It All Comes Down to This....Game 7

What started out as a series that looked like it could be over quick has turned into a barn burner. The Washington Capitals trounced the Rangers at MSG to force a decisive Game 7 at the Verizon Center in Washington DC tonight. 

 There is not much that can be said about what the Rangers need to do in Game 7. Win is the simple answer and they must do it by any means necessary. They need to look at games 1 and 2 and use those as models for success against this Washington team. John Tortorella will be back behind the bench after being suspended for one game for an altercation with a fan. Blair Betts is out of the remainder of the playoffs after getting hit hard by Donald Brashear, who was given a six game suspension.

 The Rangers know what they need to do and how they need to do it. Fans of the Rangers know what needs to be done. Its Game 7....

Game 6

 Game 5 was one that the New York Rangers want to completely forget. A complete and utter breakdown in every facet of the game occurred as the Rangers lost 4-0. The Capitals showed how dangerous they can be when not pressured and not played well. 

 John Tortorella has been suspended for one game after an altercation with a fan so Jim Schoenfeld will serve as head coach with some coaches from the Hartford Wolf Pack coming up to assist him. 

 The Rangers know how important this game is. Their two game lead has been cut to one again and they know what is on the line. They will have the crowd behind them and will be ready to go.  In a nut shell...this IS Game 7 for the New York Rangers. 

Game 5

 The New York Rangers have a chance to finish off their first round series tonight when they visit the Verizon Center in Washington DC to face off against the Caps. However, the Capitals will not go down easy.

 Last season they were down 3-1 to the Philadelphia Flyers and were able to bring it to overtime in Game 7 before their run was halted by the Flyers. There is no doubt that they can do it once again. For the Rangers to win, a couple of things will have to happen:

1. Henrik Lundqvist will have to continue his stellar goaltending.

2. The Rangers need to have more scoring on the board. Simeon Varlamov has played well so far this series. The Rangers need to make life much more difficult for him. 

3. Stay out of the box

4. Sean Avery needs to play a smarter game. He was playing well until the two very bad penalties in Game 4 which almost cost the Rangers the game and the series lead. Avery needs to replicate his play from the last game of the regular season against Philadelphia where he got under the skin of the Flyers simply because of his play and not his mouth.

5. The Rangers need to be physical and take away the time and space of Washington's players. There were times where the Capitals would skate in over the blueline unopposed. The defense needs to be more assertive on the defensive side of things.

6. The power play needs to click. If the Rangers want this game, they may need at least one power play goal...special teams is huge in the playoffs. The PK needs to continue to be strong as well. 

7. Stay out of the box.

8. Last but not least, do not treat this game as a chance to eliminate an opponent but rather an opponent is about to eliminate you. Washington will be pulling out all the stops and the Rangers need to be diligent and pay attention to detail. Make crisp passes and put pucks on net when you get a good opportunity. Defensive positioning will be key to making life hard for Washington and it must continue. The veterans on the team need to be calm and collected and make the younger players feel the same way. 

There isn't much else to say about this game. It will be by no means easy to oust the Caps. All the stats of this series point to the away team having an advantage but that doesn't matter now. Come out strong and just win is what the Rangers should be thinking. 

Game 4

After getting shut out in Game 3, the pressure has been exponentially increased. The Rangers have brought it to Game 4, up in the series 2-1. Their poor play on Monday night was a huge let down after coming back from DC up 2-0. 

 Tortorella mentioned that the momentum is with Washington now and they certainly deserve it after making the Rangers look awful the other night. Simeon Varlamov shut the Ranger offense down and Alexander Semin led the Capitals' offense. 

 What needs to be done tonight by the Blueshirts is simple: win. They need to win this game in any way possible. Allowing the Caps to tie this series going back to Washington would be a disastrous scenario after a great start. The Rangers were not happy with their effort on Monday and will certainly look to get right back out there and show that Game 3 was just a fluke and that the real Ranger team is the one that played in Games 1 and 2. 

 They will need to use the crowd energy but effectively. Getting overzealous can lead to bad penalties and against a very good power play like Washington's, you cannot afford that. Just play hard and go back to the things you did in the first two games and this game is very winnable.

 Ranger fans are sweating right now and for good reason. It could all come down to this game. 

Game 2...

Game 2 is in just over an hour on NBC. The New York Rangers will be looking for a 2-0 lead coming back to New York. I am personally happy that the Rangers took one in Washington but taking both would be fantastic as well. The Rangers will be ready to go for this one. A couple of key points:

1. Stay out of the box. Don't take unnecessary penalties. With referees calling the weirdest things it is hard to do that but it needs to be less than Game 1.

2. The power play needs to be consistent and be a plus for the Rangers. Hopefully today it can do that.

3. Henrik Lundqvist needs to be Henrik Lundqvist.

4. Chris Drury will be a game time decision again. Hopefully if he plays he will provide a spark to get the Rangers going and maybe be the Captain Clutch that the Rangers will need if they want to go deep in the playoffs.

5. Pepper Jose Theodore. He showed himself as a weakness in the first game. The Rangers need to exploit this again in Game 2. 

6. Ryan Callahan will have to continue his great play of late. If he could hit the back of the net instead of the post at least once today, that would be helpful.

7. Did I mention stay out of the box?

There are more storylines and points that go into this game but I am keeping it simple like John Tortorella. This is huge. The Capitals are too good of a team to be comfortable with even up one game. New York has to come out and play hard, physical, and smart. 

Rangers take Game 1

 For anyone who watched Game 1 of the series between the New York Rangers and the Washington Capitals saw a couple of things happen that many did not expect. 

1. The Rangers some how managed to win the game after being dominated for most of the first period. At one point, they were being outshot 12-2 with Alexander Ovechkin tallying his fair share of those shots. 

2. Henrik Lundqvist stood on his head for most of the game doing his job in keeping the Rangers in the game while they attempted to solve the offensive attack of the Washington Capitals. Lundqvist's stellar play allowed the Rangers to stay calm, even against the high powered Washington power play. 

3. Jose Theodore showed why he may be the weak link for the Washington Capitals in this series, looking shaky throughout as he had trouble with his positioning and rebound control.

4. The Ranger power play may be finding its stride with two power play goals.

5. Ryan Callahan is beginning to become one of the hardest working players on the Rangers and one of the most important.

6. The officiating of the NHL in the playoffs did not disappoint as bad calls were made and blatant penalties were missed on both teams. The hope that it gets better is slim to none.

John Tortorella is a big piece to the success of the New York Rangers and his mentality of going after the Washington Capitals has worked for Game 1. The fact the Rangers took a game on the road is huge as it takes away home ice advantage from the Capitals. The Verizon Center is loud and the fans of Washington are always behind their team. Coming back to Madison Square Garden up 2-0 in the series would be an unbelievable result but a guaranteed split coming back to New York is an excellent result for the Rangers. But knowing Tortorella and the rest of the Ranger fan base, coming back up 2-0 would be bitter sweet. 

Rangers Vs Capitals in First Round

 If you haven't heard the news, the New York Rangers will be going up against the Washington Capitals in the first round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The series will start on Wednesday at the Verizon Center.

 The offensive fire power of the Washington Capitals is the main concern for the Rangers in this series. Names like Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Niklas Backstrom, and Mike Green highlight the offensive attack of the Caps. Even as you dig deeper you find more players with plenty of offensive skill like Eric Fehr, Sergei Fedorov, Michael Nylander, and Brooks Laich. This team can put up goals with the best of them and it certainly will be a huge challenge for the defense and Henrik Lundqvist to shut them down, especially with the Rangers' scoring woes this season. 

 The one place where the Rangers might be able to exploit a weakness is in the goaltending of the Caps. Jose Theodore has been known to lose confidence at points and be very ineffective in net, case in point when the Rangers went up 4-0 against Washington earlier this season. Also case in point of the Capitals' offense when they came back and won 5-4. 

 But goaltending has been key for teams to win championships and certainly Lundqvist will need to be stellar. King Henrik's tendency to stay deep in his net will have to be worked out since it is when he does this that he gets beaten all too often. Even with an inch of space, someone like Mike Green or Alexander Semin will find it and snipe the puck into the back of the net. 

 It all starts on Wednesday and the Rangers will need to tighten the jock straps and get ready for a tough series. Washington is not an easy opponent but the road to the Stanley Cup is never an easy one traveled. Might as well start with difficult opponents early.