Pens vs. Rangers round 2; Can the East beat the West?
Posted 12:22 PM ET | Comments 9
The Rangers edged the Penguins in a hard defensive battle last night to pull even with the Devils at 93 points and give themselves from breathing room from the surging Capitals.
Chris Drury scored the game winner in overtime on the power play after the the Penguins had tied it with about 10 minutes to go in the 3rd.
The equalizer came after Jagr gathered some steam in the neutral zone and attempted to carry the puck up the boards. Unfortunately for big #68, he put his head down at the wrong moment and was clocked by the physical Brooks Orpik. Brandon Dubinsky decided that he should vacate center ice and issue some sort of verbal warning to Orpik, who snickered back at him as Ryan Malone and Maxim Talbot streaked into the Rangers zone and connected to tie the game at 1.
At that point in the game, Rangers fans sluggishly slouched back in their seats to watch the final minutes of regulation. It seemed inevitable that the Blueshirts would blow this one just like they had against Philadelphia 6 days earlier. After fending off minutes of Pittsburgh pressure, they got to overtime - and to everyone's surprise, a penalty was called after Jagr was mauled by yet another defender. The Rangers would convert on this power play as Drury's blast found the twine through traffic like a seeking missle.
I was at the game, so I didn't get to see any replays (Madison Square Garden is notoriously horrible at giving the fans any insight as to what happened in a big play). However, one thing that I vividly remember from the game was the lack of urgency in Brendan Shanahan's game. I'm not sure when his 'lower body' injury occurred, but Shanny was invisible during the 5 on 5 portions of the game that he played last night. Is age becoming an issue? And furthermore, do you want this guy on your team next year?
I will hold back on criticisms for last night's play, as the team was certainly knocked around quite a bit in Sunday's game and seemed to lack the energy needed to dominate an also-tired Penguins team. 2 points is 2 points, and it's important that the Rangers got them.
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Does the East even have a chance?
Short answer: if the Sharks or Ducks make it throught the West, probably not.
I've been watching the Ducks all season in efforts to try and grasp what this 'formula for success' is that Brian Burke has established. Hard, physical play combined with a brilliant backline and skilled forwards have turned Anaheim from a mediocre team in January to one of the top 3 Cup contenders in the league right now.
The Sharks don't play quite as physical a game (though to call them soft would be very off-base), but they sure are responsible in their own end. When they do make a mistake, Nabokov is almost always there to bail them out. The addition of Brian Campbell and the recent clutch play of Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton has made San Jose a premier offensive threat as well.
None of the teams in the East right now have enough of these things going for them. I have a tough time finding an Eastern conference team that will be able to stand up to the Ducks in a physical 7-game series. And if you can show me a team that can get past Evgeni Nabokov at even-strength and on the power play, I'll show you a Cup winner. Sadly, right now I don't see one.
Chris Drury scored the game winner in overtime on the power play after the the Penguins had tied it with about 10 minutes to go in the 3rd.
The equalizer came after Jagr gathered some steam in the neutral zone and attempted to carry the puck up the boards. Unfortunately for big #68, he put his head down at the wrong moment and was clocked by the physical Brooks Orpik. Brandon Dubinsky decided that he should vacate center ice and issue some sort of verbal warning to Orpik, who snickered back at him as Ryan Malone and Maxim Talbot streaked into the Rangers zone and connected to tie the game at 1.
At that point in the game, Rangers fans sluggishly slouched back in their seats to watch the final minutes of regulation. It seemed inevitable that the Blueshirts would blow this one just like they had against Philadelphia 6 days earlier. After fending off minutes of Pittsburgh pressure, they got to overtime - and to everyone's surprise, a penalty was called after Jagr was mauled by yet another defender. The Rangers would convert on this power play as Drury's blast found the twine through traffic like a seeking missle.
I was at the game, so I didn't get to see any replays (Madison Square Garden is notoriously horrible at giving the fans any insight as to what happened in a big play). However, one thing that I vividly remember from the game was the lack of urgency in Brendan Shanahan's game. I'm not sure when his 'lower body' injury occurred, but Shanny was invisible during the 5 on 5 portions of the game that he played last night. Is age becoming an issue? And furthermore, do you want this guy on your team next year?
I will hold back on criticisms for last night's play, as the team was certainly knocked around quite a bit in Sunday's game and seemed to lack the energy needed to dominate an also-tired Penguins team. 2 points is 2 points, and it's important that the Rangers got them.
----------
Does the East even have a chance?
Short answer: if the Sharks or Ducks make it throught the West, probably not.
I've been watching the Ducks all season in efforts to try and grasp what this 'formula for success' is that Brian Burke has established. Hard, physical play combined with a brilliant backline and skilled forwards have turned Anaheim from a mediocre team in January to one of the top 3 Cup contenders in the league right now.
The Sharks don't play quite as physical a game (though to call them soft would be very off-base), but they sure are responsible in their own end. When they do make a mistake, Nabokov is almost always there to bail them out. The addition of Brian Campbell and the recent clutch play of Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton has made San Jose a premier offensive threat as well.
None of the teams in the East right now have enough of these things going for them. I have a tough time finding an Eastern conference team that will be able to stand up to the Ducks in a physical 7-game series. And if you can show me a team that can get past Evgeni Nabokov at even-strength and on the power play, I'll show you a Cup winner. Sadly, right now I don't see one.
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01 Pens vs. Rangers round 2; Can the East beat the West?
03 Rangers clinch playoff spot; The Mystery that is the Sens
07 Repost: STOP IT WITH THE PREDICTIONS!!!!
24 2nd Round Preview: Montreal vs. Philadelphia
24 2nd Round Preview: Detroit vs. Colorado
25 2nd Round Preview: Pittsburgh vs. New York
03 Rangers clinch playoff spot; The Mystery that is the Sens
07 Repost: STOP IT WITH THE PREDICTIONS!!!!
24 2nd Round Preview: Montreal vs. Philadelphia
24 2nd Round Preview: Detroit vs. Colorado
25 2nd Round Preview: Pittsburgh vs. New York
09 Northeast Division Preview
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31 Rangers get it done again; NYR quick-hits
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31 Rangers get it done again; NYR quick-hits
01 Rangers in Toronto; Live Updates
06 The Devils and Marketing: An Outsider's Look
07 Power Play Responds; Rangers Quick-Hits
06 The Devils and Marketing: An Outsider's Look
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I haven't watched enough Western Conference teams to have a good grasp on all the playoff teams (Hockey Night in Canada obviously only shows Vancouver, Calgary, or Edmonton on the late game). I'll trust you on Anaheim; that seems to be the popular sentiment on them. As for the East, while I don't see anyone playing as physical a game, Montreal is the team I see going to the Cup. Two things bring playoff success: strong goaltending and good special teams. If Price pulls a 1986 Roy, and the PP continues to fire at around 25%, you better not take penalties if you're gonna play them physical. If Pittsburgh's goaltending holds up they will be dangerous too. I don't think anyone else in the East is complete enough to seriously challenge the West. I guess we'll find out.
Watch out for the Round 1 match up between Dallas and Anaheim. Whichever team comes out of Thunderdome alive will be rolling (until they hit SJ in the Western Finals). The Pacific Division is unbelievably tough every year, but this season has been brutal...in the most entertaining way :)
Anyone can take anyone. No one thought Edmonton would make it past Detroit and they played all the way to game 7 against the hottest goalie in the league.
That's the beauty of it Pwoz. Watch out for Edmonton this year too...they skate so well that a team like Detroit may have difficulty with them again.And goalie you're right, the Dallas Anaheim matchup will be exciting - especially in light of the game the other night that went to a shootout.Zubov should be back soon and that will no doubt spark this team back to the level it was playing before the slide.
This is what I love about the 7 game series. Anyone can take anyone. It's almost guaranteed an upset will happen in the first round. I won't write any one team off until the end of the series. As long as I get to watch good hockey I'll be happy.
Good for you, I watch the Rangers whenever they're on the NHL network or Versus. Anyways, I think the East has a chance, as long as they can match the physicality of the West. Take the Edmonton and Carolina series from 06 as an example. Just as long as Tom Renney or which ever head coach emerges from the East pushes their team to pound away, I think we'll get a pretty close series. Aside from that, best of luck to your Rangers and I hope they come out on top from the East.
Oh and Pronger's slap shot can get pass Evgeni when he returns to our line up =)
With all the talk this year, about the West being dominant etc - just watch, the East will win the Cup. In fact, I will go a step further and say it will be a Canadian team to do it. The West is just going to beat itself up before getting to the Cup and there's a lot of skill and offense in the East - watch out...
I really want to see Buffalo make the playoffs. You guys certainly deserve it