m not sure if it feels so bad because the season was so bad or if it’s amplified because of the whiplash from finishing first in the league last season.

The problems were never fixed. Terrible defense amplified by out of control turnovers. Slow starts so that the game was frequently turned into a game of catch up. With two games remaining, the Rangers are the only team with no multi-goal comeback wins. The only team highlight is that they have the most short-handed goals.

The collapse of both special teams outweighs that nice stat. The powerplay has disappeared, something like 27th in the league. While the penalty kill remained strong for a while, it has also fallen apart in the last 6 weeks. The amount of penalties they get is a problem that’s been around for years, but the great PK has kept it from being detrimental. Last season, they won many games (many come from behind victories) because of the top 5 special teams. That’s gone, so here is the losing record of a season.

Last season was a special one. Seven players had career seasons. All of them are down about 20 points. Panarin has been the best and Kreider is the worst, down close to 50 points. That’s a massive reduction in team points. Kakko was one of those players. He was traded in December with something like 17 total points. In his first month with Seattle, he scored 16 points. That’s an eyebrow raising stat.

The New York Rangers have had a problem developing young players for decades now. That’s a management issue that should have been addressed ages ago. We have some promising rookies, and it’s vital that they get the game time and guidance to play at the NHL level. Kakko was squandered, and Lafreniere hasn’t improved. Cuyle has had a fantastic sophomore season. Rempe is improving. Edstrom was also making strides, but a serious injury ended his season at 51 games. Berard, Perreault, and Othmann are the future and must be treated as such. Schneider is our most promising defenseman, and I think Jones has potential, but the disrespect for his abilities all season has me thinking he’ll be moved. Miller deserved to be pulled frequently, not him. In fact, K’Andre’s drop in play has been so bad that I don’t think he will be a Ranger next year.

Quite a few players were moved, including Trouba, Lindgren, and Chytil, but not much improved. The biggest asset is the return of JT Miller, who has played well and raised Zibanejad’s game. That was a boon as he was having a terrible season, and he has managed to gain some ground. The players picked up in the trades are all middle-of-the-road in skill. Ditching a few is in the cards.

It’s been so sad to watch for so long that watching games hasn’t been fun. The team’s chemistry is so off that when they score a goal, their celebration is muted. It’s like they expect to lose. The attitude is just bizarre. Is it a player issue or a coaching issue? Both? I guess we’ll find out over the off season. How dramatic the changes will be is entirely up in the air. I wouldn’t be surprised to see GM Chris Drury get the boot along with Coach Laviolette..

I’ve been meaning to get back to this and what do you know, two months blow buy. I wanted to write about the Rangers the most and with each wild week there’s a lot to talk about. I’ll keep it simple as the trade deadline just passed and there’s some considerations that I need to think about first. But, here’s the current record.

31-26-5 (67 points)

That puts them right on the edge of the playoffs. With 20 games left, they could make it. A lot has to go their way. The 5-14 massacre of a record was devastating and still is. They’re playing better since the trades started (with Trouba and Kakko, the list is big now), but the flaws are still there. Too many big players aren’t making big plays. There’s some actual fight in their game now but is it enough? Adversity seemed to scare them half to death and I don’t know if that professional attitude is back yet. They went toe to toe with Washington in the last game and lost in OT. While every win is desperately needed, getting one point against the #2 team in the league is an accomplishment.

But if they do squeak into the playoffs, it’s likely a Carolina or Washington match up. The odds of getting swept are real and I’d rather avoid that. I mean, the number of early goals against us is insulting. Staring up a hill all the time is exhausting.

With a gap of a month between posts, it should be obvious that the Rangers lost to the Panthers. I was going to write a post after the game 6 loss but felt too dejected to do it. Then, it was almost a week before the final round started, and I figured I’d just wait until the end to write my thoughts.

After winning their second game, the Rangers couldn’t get any traction against Florida. It was like they were skating uphill the entire series.

The Panther’s defensive capabilities were simply too much. Faster to the puck, able to see plays develop and interfere to stop them before any offensive pressure could start, it was like Florida had an extra man on the ice. The Rangers were never able to get positioning in the slot, as they were more or less shoved to the outside at every chance. Playing the Panthers’ way meant that they were able to keep control, making their opponent constantly run around while they pivoted and pushed into place. Once the Rangers got tired, the Panthers would score and then rely on the defense to sit on the lead.

Shesterkin did everything he could to keep his team in the lead, but with Panarin and Zibanejad being smothered and Kreider not able to get anything going, the skill offense didn’t contribute. Goodrow and Lafreniere carrying the team for another two wins was never going to happen. All season, the Rangers were a team of opportunity; making a mistake would often mean the Rangers would pounce and make things happen. In the games they won against Florida, the Panthers had made mistakes. They’re so aggressive that they can be exposed in forcing them to turnover for a breakaway, one of Bobrovsky’s few weaknesses. When they don’t make mistakes, the Panthers are the best team in the league.

All of those trends continued in the Finals with the Edmonton Oilers. The Panthers shut out the Oilers 3-0 in the first game, just like they did to the Rangers. Edmonton played better in the next two games but lost those as well. The puck never bounced their way, Florida was faster, their defense nearly flawless, and they kept McDavid, arguably the best player in the league, bottled up so he couldn’t do anything.

And then the fourth game played out. Most thought a sweep was inevitable. The Oilers had made changes though. New strategies that blew the game wide open. 8-1 Oilers. It was unreal. For the first time, it looked like the Panthers didn’t know what was happening around them. The Oilers were flying around, easily challenging or beating the Panthers to the puck. Great passes, pulling the Panthers out of position, intercepting passes that left Bobrovsky all alone on breakaways. The Oilers special teams came alive. In the next game, the score was much closer, but the Oilers were in control for most of the game. Game 6, another clinic by the Oilers. It looked like for possibly the 5th time in the history of the NHL, the Oilers would be the team to reverse sweep the final series to win the Stanley Cup.

The Panthers returned to form in Game 7, winning 2-1. Everything they did wrong in the last 3 games, stopped. Except for the mistake that led to the Oilers only goal on a breakaway (which was scored on the next play after the Panthers took the 1-0 lead.

It turned out to be the best Stanley Cup Final in many years, and the best team in the league got the much deserved win. This marks the 4th team in 7 seasons to win their franchise’s first Championship.

It was a great and fun to watch season for the Rangers though. They set a bunch of records, finished the season first in the league, went undefeated against the Devils, and embarrassed the Capitals in the Playoffs on their way to going deeper into the postseason. Making it to Round 3 while denying Carolina another chance at the Cup is way better than losing to the Devils in Round 1. You gotta take your wins when they happen. The disappointment is still palpable in losing to Florida the way they did, but next season is a chance to address the team’s deficits for another great run for the Cup next season.

Tomorrow is the NHL draft in Las Vegas where the next class of future hockey stars will be called up. It’s not expected for the Rangers to make any major moves here, but free agency starts on Monday and I think we can expect some aggressive changes to the roster to happen in the next few weeks.

Pre-season starts on September 22. With the Playoffs taking two full months to complete, that’s less than three months from now. There is no rest for the weary.

Florida won game 1 in a shutout, 3-0. The score is deceptive as it was mostly a tight, one goal game. Florida was the better team with the Rangers unable to get any traction. It was a game of which whoever made the fewest mistakes would win. When Florida scored first it felt like the Rangers were skating uphill for the rest of the game. The huge error, Igor leaving his net–going far out–he messed up his pass/clearing attempt in a rush because of Florida’s aggressive forecheck. This led to him scrambling back, a weird bouncing shot, and Lafreniere accidentally hitting the puck between Igor’s legs. That was demoralizing, to say the least, and made a comeback in a hard game that much tougher. A quick empty net wrapped that one up.

Game 2 saw the Rangers start the game off right, in total control with increased speed and aggressiveness. The tide turned multiple times throughout the game. They were all over each other for 60 minutes. Play was tight, the hits were high, the shots on goal nearly the same, fierce competition. Of note, Florida scored on the power play for the first time breaking the Rangers’ fantastic penalty kill streak. This one went to overtime where everyone played on edge. With six minutes to go, Goodrow scored the game winner. Raucous applause from the home MSG crowd shook the arena.

Yesterday afternoon was Game 3 in Florida. This was a war of attrition. Florida played like Carolina, shooting at every single glimpse of an opening. By the end, the shot attempts were 108-44 Florida. Florida scored first but the Rangers rallied back. Lafreniere made up for his bungle in game one with a nasty breakaway backhand. Then Goodrow less than 30 seconds later with a Kreider-like deflection. Florida would tie it before the end of the first period.

In the second the Rangers scored two more, again with Lafreniere and Goodrow pulling out the stops, stunting on everyone. Goodrow’s in particular happened because of lazy Florida defense on a power play. And then a third period collapse.

Florida dominated for almost the entire period. It was okay until they scored about 6 minutes in or so. Then it was like the Rangers couldn’t do anything right. A ton of penalties for the night…Florida scored on two of them (Rangers with none but Goodrow’s shorthanded goal cut that red mark in half). Trouba had a terrible game and Miller wasn’t much better. For the last like 6 minutes, I think the Rangers did nothing but try and clear the puck for a line change and Florida would just move back in. Half time the clearing attempts were icings. They barely made it to the end in a tie. Igor did everything humanly possible to keep them alive, it was unreal.

And then the Panthers’ perfect defense stopped for a moment. They made a mistake. About 6 minutes into overtime, they left the center of the ice open and Alex Wennberg standing in front of the net alone. Kakko got the puck back to Lindgren up by the blue line and he let a shot fly. Wennberg deflected it in, top corner, stunning Florida into silence.

It was a grand larceny level of robbery. A miracle win, the stuff of highlight clips and legends. The Rangers managed to claw through the entire game but the odds of that happening again are basically zero. They cannot play that bad again. Igor can’t be relied on having games like that. It isn’t sustainable, his legs are going to get exhausted. The games are fast, the hits are hard and coming more frequently, so the wear and tear is adding up. Vesey has been hurt and is out for at least a week. They need to have another game 2 where they contain Florida better. Patience needs to be focused on. Don’t just turn around and fling out a clearing attempt. They have to at least try to skate it out of their own zone, or at least look where you are clearing so it isn’t intercepted 70% of the time. It’s insane how it seems like a Florida player is always in the way (i.e. in perfect defensive position).

While seeing the goals and assists spread out more is good, Laffy and Goody putting on All-Star effort and results, Zibanejad, Kreider, and Panarin need to become a threat again. They are being way too passive, so few shots on goal. Panarin is being smothered every time he’s out there so credit to Florida on their defense. Their plan is working. When he does get a chance to shoot it always seems like something happens. He completely whiffs a shot or the puck is bouncing all over the place and he can’t get a clean shot off. I’m not sure what’s happening with Kreider, he seems to disappear all the time. Zibanejad is being defended well too but it looks like he’s afraid to shoot. There’s way too much sloppy passing.

The other note is that the power play is completely dead. Those goals have given them the needed buffers in the previous series and it’s detrimental here (it should also be noted that Florida is getting few penalties). Giving up three power play goals makes that stat even worse. Special teams need to practice some new tactics.

Florida is going to be mad as hell tomorrow. It will be another war of attrition.

Rangers lead series 2-1

I knew this series was going to be crazy. These games are all being decided by inches. This afternoon, the Rangers robbed Florida right in front of their face. More tomorrow but I’ll leave this for prosperity:

The series against Carolina was dramatic. After the Rangers won three in a row, all by one goal, Carolina won game 4 with a power play goal. Their first in the series which made it taste that much more bitter. In game 5, the Rangers fell apart in the third period and Carolina ran away with it. It was so bad, flashbacks to last year’s series against the Devils were hard to ignore.

At it looked like game 7 was going to happen when Carolina took a decisive lead in the first period with 2 goals that made the Rangers look like they were sleep walking again. A quick Rangers goal uplifted the tri-state areas’ spirits until everything crashed back down going into the 3rd period down 3–1.

And then the Kriedering (trademark pending ) happened before our eyes. Chris Kreider with the natural hat trick to take the lead. In the span of about 6 minutes, Carolina lost control and never regained it. It was like a fever dream. There’s no way Kreider’s number won’t be lifted to the MSG rafters when he retires. It was that good. Carolina scratched and clawed to tie the game but an empty net by Goodrow sealed the ride to the next round.

The Florida Panthers! Formidable to say the least. Stats-wise, another very close match up…but Florida has greater scoring depth compared to Carolina. Better goaltending too. This will be intense and the greatest challenge by far.

Rangers in 7.

HahahAAHAHahHAHaHahAHaHaha

I’m exhausted.