I apologize for the lack of posting this weekend. (You can see the comment thread in the last post; I think that sums it up pretty nicely). With that said, here we go...
I picked the Capitals to win the series in six because I did not think the Rangers, minus Hank and a few exceptions, had the determination, skill, where-with-all, or any combination of those three, to get it done when it counted. I said they were a team that spent almost all season struggling to score and struggling on the powerplay and that I didn't believe that would change in the playoffs. I thought Washington was vulnerable, really, on goaltending only, and that they were loaded with too much fire power for the Rangers to contend with.
Fast forward two games into the series. The Rangers have not played spectacular by any means, but they have won - on the road - the first two games and hold a 2-0 lead coming back to New York. Ovechin and the big guns have not scored a ton of goals, in fact, they've scored none. The series had already taken a baffling turn.
I predicted/alluded/pondered how a Game 3 goalie decision from Washington would make or break their playoff season. Not because Theodore could not have come back in and rebounded, not because the Capitals could not have woken up and therefore made their own goalie a non-factor in the series, but because I believe in momentum. Boudreau made the right call, for his team, in my mind, and stuck with Varlamov. The young 20-year old shutout a non-existent Ranger offense.
Game 4 provided the long awaited and anticipated collapse of Sean Avery. And let me get this straight right off the bat. I've defended and stood by Sean Avery, believed he is a legitimate hockey player and can be an effective contibutor to this league. I've said it over, and over, and over again and I still believe it. Game 4 provided a collapse. I have not seen him, until this year, collapse into undiscplined and unacceptable play. (Remember, I was not a fan or an observer of him in LA or Detroit). This was my first foray into the potentially desctructive Sean Avery. And yet - AND YET - Sean Avery, still, to me, is anything but - destructive. Others have alluded to it, so I am saying nothing new, but I feel that Avery was put in a corner here. He came back to the league and immediately - game one - was called for a marginal penalty. It continued. It was allowed to continue. Avery was attacked without punishment, without any thought or consideration for the desire and want for a fair and even playing field. And he finally snapped. I can't agree with what he did. While I feel two of his four penalties in game 3 were of the this-is-crap variety, I know that the two he took in game four were undisciplined and unacceptable. And you cannot have that happen, no matter how many liberties have been taken on you. The fact that those liberties were allowed to be taken, over and over and over - that is a bigger disgrace than anything Sean Avery has ever done. And that disgusts me. And that is one of the growing numbers of reasons why this league, at present, cannot be taken seriously.
In game 5, John Tortorella was faced with a decision - bench Avery or trust that he will stand back and behave? He benched Avery. A decision I do not agree with and I do not think anyone did agree with - well, out of the fans of New York or the Avery supporters that is. I'm sure many were calling for his head and I know many would like nothing better than to see him out of the league forever. I cannot, cannot for the life of me, think of a way to express just how hypocritical and horrible that attitude is, so I will leave it at the fact that I do not agree with them and I do not agree with Tortorella's decision. He left an important game - but not a decisive game - in the hands of a lifeless and withdrawn group of half-players, the same group I've tried hard to wrap my head, let alone my heart, around all season. I saw enough to know I had seen too much. There was no way, no way!, they were winning that game. Think what you want. The message had been sent, and it was the wrong message. Avery's mistakes, his penalties, his errors in judgement were just that, but they did not and have not cost the Rangers a game. The Rangers won on Wednesday by playing together in spite of the rest of it. That was their "big picture." On Friday, without their spirits, spark, enthusiasm, and the guy who you can't argue wants to Be a Ranger!, the team fell, lifeless and undisciplined to the embarrassing end. The decison wasn't really to play him or not to play him. It was whether or not to trust that a team with Avery stood a better chance than a team without Avery.
And Tortorella made the wrong decision.
At that moment, or in the moments following, the series became a circus, if it was not already one. Given a suspension for an altercation with a fan, Tortorella was benched for game 6. I, being at the viewing party, did not hear commentary on this instance, and did not see it for what it was. I found everything out on Saturday. At which point, I shook my head, watched the Flyers/Penguins game, and tried to forget about everything Rangers. Not to be dramatic, but it seemed like just a bad dream I wanted to wake up from, and just one more bad moment in a season of bad moments.
Avery came back for Game 6, and Jim Schoenfeld took the bench. I questioned before the game, during the game, and am still questioning now, hours after the game, whether or not it was too little, too late.
Will Tortorella benching Avery cost the Rangers the series?
Or will the same problems that haunted the Rangers all season cost the Rangers the series?
I don't know. We won't ever know. Heck, the series isn't even over yet, so none of us, any of us, will know anything until Tuesday night.
But did it have to come to this? A game seven? I think of how shocked and in awe I was with the Rangers coming back to the Garden up 2-0. And I watched how the field evened a little, but how the Rangers til held a big enough lead to have not just one, but two, and consequently, three, chances to close out the series. And I said, I'd take it, sure. Who coming into this series would have thought the Rangers would have been up, and would even have a chance. I didn't. Again, I didn't for the reasons I mentioned in the start of this, what I am sure at this moment is a very long, blog entry. But...I started somewhere to believe they could do it. I really did. And that feeling I had was crushed on Friday night.
And those questions I have about what has caused this potential demise - well, they'll never be answered. How can you know what caused the game 5 defeat? How can you know whether or not they would have won had they had Avery in the lineup?
I hate that I'll never know the answer. But I hate even more that it is a question at all.
**Side notes: I am reading the blog entries - Ranger Rants, Blue Notes, Rangers Report and hearing all this stuff. My thoughts are as follows:
If Shaone Morrisonn did in fact bite Brandon Dubinsky, I find that loathsome. I cannot believe that this series, this series I thought the Capitals would dominate on talent and skill alone, has come to this. I can't even believe what I am hearing and reading.
Donald Brashear's non-called penalty on Blair Betts was equally loathsome. He got hit by Callahan and turned and attacked the first guy he saw. My mind screamed Simon/Hollweg. I watched Betts crumple to the ice, and I realized, again , what a big joke this league appears to be at times. At moments like this where guys that run their mouths are punished and guys that legitimately do things so potentially hurtful get nothing but a slap on the wrist and free reign to go do it again and again. I don't like that part of the game that I love.
I hate that this and Tortorella's incident with the fans in game five - that thos are the things I will think of when the series is over - no matter who does indeed win. Not Ovechkin's game one effort sans goal. Not Simeon Varlamov's rookie initiation. Not Hank's dominance to keep this team in the series. Unfortunately it wil be about bottle throwing, name calling, head shots and biting. Seriously, read that last sentence and tell me it doesn't remind you of wrestling for tv entertainment.
Lastly, Jim Schoenfeld, a guy I really do like for his spunk and his honesty, said something I think deserves repeating, whether looking at this series or at this season and a quote I will undoubtably use when the season has come to its final end for New York - either Tuesday night or, hopefully, weeks down the line. He said:
“Big offensive guys have not gotten it going,” said Schoenfeld, without naming names, but the list could include Nik Zherdev, Nik Antropov and Markus Nalsund, with three shots between them. “What happens is part of their job falls on someone else, kid s like Callahan, Dubinsky, Staal and Girardi. There’s so much we have to do defensively because the other guys aren’t doing their job offensively.”
This, from day one, has been the story of this team. It is just interesting, baffling, and amusing, that it took the guy doing the press conference only because he was replacing the head coach (the 2nd head coach) of the season to finally say what we all have been feeling all along. We will never know what this team was capable of, because we have rarely if ever seen the full sum of the parts. We have guys like Hank, Callahan and Staal, to name my favorite three, that have - from the beginning of the season - been tasked with doing more than their fair share, trying to do everything, because not everyone on this team has showed up together on any given night. And that doesn't work. It may work for a while, but it ultimately doesn't ever work.
(courtesy Blue Notes)
Showing posts with label 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs Round One. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs Round One. Show all posts
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Game 3 Goalie Decisions: 2007 Versus 2009. . .
I will often think back to the Rangers opening round series in the 2007 playoffs versus Atlanta and wonder what, if anything, would have changed if the Thrashers had made a different goalie decision in Game 3 than the one they ended up making. I thought about it a few times leading up to tonight's game 3 at the Garden. Different opponent, somewhat similar circumstances.
If you don't remember, Game 1 in Atlanta was the Sean Avery instigator affair that ended in Ilya Kovalchuk chasing - literally chasing - Sean Avery around the ice and getting ejected. Kari Lehtonen played a less than crisp game in the Atlanta loss.
For Game 2 in Atlanta, Bob Hartley went with veteran Johan Hedberg and it was a very close one goal game, the deciding goal coming off an odd bank play by Avery in fact.
When down 0-2 heading into the Garden, Hartley had a choice to make. He could go back to his regular guy in Lehtonen, or he can stick with his very steady "backup" who played a close, one goal game.
He chose to go back to Lehtonen.
The Rangers won Game 3, 7-0.
They went on to win the series in four.
Jump ahead to 2009. The Rangers and Capitals played a closer game than did the Thrashers and Rangers in 2009. Avery's affects were perhaps more understated. But Jose Theodore was not sharp. He, while not the only one at fault, shouldered much of the blame for yeilding four goals on 21 shots.
Game 2 in Washington saw Bruce Boudreau go to an untested rookie goalie in Simeon Varlamov. (Granted, it was the rookie replacing the "veteran" in this case, but if you continue to follow me...). Varlamov plays very well and lets in only one goal. Another one goal margin. Another solid goalie performance.
When down 0-2 heading into the Garden, Boudreau had a choice to make. He could go back to Jose, his veteran guy whose been in the playoffs before, or he can stick with this young kid that stepped up and played a close, 1-0 game.
He chose to stick with Varlamov.
The Capitals won Game 3, 4-0.
The series - well, the series is still TBD.
Does this goalie decision prove to be THE decision off this playoff series? It is really too early to tell. But it's interesting to me. Interesting because there are so many details that I've forgotten about certain years and certain playoff series. And yet I remember the 2007 opening round like yesterday, thinking how much I really respect and like Bob Hartley, but how I think he got it wrong that day in Game 3. And how I wonder if that one key decision in goal would have made any difference in the outcome.
Other game notes...
Pierre Maguire was on the radio today - either on HTM or Team990; I honestly do not remember - and he spoke about how the Capitals were playing like a bunch of talented individuals and the Rangers were playing like a team. I usually either completely agree with Maguire or completely disagree with him; there is often no in between. Today, I agreed with him.
That struck me if only for the fact that the Rangers, most of this season, were not anything resembling a team, and if they went in the same direction, it was mostly the direction of non-cohesive disillusionment, with a few, well-detailed exceptions.
So, I asked myself, were the Rangers really playing so much more as a team?
Well they were.
Until tonight, that is.
The Capitals and their undisputed leader - Alex Ovechkin - finally seemed to get their heads around the team game. Ovechkin took 13 shots in game one alone and half that in game two, and still couldn't score.
In game three, he realized he didn't need to.
It was enough if he just set up his teammates to score. And he did, to his credit and his team's benefit.
The Capitals looked very much the team tonight. The Rangers did not. Simple as that.
The Rangers were very undisciplined, taking penalty after penalty. And, what's more, they failed to capitalize on the ones the Capitals took. How many of Avery's were deserved, I'd like to take a second look. The punch to the face warranted a rough, and high-sticks are usually high-sticks. I'd like to take another look at the goalie interference - the unofficial Sean Avery penalty - and the hooking before I judge those. Regardless, too much time in the box means that the Rangers lost whatever rhythm they held, for the game's first five minutes.
Game 3 was a very different story, indeed.
As for the goalie decision of 2009, it paid off. Varlamov was not tested a whole lot to start, but he did what he had to do and made 33 saves in earning his first career shutout.
And as for Sean Avery trying to yap at him? Apparently it phased him not at all.
Goalie Decision Game 3, 2009 - score one for Bruce Boudreau.
Looking Ahead:
Hopefully the Rangers loss will let them learn what worked for them, what didn't, and let them move forward with the next goal of winning game four. True, the Capitals will now be even more hungry, and that is a risk you take in letting a team get halfway back in a series. Of course, the best thing would be for them to have won today and really put a reeling Washington on their heals. That didn't happen.
However, one more solid effort at the Garden Wednesday, and they would have the chance to wrap up the series in Washington on Friday.
How they come out and maintain on Wednesday will show us, and them, whether they can compete in this series to win, or whether they will let Washington get in their heads.
I hope, prediction gladly placed aside, it's the former.
If you don't remember, Game 1 in Atlanta was the Sean Avery instigator affair that ended in Ilya Kovalchuk chasing - literally chasing - Sean Avery around the ice and getting ejected. Kari Lehtonen played a less than crisp game in the Atlanta loss.
For Game 2 in Atlanta, Bob Hartley went with veteran Johan Hedberg and it was a very close one goal game, the deciding goal coming off an odd bank play by Avery in fact.
When down 0-2 heading into the Garden, Hartley had a choice to make. He could go back to his regular guy in Lehtonen, or he can stick with his very steady "backup" who played a close, one goal game.
He chose to go back to Lehtonen.
The Rangers won Game 3, 7-0.
They went on to win the series in four.
Jump ahead to 2009. The Rangers and Capitals played a closer game than did the Thrashers and Rangers in 2009. Avery's affects were perhaps more understated. But Jose Theodore was not sharp. He, while not the only one at fault, shouldered much of the blame for yeilding four goals on 21 shots.
Game 2 in Washington saw Bruce Boudreau go to an untested rookie goalie in Simeon Varlamov. (Granted, it was the rookie replacing the "veteran" in this case, but if you continue to follow me...). Varlamov plays very well and lets in only one goal. Another one goal margin. Another solid goalie performance.
When down 0-2 heading into the Garden, Boudreau had a choice to make. He could go back to Jose, his veteran guy whose been in the playoffs before, or he can stick with this young kid that stepped up and played a close, 1-0 game.
He chose to stick with Varlamov.
The Capitals won Game 3, 4-0.
The series - well, the series is still TBD.
Does this goalie decision prove to be THE decision off this playoff series? It is really too early to tell. But it's interesting to me. Interesting because there are so many details that I've forgotten about certain years and certain playoff series. And yet I remember the 2007 opening round like yesterday, thinking how much I really respect and like Bob Hartley, but how I think he got it wrong that day in Game 3. And how I wonder if that one key decision in goal would have made any difference in the outcome.
Other game notes...
Pierre Maguire was on the radio today - either on HTM or Team990; I honestly do not remember - and he spoke about how the Capitals were playing like a bunch of talented individuals and the Rangers were playing like a team. I usually either completely agree with Maguire or completely disagree with him; there is often no in between. Today, I agreed with him.
That struck me if only for the fact that the Rangers, most of this season, were not anything resembling a team, and if they went in the same direction, it was mostly the direction of non-cohesive disillusionment, with a few, well-detailed exceptions.
So, I asked myself, were the Rangers really playing so much more as a team?
Well they were.
Until tonight, that is.
The Capitals and their undisputed leader - Alex Ovechkin - finally seemed to get their heads around the team game. Ovechkin took 13 shots in game one alone and half that in game two, and still couldn't score.
In game three, he realized he didn't need to.
It was enough if he just set up his teammates to score. And he did, to his credit and his team's benefit.
The Capitals looked very much the team tonight. The Rangers did not. Simple as that.
The Rangers were very undisciplined, taking penalty after penalty. And, what's more, they failed to capitalize on the ones the Capitals took. How many of Avery's were deserved, I'd like to take a second look. The punch to the face warranted a rough, and high-sticks are usually high-sticks. I'd like to take another look at the goalie interference - the unofficial Sean Avery penalty - and the hooking before I judge those. Regardless, too much time in the box means that the Rangers lost whatever rhythm they held, for the game's first five minutes.
Game 3 was a very different story, indeed.
As for the goalie decision of 2009, it paid off. Varlamov was not tested a whole lot to start, but he did what he had to do and made 33 saves in earning his first career shutout.
And as for Sean Avery trying to yap at him? Apparently it phased him not at all.
Goalie Decision Game 3, 2009 - score one for Bruce Boudreau.
Looking Ahead:
Hopefully the Rangers loss will let them learn what worked for them, what didn't, and let them move forward with the next goal of winning game four. True, the Capitals will now be even more hungry, and that is a risk you take in letting a team get halfway back in a series. Of course, the best thing would be for them to have won today and really put a reeling Washington on their heals. That didn't happen.
However, one more solid effort at the Garden Wednesday, and they would have the chance to wrap up the series in Washington on Friday.
How they come out and maintain on Wednesday will show us, and them, whether they can compete in this series to win, or whether they will let Washington get in their heads.
I hope, prediction gladly placed aside, it's the former.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Around the League: Thoughts on the Flyers/Pens Series. . .
A few notes from Around the League...
I love for fans who get Versus that they are getting the opportunity to see games they otherwise would not, but damn, I'm getting tired of it. I would love just once to get to see a CBC broadcast of something! I have mostly flicked from game to game on given nights because I haven't been able to tolerate one broadcast all the way through, or because I want to see as much as possible and watching an entire game of one matchup when other games are going on seems greedy. I am not sure which.
Regardless, I found myself watching a lot of the Flyers/Pens game on Friday and the majority of their game today. I felt so badly for Marty Biron on Friday night. He played very well; again, remember, I've been the one saying for years he really can play better than most people give him credit for. The Flyers held a 2-1 lead with the minutes ticking down in the 3rd. A sketchy call against the Flyers when they didn't really hook Jordan Staal, that the announcing team seemed okay with because a bad non-call against the Flyers earlier when Hartnell threw his stick, allowed the Pens to tie the game. It went to OT. Where veteran Mike Knuble and rookie Claude Giroux had brain cramps and took two bad penalties at the same junction. 5 on 3 powerplay, Pens win. I felt for Marty Biron.
Today the game proved two things. A 2-0 lead is not safe against anyone, and certainly not against the Pens. They tied the game 2-2 in 25 seconds over the first and second periods. However, the Flyers scored a few more and held on for a 6-3 win. Two, the Flyers can play with the Penguins. Look the Penguins are loaded and Marc-Andre Fleury can make some marvelous saves, but the Flyers didn't get where they got this year and last without capable players of their own. Anyone on that Flyers team can score; remember, only one team in this league had five 25+ goal scorers and that's Philadelphia.
This series is odd for me to wrap my head around. And not what was on the ice, but why I seemingly am so invested in it. I was mad when the Flyers lost on Friday. I was cheering when they scored today and happy they pulled it out. I think it is, more than likely, more dislike for the Penguins than love for the Flyers. Perhaps I am still not over last year's defeat at their hands. The Devils will always be my most hated divison rival, but the Pens in the last two years have really risen up to take the second spot. The Islanders aren't good enough right now to warrant my attention, and I like how the Rangers match up against the Flyers, so they are not the biggest threat.
Even though I find something very psychologically wrong with my "rooting" for the Flyers, I am. I won't lie; remember the honesty policy here. I'll worry about that next round. For now, I hope it's a nice, long series, and I hope the Flyers prevail.
Elsewhere:
NJ broke a long streak of losing in playoff overtime games to Carolina, winning the first of two down in Raleigh, to take a 2-1 series lead.
Vancouver may just be proving too much to handle for the young Blues, as they go up 3-0 in the series and threaten to close it out next game.
Sharks are down 1-0 in goals in the 2nd of game 2 of this series. I've been complaining a bit that this game was not played last night, on a night when I could feasibly stay up to watch it. A Saturday night 10pm game sounds a lot better to me than a 10pm Sunday night game. Look, I realize they are not scheduling to make me happy here, ;), but it's just disappointing that I'm going to bed having seen hardly any of their series at all.
I love for fans who get Versus that they are getting the opportunity to see games they otherwise would not, but damn, I'm getting tired of it. I would love just once to get to see a CBC broadcast of something! I have mostly flicked from game to game on given nights because I haven't been able to tolerate one broadcast all the way through, or because I want to see as much as possible and watching an entire game of one matchup when other games are going on seems greedy. I am not sure which.
Regardless, I found myself watching a lot of the Flyers/Pens game on Friday and the majority of their game today. I felt so badly for Marty Biron on Friday night. He played very well; again, remember, I've been the one saying for years he really can play better than most people give him credit for. The Flyers held a 2-1 lead with the minutes ticking down in the 3rd. A sketchy call against the Flyers when they didn't really hook Jordan Staal, that the announcing team seemed okay with because a bad non-call against the Flyers earlier when Hartnell threw his stick, allowed the Pens to tie the game. It went to OT. Where veteran Mike Knuble and rookie Claude Giroux had brain cramps and took two bad penalties at the same junction. 5 on 3 powerplay, Pens win. I felt for Marty Biron.
Today the game proved two things. A 2-0 lead is not safe against anyone, and certainly not against the Pens. They tied the game 2-2 in 25 seconds over the first and second periods. However, the Flyers scored a few more and held on for a 6-3 win. Two, the Flyers can play with the Penguins. Look the Penguins are loaded and Marc-Andre Fleury can make some marvelous saves, but the Flyers didn't get where they got this year and last without capable players of their own. Anyone on that Flyers team can score; remember, only one team in this league had five 25+ goal scorers and that's Philadelphia.
This series is odd for me to wrap my head around. And not what was on the ice, but why I seemingly am so invested in it. I was mad when the Flyers lost on Friday. I was cheering when they scored today and happy they pulled it out. I think it is, more than likely, more dislike for the Penguins than love for the Flyers. Perhaps I am still not over last year's defeat at their hands. The Devils will always be my most hated divison rival, but the Pens in the last two years have really risen up to take the second spot. The Islanders aren't good enough right now to warrant my attention, and I like how the Rangers match up against the Flyers, so they are not the biggest threat.
Even though I find something very psychologically wrong with my "rooting" for the Flyers, I am. I won't lie; remember the honesty policy here. I'll worry about that next round. For now, I hope it's a nice, long series, and I hope the Flyers prevail.
Elsewhere:
NJ broke a long streak of losing in playoff overtime games to Carolina, winning the first of two down in Raleigh, to take a 2-1 series lead.
Vancouver may just be proving too much to handle for the young Blues, as they go up 3-0 in the series and threaten to close it out next game.
Sharks are down 1-0 in goals in the 2nd of game 2 of this series. I've been complaining a bit that this game was not played last night, on a night when I could feasibly stay up to watch it. A Saturday night 10pm game sounds a lot better to me than a 10pm Sunday night game. Look, I realize they are not scheduling to make me happy here, ;), but it's just disappointing that I'm going to bed having seen hardly any of their series at all.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Stunned and Baffled . .
So, today I wasn't able to watch the game live. I had to listen to a period in the car and later, much later, come back home to watch the rest of it. I just finished a few minutes ago.
Wow!
!
!
The Rangers are up two games to zero!
!
!
The Rangers won the game 1-0!?
!
!
!
Look, I'm a Rangers fan so I am completely and utterly thrilled this is the case. But if you told me on Wednesday morning that by Saturday evening the Rangers would be up 2-0 on the Capitals and heading back home for game three Monday night in such a good position, I would not have believed you.
Therefore, I'm stunned.
Very, very stunned.
Stunning me even more than the 2-0 series lead is the final score from today. 1-0. I heard the Callahan goal in the car, fist pumped to myself, and fully expected there to be more goals scored. And yet, apparently, there weren't.
That's kind of why I'm baffled.
That the Rangers were able to hold such an offensive team to such perimiter shots. That the Captials never seemed to look composed. That they really, even though they had 35 shots, didn't seem to put the pressure on.
What's more, I'm baffled because Wade Redden appears to be playing defense - for two games in a row now. Michal Rozsival has a pretty good playoff track record with New York, but even he looks more poised.
Guys like Callahan, with a super sharp game today and the game's only goal, don't surprise me. As the guys in broadcast said, this is been what you have been getting from Callahan since game 1. And I love Callahan for it. Marvelous player and very much deserving of getting a big game winning goal for his team.
Hank does not surprise me either. Well, that'd be a lie. He does surprise me from time to time with just how composed he is. He has an insane sense of focus. I've always admired that of him. His knowledge of the game, the way he analyzes in and out of game, what has happened, what needs to be done, and how he gets the job done. Very deserved shutout by him.
Silently - yes rather silently - Sean Avery has done good things. Antropov too. Betts and Sjostrom. Sjostrom, in fact, showed how he takes after the Callahan mold. Blocking shots, chipping away at pucks, getting injured, but coming right back. More players should be like that.
Thankfully for the Rangers, every player today seemed to have that same sense of focus, determination and sacrifice today. Chipping at loose pucks so that Washington couldn't set up. Blocking others so Hank didn't have to. Hitting a Washington player to take him off his path.
Honestly it was as if they all came together today in cohesion, the type of perfect cohesion that has eluded this team seemingly all year. They fought together, played together, and won the game together.
Even if I didn't fully expect it was possible, it was marvelous to see.
Brilliant game plan by New York. If game one was all about being opportunistic and taking momentum away from the Capitals, I'd say game two was all about the smart little hockey plays adding up and stealing confidence from the league's most dominating player.
Even if the Capitals are not playing up to their strengths or their capabilities - and I'd say they are not - the way the Rangers have stayed composed and accomplished their game plan says this team has come miles from where they were a month ago. That team would have found a way to give the confidence and momentum back to Washington.
So far, they've held themselves in check and have been very, very impressive.
Credit John Tortorella, credit Hank Lundqvist, but credit too, every other guy that has chipped in with a little play, a smart pass, a key contribution, all for the common good of the team. Hockey is a game of sacrifice, sacrificing yourself for the good of the taem. The Rangers certainly did that today.
If they were ever going to come together and play as a team - and all season long we've been waiting for it - I'm thankful we are seeing it when the pressure is greatest and the games count for something real.
Monday night at the Garden should be something to see. I truly can't wait.
Wow!
!
!
The Rangers are up two games to zero!
!
!
The Rangers won the game 1-0!?
!
!
!
Look, I'm a Rangers fan so I am completely and utterly thrilled this is the case. But if you told me on Wednesday morning that by Saturday evening the Rangers would be up 2-0 on the Capitals and heading back home for game three Monday night in such a good position, I would not have believed you.
Therefore, I'm stunned.
Very, very stunned.
Stunning me even more than the 2-0 series lead is the final score from today. 1-0. I heard the Callahan goal in the car, fist pumped to myself, and fully expected there to be more goals scored. And yet, apparently, there weren't.
That's kind of why I'm baffled.
That the Rangers were able to hold such an offensive team to such perimiter shots. That the Captials never seemed to look composed. That they really, even though they had 35 shots, didn't seem to put the pressure on.
What's more, I'm baffled because Wade Redden appears to be playing defense - for two games in a row now. Michal Rozsival has a pretty good playoff track record with New York, but even he looks more poised.
Guys like Callahan, with a super sharp game today and the game's only goal, don't surprise me. As the guys in broadcast said, this is been what you have been getting from Callahan since game 1. And I love Callahan for it. Marvelous player and very much deserving of getting a big game winning goal for his team.
Hank does not surprise me either. Well, that'd be a lie. He does surprise me from time to time with just how composed he is. He has an insane sense of focus. I've always admired that of him. His knowledge of the game, the way he analyzes in and out of game, what has happened, what needs to be done, and how he gets the job done. Very deserved shutout by him.
Silently - yes rather silently - Sean Avery has done good things. Antropov too. Betts and Sjostrom. Sjostrom, in fact, showed how he takes after the Callahan mold. Blocking shots, chipping away at pucks, getting injured, but coming right back. More players should be like that.
Thankfully for the Rangers, every player today seemed to have that same sense of focus, determination and sacrifice today. Chipping at loose pucks so that Washington couldn't set up. Blocking others so Hank didn't have to. Hitting a Washington player to take him off his path.
Honestly it was as if they all came together today in cohesion, the type of perfect cohesion that has eluded this team seemingly all year. They fought together, played together, and won the game together.
Even if I didn't fully expect it was possible, it was marvelous to see.
Brilliant game plan by New York. If game one was all about being opportunistic and taking momentum away from the Capitals, I'd say game two was all about the smart little hockey plays adding up and stealing confidence from the league's most dominating player.
Even if the Capitals are not playing up to their strengths or their capabilities - and I'd say they are not - the way the Rangers have stayed composed and accomplished their game plan says this team has come miles from where they were a month ago. That team would have found a way to give the confidence and momentum back to Washington.
So far, they've held themselves in check and have been very, very impressive.
Credit John Tortorella, credit Hank Lundqvist, but credit too, every other guy that has chipped in with a little play, a smart pass, a key contribution, all for the common good of the team. Hockey is a game of sacrifice, sacrificing yourself for the good of the taem. The Rangers certainly did that today.
If they were ever going to come together and play as a team - and all season long we've been waiting for it - I'm thankful we are seeing it when the pressure is greatest and the games count for something real.
Monday night at the Garden should be something to see. I truly can't wait.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Rangers Capitalize Game One. . .
Game One is in the books and the Rangers came up with an important and tone-setting victory, 4-3, over the Capitals at Verizon Center.
It was as entertaining a playoff game as I could have hoped to see. Thundering checks, equipment flying everywhere, and goals - seven of them combined.
The Rangers goals came at key times, two on the powerplay, and the first one not long after the Capitals had scored to tie the game at one. The last, and deciding goal, by Dubinsky, took advantage of a tired Capitals team, worn out from their own powerplay in which they failed to score.
Momentum is funny. The Rangers capitalized when they needed to and stole momentum three times in the game. Once when they tied it at one. Next when they scored the two powerplay goals in the goal-filled second period. And lastly when they scored the final one to take the lead. You can even argue momentum was gained with each great save by Lundqvist, 32 on the night, and with each successful penalty kill the Rangers had.
Any way you slice it, the Rangers needed a big game to prove to themselves that they can win this.
Now, we all know they CAN win this. That doesn't mean they WILL. But they know they are CAPABLE of it. A 4-3 win against the Capitals on a night that Ovechkin had 13 shots, will help breed confidence to that fact.
The Rangers slowed Ovechkin. Again, you can't really stop him. He's going to hit, he's going to shoot, and he, on most nights, is going to score. And he certainly was a difference maker on their team tonight with his energy and drive.
But thanks to the Rangers difference makers - Hank, Callahan, Antropov, Gomez, Dubinsky, etc - it wasn't his difference that mattered in the end.
Of course, to be fair, the other difference maker in the game was Jose Theodore, letting in a few soft goals, and 4 on 21 shots on the night. He proved what many suspected, if the Rangers take the shots, the pucks will go in.
Make no mistake though, the Rangers were not perfect. It was a nice game, a game that almost stunned me a little in the fire and desire the Rangers showed to come back and play hard. But they were very undisciplined. And even though the Capitals didn't blow the Rangers out of the water tonight, giving them tons of powerplay time is never a good idea. Naslund and Girardi both took multiple penalties and that simply cannot happen going forward. Even if you kill them off, the penalty killers are worn out for their next shift and beyond.
But for tonight, let's focus on the positives of a very, very important win for New York. Goal scoring from four different players, a strong penalty kill, plenty of hitting (team combined 35 to the Caps 27), and key plays from key players at key moments.
It won't be easier on Saturday. In fact, if the Caps and Ovechkin are as angry and fired up as I'd expect them to be, the Rangers will have an even harder time of containing them. That's why this game was so important. It gave them a one nothing lead in the series - yes - but it put confidence on the Rangers side as much as it put the Capitals on their heels.
I wasn't sure which Rangers team would show up, but I'll take a few more games from them like the one I saw tonight - gladly.
**Author's Note: Each Rangers goal was pretty in it's own way. Dubinsky's was a sweet move, Gomez's was opportunistic, Naslund's was a nice shot and Antropov's, especially, made me smile. I know everytime a Ranger scores a goal like that - off an inside bar - and "knows" it's in, I remember the classic Tikkanen overtime goal versus Florida, and it's always good feeling.**
Around the League:
New Jersey beat Carolina 4-1 and Pittsburgh beat Philadelphia 4-1 in their openers. I didn't watch more than few minutes of either game, so I really have nothing to say in comment, except of course, one game does not a series make. And of course that goes for every team, every series, every time.
It was as entertaining a playoff game as I could have hoped to see. Thundering checks, equipment flying everywhere, and goals - seven of them combined.
The Rangers goals came at key times, two on the powerplay, and the first one not long after the Capitals had scored to tie the game at one. The last, and deciding goal, by Dubinsky, took advantage of a tired Capitals team, worn out from their own powerplay in which they failed to score.
Momentum is funny. The Rangers capitalized when they needed to and stole momentum three times in the game. Once when they tied it at one. Next when they scored the two powerplay goals in the goal-filled second period. And lastly when they scored the final one to take the lead. You can even argue momentum was gained with each great save by Lundqvist, 32 on the night, and with each successful penalty kill the Rangers had.
Any way you slice it, the Rangers needed a big game to prove to themselves that they can win this.
Now, we all know they CAN win this. That doesn't mean they WILL. But they know they are CAPABLE of it. A 4-3 win against the Capitals on a night that Ovechkin had 13 shots, will help breed confidence to that fact.
The Rangers slowed Ovechkin. Again, you can't really stop him. He's going to hit, he's going to shoot, and he, on most nights, is going to score. And he certainly was a difference maker on their team tonight with his energy and drive.
But thanks to the Rangers difference makers - Hank, Callahan, Antropov, Gomez, Dubinsky, etc - it wasn't his difference that mattered in the end.
Of course, to be fair, the other difference maker in the game was Jose Theodore, letting in a few soft goals, and 4 on 21 shots on the night. He proved what many suspected, if the Rangers take the shots, the pucks will go in.
Make no mistake though, the Rangers were not perfect. It was a nice game, a game that almost stunned me a little in the fire and desire the Rangers showed to come back and play hard. But they were very undisciplined. And even though the Capitals didn't blow the Rangers out of the water tonight, giving them tons of powerplay time is never a good idea. Naslund and Girardi both took multiple penalties and that simply cannot happen going forward. Even if you kill them off, the penalty killers are worn out for their next shift and beyond.
But for tonight, let's focus on the positives of a very, very important win for New York. Goal scoring from four different players, a strong penalty kill, plenty of hitting (team combined 35 to the Caps 27), and key plays from key players at key moments.
It won't be easier on Saturday. In fact, if the Caps and Ovechkin are as angry and fired up as I'd expect them to be, the Rangers will have an even harder time of containing them. That's why this game was so important. It gave them a one nothing lead in the series - yes - but it put confidence on the Rangers side as much as it put the Capitals on their heels.
I wasn't sure which Rangers team would show up, but I'll take a few more games from them like the one I saw tonight - gladly.
**Author's Note: Each Rangers goal was pretty in it's own way. Dubinsky's was a sweet move, Gomez's was opportunistic, Naslund's was a nice shot and Antropov's, especially, made me smile. I know everytime a Ranger scores a goal like that - off an inside bar - and "knows" it's in, I remember the classic Tikkanen overtime goal versus Florida, and it's always good feeling.**
Around the League:
New Jersey beat Carolina 4-1 and Pittsburgh beat Philadelphia 4-1 in their openers. I didn't watch more than few minutes of either game, so I really have nothing to say in comment, except of course, one game does not a series make. And of course that goes for every team, every series, every time.
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