Outside of Richards, Gaborik and Callahan, the Rangers either have lots of grinders or players who haven't tapped into their offensive games yet.
I think Dubi, Ansi and Step are definatly more skilled then say bobby butler, greening and foligno who are our regular top 6 guys. Have they found their game yet this series? no. But they are for sure offensivly skilled and besides spezza, turris gonchar and karlsson our whole team is grinders.
Anyone else sick and tired of seeing the same BS breakout play when the Rangers are on the Powerplay? It's SO damn predictable!!!
1. Stralman gets the puck behind the net.
2. Del Zotto picks up "speed" and picks up the puck from Stralman
3. Del Zotto skates (not so swiftly) the puck up the middle
4. Richards falls back 10 feet behind Del Zotto
5. Del Zotto drops the puck to Richards
6. Richards carries the puck straight up the center and gets shut down by the D.
This may have worked twice...but DAMMIT they need to stop.
Get the puck in the zone. Big body in front of the net. Get the puck to the point, make 1 pass. RIP IT. Rebound? Put it in.
Am I the only one seeing this?
No. I thought the same. DZ skates to red line and drops it 20ft behind him is WTF in its own right. To let Richards pick it up and get surrounded by 4 guys at the blue line just made me want to punch a baby. To do it 10 times in a game is just when I start to laugh.
Quote:
Originally Posted by caribouPINE
Guys comeeeeee on! As a Leafs fan living in Ottawa what you Rangers are putting me through is brutal.
I dont know. Were you freaking out after Vancouver's game 1 win, with the blown late lead? I wasnt. The Rangers dominated that game from start to near finish.
These two OT losses are disconcerting, because in both of them, the Rangers blew a lead and were scored on at the opening of OT.
The manner in which the Rangers are losing, and the way they are not dictating the play, is why people are really freaking out. If the Rangers were playing sound, coherent hockey and losing because of opposing goaltending, it would be easier to stomach.
The sad fact is that the Rangers have not had a dominating performance in a playoff game since the Atlanta series. Fans have every right to be frustrated, especially when they're the favorites.
I still think they win the series, but they do not look like a Cup contender at all. They're luck the field after Ottawa is pretty weak.
Have not freaked out about a loss in a long time. The only ones that get me are the ones that eliminate us.
My experience here tells me that no matter how they lose a good amount of people freak out. About one in twenty people will understand that sometimes you lose.
The other nineteen will have excuses that can include, poor coaching, bad luck, bad performances by a scapegoat or two, bad refs, dirty other team etc.,
Almost no one understands that sometimes the other team won because they deserved it.
The sad part is, there are so many players on this team who just haven't stepped it up, and if they were playing near at least half of their capabilities, the Rangers would have won this series already.
The sad part is, there are so many players on this team who just haven't stepped it up, and if they were playing near at least half of their capabilities, the Rangers would have won this series already.
If I need to go down the list, I will.
How's this for starters:
Stepan
Dubinsky
Del Zotto
Anisimov
Gaborik
Stepan has been far and away the most invisible and biggest disappointment thus far. For a player who has put up close to 100 points his first 2 regular seasons, this is his 2nd straight pathetic playoffs performance. I'm not sure about him anymore going forward.
Dubinsky is another story; he's never been the brightest bulb in the box with his mindless decisions on the ice but he always worked hard defensively and on puck possession. I'm not sure if he'll ever return to the 20/30 guy he was 2 years ago.
Anisimov to me is just yet another in a long line of Russian enigmas.
He has size, ability and is defensively aware but I don't see his ceiling as all that high.
Del Zotto had a wonderful regular season and is invaluable offensively to the Rangers. However, he still makes lousy decisions in the defensive zone and he needs to improve a lot if he ever is going to be an effective point man on the power play.
Gaborik is what he is; a gifted goal scorer who played all 82 games but he is unable to create for himself, is a lousy puck handler and has a tendency to disappear when the checking gets tight and the play gets more physical in the playoffs.
How's this for starters:
Stepan
Dubinsky
Del Zotto
Anisimov
Gaborik
Stepan has been far and away the most invisible and biggest disappointment thus far. For a player who has put up close to 100 points his first 2 regular seasons, this is his 2nd straight pathetic playoffs performance. I'm not sure about him anymore going forward.
Dubinsky is another story; he's never been the brightest bulb in the box with his mindless decisions on the ice but he always worked hard defensively and on puck possession. I'm not sure if he'll ever return to the 20/30 guy he was 2 years ago.
Anisimov to me is just yet another in a long line of Russian enigmas.
He has size, ability and is defensively aware but I don't see his ceiling as all that high.
Del Zotto had a wonderful regular season and is invaluable offensively to the Rangers. However, he still makes lousy decisions in the defensive zone and he needs to improve a lot if he ever is going to be an effective point man on the power play.
Gaborik is what he is; a gifted goal scorer who played all 82 games but he is unable to create for himself, is a lousy puck handler and has a tendency to disappear when the checking gets tight and the play gets more physical in the playoffs.
Thoughts? Did I leave anyone else out?
I pretty much agree with all of this. I think Dubi and AA will be gone in the summer. Stepan will probably get a pass because he's younger but showing improvement next year is critical for him. MDZ will stay because he is our only true puckmoving dman. Gaborik won't be resigned when his contract ends.
I think the problem with Del Zoto on the PP is that he is more in the mold of a Thomas Kaberle. Granted his decision making needs improvement but that will come in time. The real problem is he doesn't have a trigger man on the point to play with. So it limits his options. There is no booming shot from up high so enemy Pker's can cheat by blocking the middle of the ice. They don't have to pressure our pointmen.
Del Zotto is not a versatile PP QB. He doesn't have a scary shot. But not all PP QBs need that necessarily.
This team desperately needs a trigger man from the point.
I pretty much agree with all of this. I think Dubi and AA will be gone in the summer. Stepan will probably get a pass because he's younger but showing improvement next year is critical for him. MDZ will stay because he is our only true puckmoving dman. Gaborik won't be resigned when his contract ends.
To be fair, its not really Gab's fault. He is a transitional player stuck on a forechecking team.
Torts expects him to grind along the boards(many nights he does just that). But that is not the player he is.
I have said before, I don't know if he fits the style that we play. Especially in the playoffs.
I think the problem with Del Zoto on the PP is that he is more in the mold of a Thomas Kaberle. Granted his decision making needs improvement but that will come in time. The real problem is he doesn't have a trigger man on the point to play with. So it limits his options. There is no booming shot from up high so enemy Pker's can cheat by blocking the middle of the ice. They don't have to pressure our pointmen.
Del Zotto is not a versatile PP QB. He doesn't have a scary shot. But not all PP QBs need that necessarily.
This team desperately needs a trigger man from the point.
Even though I don't expect much from him offensively, Prust has been a disappointment in terms of his defensive play and lack of discipline. It seems like he takes a bad penalty in almost every game and he's been making these very risky passes that result in turnovers. He's also had issues with clearing the puck. He just needs to keep it simple and play disciplined hockey.
This whole sit on a 2 goal lead and try to ride it to victory mentality is not gonna get us to the promised land. A two goal lead simply isn't good enough; we have to keep attacking. 2 goals of support means Lundqvist can only give up 1. If Lundqvist gives up 2, the best thing that can happen is we go to OT (which is really seemingly the worst thing for us). There is no waiting it out and looking for a SO win or a loser point. This is the playoffs and the only way to win is to score. If Torts thinks 2 goals of support is good enough he's asking way too much out of Henrik. I don't care who your goalie is, asking him to win with 2 goals isn't gonna get you far in the playoffs. We need to play a more aggressive game and balance ourselves between strong defensive play and actually attacking on offense. We didn't attack on offense; we sat back and let Ottawa come over and over again and gambled on the fact that we'd be able to hold them. We didn't and we lost. We can't just bet on being able to "hold" the other team every game. We have to go out and attack them.
Also, there's the possibility that if we keep attacking, instead of collapsing back and trying to just hold on to the lead, we spend more time in Ottawa's zone instead of our own and they don't even get that 2nd/3rd goal. I understand our defense is great and clamping down on leads has worked for us most of the season but the opponents are going to be pressing that much harder now and there's no SO/loser point for us to fall back on. We have to win the games outright. Allowing Ottawa to spend that much time in our zone, whether we're blocking tons of shots or not, is a bad game plan. Puck has to spend time in the other end. Lots more of it.
Even though I don't expect much from him offensively, Prust has been a disappointment in terms of his defensive play and lack of discipline. It seems like he takes a bad penalty in almost every game and he's been making these very risky passes that result in turnovers. He's also had issues with clearing the puck. He just needs to keep it simple and play disciplined hockey.
Yeah his passing decisions are godawful. Much of it has to do with him getting third line minutes lately.
He is trying to create offense when he shouldn't be in a position to worry about it.
Both Prust/Boyle are both 4th line players being used as 3rd line(sometimes second/first line).
This whole sit on a 2 goal lead and try to ride it to victory mentality is not gonna get us to the promised land. A two goal lead simply isn't good enough; we have to keep attacking. 2 goals of support means Lundqvist can only give up 1. If Lundqvist gives up 2, the best thing that can happen is we go to OT (which is really seemingly the worst thing for us). There is no waiting it out and looking for a SO win or a loser point. This is the playoffs and the only way to win is to score. If Torts thinks 2 goals of support is good enough he's asking way too much out of Henrik. I don't care who your goalie is, asking him to win with 2 goals isn't gonna get you far in the playoffs. We need to play a more aggressive game and balance ourselves between strong defensive play and actually attacking on offense. We didn't attack on offense; we sat back and let Ottawa come over and over again and gambled on the fact that we'd be able to hold them. We didn't and we lost. We can't just bet on being able to "hold" the other team every game. We have to go out and attack them.
Also, there's the possibility that if we keep attacking, instead of collapsing back and trying to just hold on to the lead, we spend more time in Ottawa's zone instead of our own and they don't even get that 2nd/3rd goal. I understand our defense is great and clamping down on leads has worked for us most of the season but the opponents are going to be pressing that much harder now and there's no SO/loser point for us to fall back on. We have to win the games outright. Allowing Ottawa to spend that much time in our zone, whether we're blocking tons of shots or not, is a bad game plan. Puck has to spend time in the other end. Lots more of it.
Honestly, I don't think its going to change. Torts is EXTREMELY stubborn, and doesn't seem to want to make adjustments. He doesn't believe his team can carry the offensive play(hence the post game comments of "I thought they played well").
I do not expect it to change at all. Remember, he got out coached by Bruce Boudreau.
Anyone else sick and tired of seeing the same BS breakout play when the Rangers are on the Powerplay? It's SO damn predictable!!!
1. Stralman gets the puck behind the net.
2. Del Zotto picks up "speed" and picks up the puck from Stralman
3. Del Zotto skates (not so swiftly) the puck up the middle
4. Richards falls back 10 feet behind Del Zotto
5. Del Zotto drops the puck to Richards
6. Richards carries the puck straight up the center and gets shut down by the D.
This may have worked twice...but DAMMIT they need to stop.
Get the puck in the zone. Big body in front of the net. Get the puck to the point, make 1 pass. RIP IT. Rebound? Put it in.
Am I the only one seeing this?
You can set your watch by Richards deciding to skate straight into the defense on the powerplay.
This whole sit on a 2 goal lead and try to ride it to victory mentality is not gonna get us to the promised land. A two goal lead simply isn't good enough; we have to keep attacking. 2 goals of support means Lundqvist can only give up 1. If Lundqvist gives up 2, the best thing that can happen is we go to OT (which is really seemingly the worst thing for us). There is no waiting it out and looking for a SO win or a loser point. This is the playoffs and the only way to win is to score. If Torts thinks 2 goals of support is good enough he's asking way too much out of Henrik. I don't care who your goalie is, asking him to win with 2 goals isn't gonna get you far in the playoffs. We need to play a more aggressive game and balance ourselves between strong defensive play and actually attacking on offense. We didn't attack on offense; we sat back and let Ottawa come over and over again and gambled on the fact that we'd be able to hold them. We didn't and we lost. We can't just bet on being able to "hold" the other team every game. We have to go out and attack them.
Also, there's the possibility that if we keep attacking, instead of collapsing back and trying to just hold on to the lead, we spend more time in Ottawa's zone instead of our own and they don't even get that 2nd/3rd goal. I understand our defense is great and clamping down on leads has worked for us most of the season but the opponents are going to be pressing that much harder now and there's no SO/loser point for us to fall back on. We have to win the games outright. Allowing Ottawa to spend that much time in our zone, whether we're blocking tons of shots or not, is a bad game plan. Puck has to spend time in the other end. Lots more of it.
Torts has this team playing a defensive minded system exactly how they played it in the regular season. This system had a lot of success in making this team have the best record in the East. It helped Hank to probably get his coveted Vezina stats this year. Why not go with what got you this far? The series is not over.
How's this for starters:
Stepan
Dubinsky
Del Zotto
Anisimov
Gaborik
Stepan has been far and away the most invisible and biggest disappointment thus far. For a player who has put up close to 100 points his first 2 regular seasons, this is his 2nd straight pathetic playoffs performance. I'm not sure about him anymore going forward.
Dubinsky is another story; he's never been the brightest bulb in the box with his mindless decisions on the ice but he always worked hard defensively and on puck possession. I'm not sure if he'll ever return to the 20/30 guy he was 2 years ago.
Anisimov to me is just yet another in a long line of Russian enigmas.
He has size, ability and is defensively aware but I don't see his ceiling as all that high.
Del Zotto had a wonderful regular season and is invaluable offensively to the Rangers. However, he still makes lousy decisions in the defensive zone and he needs to improve a lot if he ever is going to be an effective point man on the power play.
Gaborik is what he is; a gifted goal scorer who played all 82 games but he is unable to create for himself, is a lousy puck handler and has a tendency to disappear when the checking gets tight and the play gets more physical in the playoffs.
Thoughts? Did I leave anyone else out?
Richards. Been invisible on the scoresheet aside from game 1 and his defensive play leaves a bit to be desired. From a guy a who won a Conn Smythe, and wears an A, I expect A LOT more than this.
Richards. Been invisible on the scoresheet aside from game 1 and his defensive play leaves a bit to be desired. From a guy a who won a Conn Smythe, and wears an A, I expect A LOT more than this.
Richards has 3 points in 4 games. Not too invisible to me.
