New York Rangers

Not going anywhere. (JOHN TLUMACKI/GLOBE STAFF) Chris isn’t available to do the musings today, so you’re stuck with me today. Today is game day, although I sense that many have a feeling of dread today. With the Rangers down 3-0, it’s understandable. Winning this series is unlikely, but it has been done before against these Bruins. That was in 2010 when the Flyers came back from down 3-0 to win the series, but many of the Bruins on that team are still on the current team. It’s not impossible. Of the players still on the roster: Patrice Bergeron, Johnny Boychuk, Zdeno Chara, Andrew Ference, David Krejci, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Adam McQuaid, Daniel Paille, Tuukka Rask, Dennis Seidenberg, Shawn Thornton. That’s 11 skaters, although Krejci was injured for the last four games of that series in 2010. Of course, the Rangers will need to get some sort of steady defense –difficult without Anton Stralman or Marc Staal– and some sort of consistent offense. The Rangers need to put Henrik Lundqvist in a position to win, which they haven’t done yet this series. If Hank gives up two goals, the Rangers can’t win. That seems to be the case, and it really shouldn’t be. Hank’s been fantastic –aside from Game Two– and you sort of feel for the guy. Rant: Why do people think that Hank isn’t a playoff goalie? If he gives up more than two goals in a game, then the team automatically loses because the team can’t score. It’s utterly ridiculous. It’s always people who don’t follow this team too. If you even do a little research you’ll see the Rangers don’t score, and almost all of Hank’s losses are when he gives up 2 –or even worse, 1– goals. Just laziness. Rant #2: Why do people think that all of this is John Tortorella’s fault? A) He doesn’t work on the PP, that’s Mike Sullivan (the next point will cover the anemic powerplay). B) His systems aren’t passive, they are aggressive. There is a big difference between “defense first” and “passive” that many just can’t see. We’ve covered this ad nauseam on this blog. If you want direct links to our posts, ask in the comments. I’m not putting them here. C) He has not lost the locker room. Everyone saying he has is a fan that isn’t in the locker room. Also, everyone thought Joel Quenneville lost the Chicago locker room last season, and look what happened. D) People take exception to his “yelling at the players.” He’s a coach, not your friend (thanks Herb Brooks). There’s a saying in the professional world: “It’s good when you get yelled at, it shows people care. It’s when they stop yelling that you need to take notice. It means they’ve given up.” The powerplay: It’s tough to have a successful powerplay when your PPQB (Brad Richards) forgets how to play hockey. Michael Del Zotto is not ready to take over the pressures yet (he’s just 22, defensemen don’t really get comfortable until they hit that 24-25 year old mark). John Moore has a nice shot, but he’s a rookie. Dan Girardi doesn’t belong on the point. You can make an argument for Ryan McDonagh, and that’s about it. Of course the bigger issue is lack of movement and the relatively static nature of the powerplay. It won’t get Sully fired (he does other things), but they will probably look to hire a powerplay coach in the offseason. The Penguins sure are hitting a stride now. Tomas Vokoun really stabilized them in net. Surprised that San Jose is giving the Kings so many problems. I didn’t expect that, but I still think the Kings repeat this year. How about those Red Wings? Everyone thought the Hawks would steamroll, but the Wings have looked mighty impressive so far. Some non-playoff notes: Alain Vigneault was fired by Vancouver. For those hoping it

It starts with a win. Here's the funny thing about being down 3-0 in a playoff series: The pressure disappears completely from the losing team. There is nothing left for the New York Rangers to lose. The hockey world has left them for dead, the Boston Bruins think Game 4 is a formality and many Rangers fans have already thrown themselves off the cliff rather than watch the Rangers get swept. Look, I know how unlikely it is that any hockey team can come back from being down 3-0. Sometimes playoff games are decided more by luck or a strange bounce than anything else, and generally when you're down 3-0 the bounces aren't going in your direction. And more often than not the losing team is so deflated they don't even show up for Game 4 and get run out of whatever building it is they're in. But the reality of the situation is that a win in Game 4 slowly pushes the pressure back on the Bruins. Now the Bruins absolutely have to win Game 5 because they certainly don't want to come back to Madison Square Garden for Game 6. Maybe the Rangers get an early goal, score on the power play, take a two-goal lead and suddenly the Bruins start realizing that they're going to have to beat the Rangers on Broadway to avoid a Game 7. Maybe the Rangers come out in Game 6 jacked out their minds. There's still nothing left to lose, right? You've already won two games, you're playing at home, the Garden is rocking because no one thought you were going to take the series this far anyway and the bench is thinking the same thing. There's still no pressure on the Rangers, there's a ton of pressure on the Bruins and everyone knows it. And now there's doubt in their room, too. This is a Bruins team that has blown a 3-0 lead before. Most of the current players were on that team. On one hand that's a good thing for Boston because those players have the experience of blowing a 3-0 lead before and are more prepared to deal with that type of adversity as it comes. On the other hand, it has to be running through their minds that they've lost a series like this before and that creeping fear that it's happening again. So say the atmosphere pushes the Rangers over the edge. They win Game 6 and suddenly this series that everyone thought was over, this team that everyone thought was dead, just forced a Game 7 after being down 3-0. Now try to imagine what's going on in that Bruins' locker room before Game 7. Imagine the pressure on Boston, how good the Rangers would have to be feeling, how significantly the momentum of this series has tilted. Maybe the Rangers ride that momentum, the Bruins are shaky, afraid to make mistakes. The Rangers take advantage. Score an early goal, Henrik Lundqvist is Henrik Lundqvist, the Bruins can't score, they're frustrated, they're not playing well and suddenly it's over, the Rangers have completed the comeback. It might be unlikely, but it's not impossible. Either way, a comeback like that starts with a win.

Shane McColgan scores (CHL/WHL Images) The talk about the final round robin game at the 2013 Memorial Cup isn't about the Portland Winterhawk's 4-2 win over the Saskatoon Blades but rather the really suspect hit that Saskatoon's Dalton Thrower hit Portland's Taylor Leier with. Before I go any further I want to make it clear that I do like hard hitting hockey and if you took the time to watch the video before reading then you saw what a really clean hard hit looks like when Saskatoon's Michael Ferland hit Keegan Iverson at the start of the clip. (Sorry I had to remove the clip because it was causing all sorts of conflicts with the blog) That said the biggest problem facing hockey as a whole is going to be hits to the head, yes they aren't supposed to happen but if Thrower and Saskatoon say that there wasn't intent to aim for the head and they will say Leier turned into the check. I say that because as much as I dislike the hit itself that I would be surprised if the NHL Operations department suspends Thrower. I know Portland fans aren't going to like reading this and I don't blame them but if you have a decent sized monitor (mine is a 22 inch) then take the youtube version of this hit, blow it up to full screen then run it using your mouse frame by frame, The hit starts at the :03 second mark and frame by frame slowly you do see Thrower's shoulder not his elbow hitting Leier smack dab in the chin. Should it be a penalty? Yes by all means these are the kind of hits that hockey needs to remove from the game but the thing is that it is in the follow through that makes the hit look really dirty. The follow through has Thrower's leg leave the ice and his elbow swing out wildly which is where anyone watching in real time would believe that Thrower left his feet and use his elbow to hit Leier. The harsh truth is neither happened and that I suspect is part of why neither Jean-Philippe Sylvain from the QMJHL or Reagan Vetter from the WHL (and both linesmen were also WHL officials) didn't call a penalty on the play. Much has been made about the hit and now it will be good to see how exactly the folks from the NHL Operations department rule on this play. But this is the kind of play that all 3 CHL leagues need to take out of the game so there is no misunderstanding in the future. The CHL won't be able to say that Leier didn't suffer a concussion during this play. I watched enough Blade games this year to know that Thrower isn't a dirty player but odds are he will get that label no matter how this incident winds up. Oh yea the game A scoreless first period gave way to Portland getting on the board first when defensemen Derrick Pouliot scored his 2nd of the Memorial Cup after a bad clearing attempt by the Blades wound up on his stick and Pouliot's shot appeared to be deflected by one of the Blades and went in. The even strength goal gave Portland a 1-0 lead at 6:44. Shane McColgan (NYR 2011 5th) would get the goal back when he faked a pass from the corner then using both a screen and a deflection beat Portland goalie Mac Carruth for a power play goal at 11:20 of the 2nd period. It was McColgan's 1st goal of the Memorial Cup while fellow Ranger prospect Josh Nicholls (2013 UFA) would earn a secondary assist on the play. The game would go into the 2nd intermission tied at 2-2 and the Blades were able to stay with the current WHL champions. The 3rd period was a different story as Portland would use their speed and skill to take control of the game starting with Chase De Leo's 2nd goal of the Cup at 4:08 giving Portland a 2-1 lead. Brendan Leipsic would follow with his 1st goal of the Cup at 6:27 to make it 3-1 and Ty Rattie would add his 4th at 10:16 to give Portland a 4-1 lead at 10:16. Josh Nicholls would score his 4th of the Cup to make it 4-2 but it was too late as Portland earning a 4-2 win heads to Friday's semifinals. Saskatoon has to face the London Knights Thursday night in the tiebreaker game to ea

Courtesy of the NYR: NEW YORK RANGERS vs. BOSTON BRUINS 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Eastern Conference Semifinals – Game 4 Thursday, May 23 (7:00 p.m.) – Madison Square Garden BOS leads 3-0 TONIGHT’S GAME: The Rangers will face-off against the Boston Bruins at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m. — TV: CNBC; Radio: ESPN 98.7), in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series. The Blueshirts trail in the series, 3-0, following a 2-1 loss in Game 3 on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. The loss ended New York’s nine-game winning streak at home, dating back to Mar. 24 vs. Washington. The Rangers enter the contest with a 212-232-8 record all-time in 452 playoff contests (119-89-2 at home; 93-143-6 on the road). New York has posted a 40-32 record all-time in Game 4s. ALL-TIME RANGERS PLAYOFF RECORDS: Overall — 212-232-8 Home — 119-89-2 Away — 93-143-6 Goals for — 1,239 Goals against — 1,234 ALL-TIME PLAYOFF RECORDS —RANGERS vs. BRUINS The Rangers and Bruins are meeting in the playoffs for the 10th time overall, and the first time in 40 years. Their last postseason encounter was in the 1973 Quarterfinals, a series won by New York 4-1. Overall, the Blueshirts have a 3-6 playoff series record vs. the Bruins, posting an 18-25-2 mark in 45 postseason contests. RANGERS vs. BRUINS: All-Time (Regular Season): 249-283-97-2 overall (143-119-55-0 at home; 106-164-42-2 on the road) 2012-13: New York was 2-1-0 overall (1-0-0 at home; 1-1-0 on the road). Two of the three contests were decided by one goal, including one game that required overtime and another decided in the shootout. The Blueshirts’ penalty kill was 15-16 (93.8%). Rick Nash led all skaters with three assists, while Henrik Lundqvist was 2-1-0 with a 2.93 GAA and .913 Sv%. The Rangers have won 11 of their last 15 regular season games against the Bruins, including seven of their last nine meetings, and are 22-7-2 against Boston since 2005-06 The Rangers are 12-3-0 in their last 15 regular season games against the Bruins at MSG, dating back to a 3-2 win on Nov. 20, 2005 The Blueshirts are 5-1-0 in their last six regular season games at TD Garden, having out-scored the Bruins, 15-10, over the span Henrik Lundqvist has started in 27 consecutive regular season games against Boston, dating back to Jan. 13, 2007 The Blueshirts have three players with previous playoff experience against the Bruins – Arron Asham (9 GP, 1-2-3), Roman Hamrlik (25 GP, 1-8-9), and Darroll Powe (11 GP, 0-1-1) New York lists no former Bruins on their roster Boston lists three former Rangers on their roster: Jaromir Jagr (2003-04 – 2007-08); Wade Redden (2008-09 – 2009-10); Marc Savard (1997-98 – 1998-99) SPECIAL TEAMS: Power Play: The Rangers did not tally a goal in two power play opportunities (4:00) in Game 3, and are now 2-38 (5.3%) in the playoffs. New York is 0-2 in five-on-three situations (3:17; last – 5/12 vs. WSH), and 0-2 while skating four-on-three (0:23; last – 5/8 vs. WSH). Shorthanded goals allowed (0). Penalty Killing: The Blueshirts did not yield a power play opportunity against in Game 3, marking the second time that has happened in these playoffs. The Rangers are now 17-21 (81.0%) in the playoffs. Shorthanded goals for (0). Four-on-Four: The Blueshirts did not tally/yield a goal in one four-on-four situation (2:00) in Game 3, and are now -1 in five four-on-four situations (10:25) in the playoffs. Four-on-four goals for (0). Four-on-four goals allowed (1): J. Boychuk (5/19 at BOS). QUICK HITS: The Rangers are 4-6 all-time in Game 4 when trailing 3-0 in the series Prior to Game 1, the last time the Rangers and Bruins played an OT game in the playoffs was Mar. 27, 1958 (L, 3-4) Four of the remaining eight teams in the playoffs are Original Six teams, marking the second time this has happened since the NHL adopted the current playoff format in 1994 (2010) All Original Six teams qualified

Tonight's Game The Rangers face-off against the Boston Bruins tonight at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.), in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series. The Blueshirts trail in the series, 3-0, following a 2-1 loss in Game 3 on Tuesday...

oh wait no never mind. Its Miuccia Prada and she runs the famous fashion company Prada. Just thought id try and lighten up the situation with the Rangers being down 3-0 and all. Sorry for reminding you guys. I have to get another 30 words in so im gonna go on a Torts rant. Everyone knows his system and its easy to defend and exploit. Pierre Mcguire even saw it and hes retarded. #BettmansABitch #Literally #FireTorts #HireVigneaul oh wait no never mind. Its Miuccia Prada and she runs the famous fashion company Prada. Just thought id try and lighten up the situation with the Rangers being down 3-0 and all. Sorry for reminding you guys. I have to get another 30 words in so im gonna go on a Torts rant. Everyone knows his system and its easy to defend and exploit. Pierre Mcguire even saw it and hes retarded. #BettmansABitch #Literally #FireTorts #HireVigneaul

Ooops. Sorry, I forgot to post this one earlier. The post Post-practice interview: Ryan McDonagh appeared first on Rangers Report Blog.

The Rangers, who now must win four straight to advance past the Bruins in their Eastern Conference semifinal series, a deficit only three teams have overcome in NHL history, held an optional skate today at their training center. D Anton Stralman, hurt on a heavy second-period check by Bruins LW Milan Lucic - Stralman played just one more shift before missing the third period - was not on the ice and, from the way coach John Tortorella spoke about it, seems doubtful to out for Thursday’s Game 4. If he cannot play, Matt Gilroy or Roman Hamrlik, both were on the ice today and have been skating with the Rangers’ Connecticut (AHL) call-up practice squad, are the candidates to replace him. Of the two, Gilroy is probably the more likely to be inserted into the lineup. Regardless of who goes in, if Stralman is out, it means more minutes for, certainly, Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi and, no doubt, for Michael Del Zotto, Steve Eminger and John Moore. Then again, Marc Staal also skated today and, just perhaps, he goes back in for Stralman. Staal has only played Game 3 against the Capitals since having his vision affected as he was struck by a puck on March 5. “Losing Stralsy is a big blow to us,” Tortorella said. “He puts himself in a situation there where he’s playing in an area to try and make a play and gets hurt. And he’s done that really through the playoffs here. To a defense that’s lacking a little depth right now, it hurts us. Listen, we’re 0-3, there’s no sense of feeling pressure, the players that get to play tomorrow and play more minutes than maybe they’re used to, grab a hold of it and let it happen. Crap, if you lose you’re done. That’s what I’m hoping for and I believe we will get it from some of our guys.” Also on the ice today were Ryane Clowe and Darroll Powe. For Clowe, it was the first time skating with teammates since he went off the ice woozily in Game 5 against the Capitals after playing just 1:55. Clowe played Games 4 and 5 against the Capitals after returning from a suspected concussion. Chris Kreider, who got hit in the forehead by Tyler Seguin’s stick blade, did not skate. It’s unclear whether either Powe or Clowe - more likely Powe - would be available if Kreider can’t play. Powe (and Arron Asham), of course, was a member of the 2010 Flyers, who made the playoffs on the final day, as we remember, beating the Rangers in a shootout in the season-finale at Philadelphia, then beat the Bruins in the conference semifinal after falling behind 3-0 in the series and 3-0 in Game 7. Powe spoke about his recollections of that series and the similarities he sees between those Flyers and these Rangers after practice. Read below for his comments… ====================================================== Follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AGrossRecord Follow the Record Sports Staff at twitter.com/TheRecordSports

Here is John Tortorella’s post-practice press conference, in which he spoke about reaching a new level of effort, about the loss of Anton Stralman, about how the series has gone so far, etc. The post John Tortorella press conference video appeared first on Rangers Report Blog.

The Powe interview has to do with his being part of the 2010 Philly team that came back from 0-3 against Boston to win that playoff series. The post More post-practice interviews: Powe, Zuccarello appeared first on Rangers Report Blog.