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Game 28: NYR 2 EDM 0, Rangers Win Snoozer

December 15, 2014, 7:14 PM ET [112 Comments]
Jan Levine
New York Rangers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
New York completed their back-to-back weekend sweep with a somnambulant 2-0 win over the Oilers on Sunday. The win was nothing to write home about but all that mattered was the two points. The Rangers allowed Edmonton to hang around all game, content to limit their opportunities and did just enough offensively to get the victory.

If Saturday's game was a show of how New York can go from defense to offense, Sunday's was evidence of how the Rangers can clamp down on a team. Edmonton basically waited for New York to make a mistake rather than pushing the pace, resulting in a contest that was almost painful to watch. The lack of any true attack or even counter-attack by Edmonton and New York turned the game into one that probably should be eradicated from the highlight reel. New York played the game Edmonton wanted, which reduced the number of good chances from each. The Rangers capitalized on the one they had and that proved to be sufficient.

Regardless of how boring it was, New York found a way to extend their win streak to three games. Tuesday in Calgary should be a much tougher and different contest, so New York will have to up their compete level to come out with a victory. I would love to wax poetically on something - anything - from the game, but it just doesn’t lend itself to that happening. The Ranger blocked 21 shots, but few came from dangerous areas, which also resulted in the 16 shots that did get through and were saved by Henrik Lundqvist not proving to be a major challenge. A handful were "difficult" though that term may be a stretch, regardless, Lundqvist earned his fifth blanking of the season and 55th of his career.

Beyond the win, the key now is how long Derick Brassard will be out with the mumps. J.T. Miller wasn't bad in his transition back to center but he showed that he is better on the wing than as a pivotman. Chris Kreider was okay on the second line but didn't really stand out to me. For those suggesting leaving Miller at Center and moving Kevin Hayes to wing, my view is no way, no how. Hayes needs to improve on faceoffs but he is much better suited to playing center than on the wing and better than Miller at that pivot spot as well.

As Rangerdanger94 and others wrote: the key now to find a way to beat Calgary. Win that contest and it's a season-long, four-game win streak. Following Tuesday's game, New York has back-to-back games against Carolina, so it's not a stretch to think they can and should win both. After those games, it's one against Washington, followed by three days off and a contest against a struggling Devils team. They then head to Dallas, who are having issues of their own, followed by a New Year's Eve game against a somewhat dangerous Florida squad. New York kicks off 2015 versus a Buffalo team that is now red-hot before heading out to the West Coast for their three-game California swing. The Rangers talked about reeling off several wins in a row. With the East tight and getting tighter, each game takes on more importance. As spelled out above, the schedule should allow the Rangers to get on that streak. If they play as they did against Vancouver, running off a long victory streak would definitely seem possible.

First, take care of Calgary tomorrow.
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