The Rangers, missing five regulars, fell 3-1 to the Avalanche on Saturday to start their four-game road trip. Missing Chris Kreider, Kevin Hayes, Marc Staal, Kevin Shattenkirk and Michael Grabner, New York put up a valiant fight - or at least Henrik Lundqvist did - but couldn't generate enough offense against Colorado. New York is right back in action Sunday versus the Kings.
Game recap:
MSG Post-game recap:
The lines the Rangers started the game with were:
Rick Nash, Mika Zibanejad, Pavel Buchnevich
Jimmy Vesey, JT Miller, Mats Zuccarello
Paul Carey, Peter Holland, Jesper Fast
Daniel Catenacci, David Desharnais, Vinni Lettieri
The top line was the same. The second line compared to Thursday's win had Vesey up in the top-six, where he has played previously, and Lettieri down on the fourth line. Grabner was a late scratch with the flu and his absence was immense, since he likely would have been on the second line and Vesey on the third, scratching Catenacci, who didn't have a particularly good game. Catenacci lost Erik Johnson in the slot on the first goal and gave Nathan MacKinnon too much space on the second tally.
After the game, coach Alain Vigneault complimented the team's battle level. "At the end of the night, everybody worked hard and gave their best," Vigneault said. "That's what you want from your players." I didn't realize we were giving out participation awards. Lundqvist said it best: "You can't find any excuses for not going after that win. It doesn't matter if you're missing two guys or 10 guys, the mentality is you go out and try and get the W." Every team has injuries, for New York, the bad part is that they all see, to be coming at once. This is where depth or the lack thereof is tested.
Hartford doesn't have much on the farm. Holland is up, Boo Nieves will be called back up. Other than that, maybe Cole Schneider deserves a look. Even though he scored last night, in no way, shape or form should Filip Chytil be rushed back, as he needs additional time in the minors. The same with Lias Andersson once he dresses. So we are left with what is here now. I agree with not calling Nieves up, since he needs to work on what caused his recent demotion. Let him try and improve in that area and then come back up.
When a team is shorthanded, they need three things to win. An offense that capitalizes on whatever good chances they get. A defense that limits the opponents good looks and chances. Plus a goaltender that stands on his head. New York got one of the three; the last one, as Lundqvist was brilliant again. For a look at the first two see below:
Rangers at 5v5, all on wrong side of the ledger:
The defense was leaking oil all over the place. Too many shots in general and from high-danger areas. Screens in front of Lundqvist, high and low. As seen from the above, none of the d-men had a great game. McDonagh-Holden, Skjei-Kampfer and Smith-DeAngelo all ended up on the wrong side of the ledger. This is a big chance for ADA, he needs to take advantage of it or be relegated back to the minors later in the season.
Offensively, the Nash-Zib-Buch line was solid again. Buchnevich is clearly back. Great play by Nash on PPG to force Johnson to cover him, opening the lane for the Buch deflection on Zucc's pass. Beyond that, Vesey did hit the crossbar and the team did hit two posts. But until late in the third, where was the urgency? New York laid back, like they have done all too often, and allowed Colorado to dictate play and control action. Then when it got late, the desperation level rose. It was too little, too late.
Hayes and Staal are less than 50-50 to play tomorrow. Grabner may not be well enough. That means the lineup we saw today is what will be in against the Kings. Lundqvist should be rested to allow Ondrej Pavelec to play with games Tuesday against Anaheim and Thursday versus San Jose looming. With the Rangers allowing Hank to play in the All-Star Game, sitting him tomorrow would help at least a little avoid totally burning him out.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
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