The Rangers resume play tomorrow following their five-day bye week. When the puck is dropped at MSG against Toronto, the Blueshirts will be in fourth place in the division. Larry Brooks bogarted the blog I wrote last night and was planning on posting this morning - see below - that this position maybe where New York should aim to finish the season.
The Metro Division, at least the top end of it, is beast. Four teams with at least 57 points, which compared to the Atlantic, shows the strength of one, and as of January 12, the relative weakness as of now of the other. Of course, fortunes can change over the next three months, but the visual is pretty stark:
Columbus - 28-8-4, 60 points, had won 16 in a row, losers of three of four
Washington - 27-9-5, 59 points, have won seven straight
Pittsburgh - 26-9-5. 57 points, had won five straight before losing to Washington on Wednesday
Rangers - 28-13-1, 57 points, have won two in a row and 7-3 in last 10
Philadelphia - 21-16-6, 48 points, were on a row for a while, but 2-5-3 in last 10
Carolina - 19-5-7. 45 points, won two in a row, 6-4 last 10
Montreal - 26-10-6, 58 points, 5-3-2 in last 10
Boston - 22-17-5, 49 points, 5-3-2 last 10
Ottawa - 21-14-4, 46 points, 5-3-2 last 10
Florida - 19-16-8, 46 points, 4-3-3 in last 10, won two in a row
Toronto - 18-13-6, 44 points, 7-2-1 in last 10
Tampa - 19-19-4, 42 points, have lost four in a row
Buffalo - 16-15-9, 41 points, 4-4-2 last 10, won two in a row
Detroit - 17-18-6, 40 points, 4-4-2 last 10
We had the same argument down the stretch last season when the Rangers and Islanders were battling for third place in the division. The winner would really be the loser, as they would end up as the sacrificial lamb for Pittsburgh while the loser would be the winner and face Florida, the winner of the Atlantic Division. We know how this played out. The Islanders "tanked" and drew Florida while the Rangers played it out and got Pittsburgh and the rest was history.
This year, the decision may not be as clear-cut, but still leans towards finishing fourth. About forty games and three months remains to the regular season, so a lot can happen between then and now. But it sure looks like Pittsburgh and Washington are going nowhere and should be in the top-two or at worst, two and three. If you believe that Columbus will remain in the mix, at best you are finishing third, which means a matchup against one of the aforementioned three. If you win round one, Pittsburgh or Washington likely looms in the semi-finals.
Unlike last year with Florida, Montreal is probably a bit more of a complete team, headed by Carey Price. The Bell Center still is to a certain extent the Rangers' - or more precisely, Henrik Lundqvist's - house of horrors but they did exorcise some of them by beating the Canadiens to reach the Cup Finals in 2014. If you get past Montreal, a matchup against Boston likely results, which would be no picnic. Especially if Brandon Carlo continues his growth and David Pastrnak is deployed correctly. Tampa still could make a run if Ben Bishop solidifies the goaltending. If they are close, the possible March return of Steven Stamkos puts the Lightning over the top. But those teams pale in comparison to Pittsburgh or Washington.
Now, if New York reels off a streak as they did earlier in the season and are battling for first in the division, then all bets are off. But that shouldn't be the main goal and priority. Providing the right rest, especially for the blue line is more of a key. If Marc Staal is healthy, then AV has to rotate Adam Clendening, Dan Girardi and Kevin Klein, playing the best two of the three. In addition, maintain the Ryan McDonagh-Brady Skjei duo with the focus optimizing the harmony in April for the playoff run. If Staal isn't bad, then adding a d-man, either internally, such as Ryan Graves or John Gilmour or Chris Summers, for depth, or externally, like Michael Stone or Kevin Shattenkirk, takes on even more import.
Three months remain. But the team's current positioning and playoff spot cushion brings these thoughts to the forefront. It's not embrace the race for fourth but it may be pretty darn close.
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