After waiting four days and seeing six teams start the playoffs yesterday, the Rangers and Flyers meet in the post-season for the first time since 1997. Both teams got off to poor starts, but rebounded to make the playoffs and enter their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal match-up confident they have what it takes to win the Cup. All the rhetoric, hyperbole and written/spoken words (yes, I know, I was guilty of it too and will be guilty of it later in this article) ends at 7 pm tonight when the puck is dropped. This is the best time of year, Playoff Hockey Time. After the changes during the off- and in-season, slow start, hot play in the middle and then down the stretch was just a lead-in to the second season. This is where making or the failure to make the simple play, the dump in and the chase, the dive to keep a puck in or get it out of your zone, the picking up your man in the neutral zone or in your own zone to prevent him from cruising down the slot, can be the difference between winning and losing.
Can you feel it? It’s that tangible feeling that’s a low roar in NY right now, limited to us, the faithful, who follow this team day in and day out, night in and night out, though ironically the weather is more Fall-like than Spring-like, but right now, that pales in comparison to how we feel as the playoffs kick off. That feeling will build if/when (I hope) the Rangers move to the next round. As they hopefully move up the ladder, the bandwagon will get bigger and bigger, until the City feels ready to explode with excitement and anticipation. All that is in the future, the here and now is to worry and take care of the Flyers.
I gave my
behind the numbers article Tuesday, some of which will be referenced, and
my overall Cup predictions . I am sure I could go and on, but what’s the point. We all know that information already, or if now, we will hear it over and over during the series. For this column, I will limit it to the various line combinations with some brief comments after them.
First, some videos to raise the anticipation level a bit more.
Hockey Night in Canada 2014 Playoff Opening Montage
(some unreal pictures and action showing the commitment, heart and will to win it takes to win the Cup)
Heart of A Ranger: 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs - @ajcastigliaa
New York Rangers: Killin It
2014 New York Rangers: Playoff Bound
Rangers:
Forwards:
61 Rick Nash - 21 Derek Stepan - 26 Martin St. Louis
67 Benoit Pouliot - 16 Derick Brassard - 36 Mats Zuccarello
62 Carl Hagelin - 19 Brad Richards - 12 Jesper Fast
22 Brian Boyle - 28 Dominic Moore - 15 Derek Dorsett
Extras: Dan Carcillo (healthy, but could opt in as the series wears on in place of either Fast or Dorsett), JT Miller (same as Carcillo) and Chris Kreider (recovering from left hand injury; still can't stickhandle with that hand and likely out all of this round and part of the next).
(The Rangers offense was pop-gun like to start the season but finished strong, averaging around three goals per game from January 1 on. That said, combinations and personnel shifted a decent amount this year despite AV's view and preference to keep trios together. Part of those changes were due to injuries - as Nash and Kreider missed time - while a good amount lately was in order to try and get St. Louis back to the form he showed most of his career.
What's different than in the past is that New York has three lines that can score, with the second line above actually the true top line. Those three lines now provide the team with scoring depth that was lacking previously. Stepan finished the year red-hot with 22 points his last 23 games while it's been well-documented how much St. Louis has struggled since coming to NY for Ryan Callahan. The absence of Kreider removes a physical presence, who as we saw in his first series against Washington, can put the puck in the net and his speed and size created space for Nash and Stepan, so him missing the series is a big loss. Brassard's tweaked back in reportedly fine, but that will be something to keep an eye on as the series wears on.
I will cover Hagelin and the fourth line below in my unsung heroes section, I think both may fall under that header. The third and fourth line may be tweaked. Coach Alain Vigenault may elect to move D. Moore up to the third line or put either Daniel Carcillo or JT Miller there. If Moore moves up, Fast is scratched, Boyle moves to the middle and Carcillo plays left wing. AV could also just elect to replace Fast with either Carcillo, to give the Rangers more size or Miller, who seems to have taken AV's recent criticism to heart with a strong effort in the minors after his demotion, to provide more skill).
Defense
27 Ryan McDonagh - 5 Dan Girardi
18 Marc Staal - 6 Anton Stralman
17 John Moore - 8 Kevin Klein
Extras: Raphael Diaz (a heck of a lot better than having to dress Roman Hamrlik) and Justin Falk.
(McDonagh has not played since getting injured on April 1. Whether you believe it was a deep bruise, subluxation or separated shoulder, I expect the Flyers to target him often, regardless of what Hartnell said. Girardi, after a horrible start, really turned his season around starting around December and was back to his usual self while contributing at times offensively. Staal really looks like the Staal of all. He finally is healthy and clearly feels that way after we say how he went back at Chris Neil last week. Having him back to that form coupled with Stralman, who has been better lately after that mid-season lull, gives the Rangers a very solid top-four. The question is who gets scratched between Stralman, Diaz and Klein now that McDonagh is back? My view is it will be Diaz which leaves Moore, who really has stepped up his game the past month or so, back with Klein after he saw time with Girardi while McDonagh was out. If there is a "weak-link," it's Klein, though he has been steady since coming over for MDZ and the Rangers could swap him for Diaz to take advantage of the latter's puck-moving skills and ability on the PP. The key will be for the Rangers to withstand the physical pressure the Flyers exert without surrendering too many good chances or penalties).
Goaltending
30 Henrik Lundqvist
33 Cam Talbot
(nothing really to add here. As I wrote in my Behind the Numbers blog, Lundqvist was his Vezina Trophy self down the stretch, going 11-4-1 with a 1.89 GAA and .935 SV% the last 16 games. We know how good he is and how he played in the playoffs. Talbot gives them a solid backup if the worse case scenario - an injury - occurred and he was especially good on the road this season. The Rangers tried to give Hank as much rest as possible this year, but much of that was early in the season and Lundqvist saw much of the action down the stretch. The good news is that he has rest he past week, so he should be fresh for the playoffs).
Flyers
Forwards
19 Scott Hartnell - 28 Claude Giroux - 93 Jakub Voracek
12 Michael Raffl - 10 Brayden Schenn - 17 Wayne Simmonds
24 Matt Read - 14 Sean Couturier - 42 Jason Akeson
36 Zac Rinaldo - 40 Vincent Lecavalier - 18 Adam Hall
Healthy Scratches - Tye McGinn, Jay Rosehill, Chris VandeVelde
(Any conversations on the Flyers begin and end with Giroux. After a slow start, partially due to the surgery on his wrist, Giroux played like the Giroux we all know. While much of the focus is rightly on Giroux, the Flyers had seven players score 20 or more goals, led by Wayne Simmonds, who scored 29. Raffl saw some time on the top line, and after a hot start, hasn't done much lately, but Schenn and Simmonds, as noted just before, provide offense and some grit on that line. Couturier and Read have each had solid seasons, with Couturier showing the ability to score while playing excellent defensive hockey while Akeeson is a late addition to the third line. It's odd to see Lecavalier on the fourth line, especially centering Rinaldo and Hall, but he brings some offensive to what is usually a grinder line, but look for Hall to take the key draws, seeing how good he has been in the faceoff dot).
Defense
44 Kimmo Timonen - 5 Braydon Coburn
8 Nicklas Grossmann - 32 Mark Streit
47 Andrew MacDonald - 22 Luke Schenn
Healthy Scratches - Erik Gustafsson, Hal Gill
(On paper, this is not a defense that scares you, but there is a not a specific weak link amongst the six. Timonen has seemingly been here forever while Coburn provides solid play. Streit will be counted on to help transition from D to O and on the PP while Grossman balances out Streit's forays forward. MacDonald, who the Islanders wouldn't give $5 mil per year to, just signed a six-year, $30 mil extension to stay in Philly. His addition was a huge boon to the Flyers blueline and upgrade over Meszaros, as he sees time in all situations and is the best shot-blocker on the team, while Schenn is the physical presence on the blueline. If the Flyers forwards fail to do a good job backchecking to help the D, this is where the Rangers can possibly take advantage, as none of the six Philly blueliners are elite skaters. On the flip side, in the past, the Rangers used to target a blueliner and punish him - as they did with Mike Green and Erik Karlsson - but the Flyers D doesn't really fit the bill to do so).
Goaltenders
Steve Mason (injured)
Ray Emery
Cal Heeter
(Mason was a huge reason, along with Giroux, that Philly was able to rebound from their slow start to make the playoffs. Mason showed flashes of the Mason who won the Calder Trophy, posting 33 wins and a .917SV%, earning a four-year, $12.4 million extension during the season. He was injured last Saturday against the Penguins and likely will miss the first two games of the playoffs with an "upper-body" injury. As Bill Meltzer wrote in his Flyers Game 1 preview, Mason is one of the three or four best puckhandling goalies in the league and has better side-to-side motion than Emery, who will start in his stead, but Emery will battle you for the entire game. There is a clear drop-off in talent from Mason to Emery, but Emery has shown in the past he can step up, so looking as this as an easy win would be a major mistake. Hetter will only get in if Emery really struggles or suffers an injury)
PP Units:
Pouliot-Brassard-Zucc-McDonagh-Richards
Nash-Stepan-St. Louis-Girardi-Moore
(The Rangers PP has gone from godawful to smoking hot and back to middling at best. Early in the season, they couldn't buy a goal and then for a while, they were unstoppable. Once St. Louis came in, by trying to shoehorn him in, the PP struggled again, though to be truthful the difficulties started just before the Olympics. Recently, there has been some signs of life, but the absence of Kreider - both due to his removal following acquisition of St. Louis and then injury, took a big body from in front of the net. The top grouping is their best grouping, as Zucc is the playmaker while Pouliot is the shooter. It remains to be seen how/if McDonagh's shot is affected by the injury, since he is a triggerman from the point, while Richards has been a bit better of late, though to me he is not a true point man. That said, Richards has shown the ability to move the puck and create opening, while NY has done a better job this year of moving and not remaining stagnant. The second trio needs to get it going. The names on the line would seem mean that the unit should be better but that has not been the case. If St. Louis can get hot or even warm, that would be a huge boost for the Rangers. G and Moore are solid at the points, each of them showing the ability to get the puck on net while Moore is a better playmaker. They will be challenged by the Read-Couturier duo, who have been good this year for Philly, and paired with Timonen and Coburn)
Giroux-Simmonds-Hartnell-Timonen-Voracek
B. Schenn-Lecavalier-Couturier (Read)-MacDonald-Streit
(This could be the matchup that decides the series. Philly has been very good in generating penalties and capitalizing on them, finishing first in home success rate at 25.2%. The top line is excellent, as Giroux makes it all go, Hartnell and Simmonds do the dirty work down low, especially Simmonds, while Timonen and Voracek are the triggers. The second grouping is solid as well, led by the playmaking skills of Vinny L while Couturier adds grit and is willing take punishment in front. On the blueline, MacDonald and Streit help set up the attack and play well off each other. Caps were dominant on the PP, finishing first in the league at 26.8%, scoring 44 goals. They try and set Ovechkin up for one-timers from the circles, but the Rangers have seen this before and Lundqvist has been solid against the Capitals. If Green is on, watch out, as he helps make that attack go while Brouwer provides the grit. The Rangers finished sixth in the league in PK and lately, have converted shorthanded opportunities into goals. Nash, Stepan, Hagelin, St. Louis and Boyle/D. Moore all have seen time on the PK with McD-G the first duo and Staal with either Moore, Stralman or Klein on second duo. Whoever wins this battle, likely wins the series)
No. 3 Flyers vs. No. 2 Rangers (Metro Division) first-round schedule
Game 1: Flyers at Rangers, Thurs., April 17 at 7p.m. (CSN, TSN)
Game 2: Flyers at Rangers, Sun., April 20 at 12 p.m. (NBC, TSN)
Game 3: Rangers at Flyers, Tue., April 22 at 8 p.m. (CSN, TSN)
Game 4: Rangers at Flyers, Fri., April 25 at 7 p.m. (CSN, TSN)
Game 5*: Flyers at Rangers, Sun., April 27 at 12 p.m. (NBC, CSN)
Game 6*: Rangers at Flyers, Tue., April 29 at TBD
Game 7*: Flyers at Rangers, Thurs., April 30 at TBD
Possible Unsung Heroes:
We all know how important Stepan, Nash, Zuccarello and Hank are to the Rangers as well as Giroux, Voracek, Hartnell, Simmonds and Mason are to the Flyers. In addition, the play of Girardi and McDonagh for NY and Streit for Philadelphia are keys. I want to focus on two players each, while not unsung, may be keys to the series.
For the Rangers, it's Hagelin and the fourth line. Hagelin's speed should be able to create some chances for himself and his linemates. The Flyers D is not fleet of skate, so if he can get an angle with some room, he could make them pay. The fourth line is what killed the Rangers the past two seasons against NJ and Boston. This year, the fourth line is a weapon. They are able to get the puck in deep, cycle, grind and wear down the opponent while also contributing offense. If they can do that in this series, it would be a huge boost for NY
For Philly. it's Couturier and Read. Couturier has really come into his own this season, providing offense while also maintaining his stalwart defensive play from the third line. Rad has shown he can score as well, but he like Couturier, has been responsible defensively. With Akeeson new to the line, Couturier and Read will have more responsibility than previously. If they are up to the task, that gives the Flyers a huge boost.
Edges:
Even-Strength - Rangers, slightly, seen in better 5-on-5 numbers
PP - Flyers, by a decent margin %wise, though the net diff was 10 goals
PK - Rangers, slightly, as Philly was good there as well
Forwards - Flyers, seven players with 20 or more goals and finished top-10 in scoring after a slow start. The gap though may not be as wide as we thought, since NY has been markedly better since the New Year. If St. Louis can rediscover his scoring touch it would help offset the absence of Kreider,
Defense - Rangers, but Philly doesn't have a glaring weakness, though overall NY is better, especially in the top-three
Goalie - Rangers, because of Hank, though Mason has been very good. The edge widens for as long as Mason is out
Playoff Experience - lots of experience on both teams. Philly has a few remaining from their run in 2009-10 while the Rangers have seen lots of action the past few years and added St. Louis, who has won a Cup. Pretty even.
Coaching - very slight edge to Rangers as AV has been to the Finals before while Berube has it mainly as a player, since he is a first-year coach
Intangibles - mild edge to NY, solely because of home-ice and the experience of winning several elimination games the past few seasons. Both playing fairly well coming into the playoffs, with NY 9-2-2 the last 13 though Philly has to now deal with Mason's injury.
Prediction - close series, with the Rangers winning in six.
This time of year, you need to play hard and pay attention for every second you are on the ice, one slip up or lapse in concentration could mean the difference between winning a series and advancing or losing and going home.
It’s go time. Let’s Go Rangers!!! The Drive to the Stanley Cup begins tonight.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»