The Rangers were embarrassed 5-0 by Pittsburgh at MSG on Thursday. That defeat leaves New York on the brink of elimination with a 3-1 series deficit. While the Rangers have been in this position before each of the last two years and come back, this year seems different given the team.

Right now, the 101 points seem like a mirage with the issues that existed all season getting masked by the mostly strong play of Henrik Lundqvist and wins over weaker opponents. as others have said, under John Tortorella, the team had an identity. It was a lunch pail, bring your hard hat, know that if you faced the Rangers, you better bring it and be ready to deal with the physical play for 60 minutes. When Alain Vigneault came over, initially the identity shifted to a team that would use speed to beat you. In addition, they could cycle while also scoring off the rush. Now what is this identity? Unfortunately, there is none and that is a major problem, especially when they don't or can't score off the cycle, which is exacerbated when they have nothing doing off the rush, as they have had this series.

Thursday, AV shifted up the lineup to try and create some offense and spark. We saw how well that worked out, Kevin Hayes hasn't been good and he was scratched for Oscar Lindberg. We all were clamoring for Lindberg to be in but not for Hayes. In addition, the expected or hoped for changes on the blueline didn't occur, as Dan Boyle was in again but paired with Keith Yandle, while Raphael Diaz and Dylan McIlrath watched from the sidelines.

Kreider-Stepan-Zuccarello
Miller-Brassard-Nash
Stalberg-EStaal-Fast
Lindberg-Moore-Glass

McDonagh-Skjei
MStaal-Klein
Yandle-Boyle

How did those changes and non-changes work out? After a great and physical start with Chris Kreider and Patric Hornqvist getting into it on the opening faceoff and Kris Letang getting dumped, it fell apart. 69 seconds in and the game was basically over. The newly constituted third line and third pair defense failed to keep Eric Fehr out of the crease and he was able to bang home a way too juicy rebound inexplicably left by Henrik Lundqvist. Right then and there we can kind of thought this was not going to be New York's or Lundqvist's night.

That proved to be true and Lundqvist fought the puck all night before finally getting pulled down 4-0 at the 6:06 mark of the second period. The first goal was a bad rebound to allow. The second on the PP was a double-deflection and almost impossible to stop. The third came after a bad Kevin Klein turnover - how much has he struggled down the stretch and in this series - but on a shot by Conor Sheary that could have and maybe should have been stopped. The fourth was a howitzer by Evgeni Malkin but if Lundqvist wasn't screened - and not sure he completely was - it also was stoppable. For NY to win, Lundqvist has to stand on his head. He was far from that yesterday, but to heap all the blame on him is unfounded and unfair. If you can't or don't score, you won't win, regardless of how well the goalie plays.

While the series isn't officially over, for all intents and purposes, most of us believe that it is. New York rallied from 3-1 down the last years, including 2014 against Pittsburgh, but that Penguins team isn't the same as this one, nor is the Rangers squad. Pitt hasn't lost their firepower but are much more responsible defensively and are playing hard each and every shift under Mike Sullivan. I wish the same could be said about the Rangers. Pittsburgh gets a lot of credit for how they are dominating New York and putting their foot on the throats while sucking the will out of this team, which is a characteristic this Rangers team has lacked for several years. But not all the credit can go to Pittsburgh.

Something has been off all season. I am unsure it's anything tangible or specific item that can be pointed to or highlighted, even with the known issues. It's a feeling or more precisely, a general malaise or lack of energy that has been all too apparent. It started in Games 5 and 7 against Tampa Bay and has snowballed. Whether it's the wear and tear of the playoff runs the past few years or changes within the lineup or locker room or another reason, that will to win, to put aside the negative energy or events, pick yourself and fight another day isn't there. Pittsburgh gets a ton of credit, as they are talented and matching that talent with superior effort while also on a major role, which can make any team look bad. But New York hasn't matched their effort, which coupled with the gap in talent and you have a recipe for disaster.

This blog is not meant to be funereal, as there will be time for that. But given what we have seen, it's hard not to be. A loss and it's clearly looking like tear down time, which is most probably the right course of action. With a loss, this era and six-year window of opportunity and fine play is gone. As we have seen, the big splash is not always the way to go, yet it's been the model in NY for a while. It's worked to an extent, but the addition of Staal this year has to date grossly backfired, and the same can be said to an extent on Nash and others.

Saturday night could be the last game for several Rangers, including several that could come as a surprise. Moore and Boyle will definitely not be back. Despite the no movement and trade clauses, Marc Staal and Girardi will possibly be moved. Nash got a mild pass last year but his rough season and so far lousy poor postseason - again - makes him ripe to be available. i wouldn't be shocked if Brassard or Stepan are dangled. If none of those moves or not enough of them occur, Yandle will also be vapor. Kreider is an RFA, as is Miller and Hayes, so one, two or three could be gone, depending on how far reaching the teardown gets. Jeff Gorton continued the same pattern as Glen Sather, going for the sexy name in Staal, rather than ones who would have been better though lesser names, like McGinn or Pirri and he has a huge offseason upcoming. The coaching staff also won't be immune, as questions of the motivation, readiness to play and propensity for overplaying veterans over younger players are clearly at the forefront. That means AV might not be safe while the regression on the PP and PK make Scott Arniel very at risk of a dismissal. Ulfie likely stays though he may be offered a head coaching job elsewhere while Benoit Allaire also probably remains.

Coming into the season, the viewpoint was to give this team one more kick at the can. The only can kicking that has been done so far has been by Pittsburgh's to New York's collective or euphemistic can. A loss Saturday and there will be more cans that will be kicked out of town.

Hopefully, i can be back with a Game 6 preview late Sunday night after the holiday. If not, I will get a new blog in a bit but may need some time to decompress. Thanks for all those who read and comment and hopefully the blogs have been enjoyable and informative.

Join the Discussion: » 1452 Comments » Post New Comment

» Game 2: Rangers hold on for 4-3 win and 2-0 series lead

» Game 1: Rangers hold serve at home 4-1 over Caps behind the fourth line

» 2024 Series Overview and Preview - Round 1 - Rangers-Capitals

» Rangers-Capitals: Reading the Numbers, Looking for an Advantage

» Rangers-Capitals meet again, though for first time since 2015, in playoffs