Heavy is the head that wears the crown #King pic.twitter.com/4c123UuS3Z
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) April 23, 2016
The NY Rangers have fallen and they can't get up.
The Pens will be advancing to second round of the playoffs after laying the boots to the Rangers in all facets of the game.
Henrik Lundqvist played far below average in the Rangers net.
The Rangers D were slow and dopey.
The Rangers forwards weren't able to sustain their puck possession and zone time for scoring chances.
The Ranger offense was spotty. Their big guns went silent at the wrong time of the season. 10 goals scored in 5 games ain't good enough. Derek Brassard, Keith Yandle, Mats Zuccarello, and Chris Kreider scored only one goal apiece. Rick Nash, Chris Kreider, and Derek Stepan led the Rangers in goal scoring with just 2 goals apiece. Not. Good. Enough.
The Penguins had their way with Lundqvist.
They scored 4 goals on 18 shots in Game 4.
They then scored 6 goals on 23 shots in Game 5. Lundqvist was pulled in both games. Scoring 9 goals in 5 games ain't gonna get it.
When was the last time that Lundqvist has giving up 10 goals on 41 shots faced?
The King clearly is still suffering from the ill affects of getting jabbed in his right eye by his teammate Marc Staal's stick in Game 1. Lundqvist was benched after 20 minutes played in Game 1. Antii Raanta played the final 40 minutes of that game. The Rangers
Lundqvist hasn't been the same player since that unfortunate injury. He is getting beaten routinely high glove. His eye-hand coordination appears to be slow to react. I blame his eye injury for that.
Raanta also was summoned from the bullpen in Game 4 when Lundqvist allowed 4 goals on just 18 shots on goal.
Raanta had to be summoned to the crease for the final 20 minutes Game 5 after The King coughed up 6 goals against on 23 shots.
The Pens did some serious work against Lundqvist and took advantage of his struggles in Game 5.
#Pens Points →
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 23, 2016
Rust 2G, 1A
Kessel 1G, 1A
Cullen 1G, 1A
Crosby 2A
Hagelin 1G
Sheary 1G
Bonino 1A
Letang 1A
Daley 1A
Kuhnhackl 1A
Malkin 1A
If you would have told me last month that Henrik Lundqvist would lost in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs to Jeff Zatkoff and Matt Murray, I would have told you to take a jump off the observation deck at the Empire State Building.
Because of the eye injury, The King was no equal to Zatkoff nor Murray.
So, what now becomes of the Rangers, who represented the Eastern Conference in the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals against the LA Kings?
They do not have their 1st or 2nd round draft choices in the 2016 NHL Draft. They do own their 3rd through 7th rounders in the 2016 NHL draft. Good luck drafting difference makers and players who can help today in rounds 3-7.
Eric Staal is UFA on July 1. What becomes of UFA D-man Keith Yandle? Dan Boyle is also UFA.
Chris Kreider, JT Miller, Kevin Hayes, and Dylan McIlrath are restricted free agents on July 1.
Like the Kings, the Rangers are an aging team with some gargantuan contracts being paid to their aging core of vets.
Lundqvist, 34, is an $8.5M AAV for the next four seasons.
The perennially disappointing Rick Nash, 31, is a $7.8 AAV for the next three seasons.
Defensemen Dan Girardi, 31, is a $5.5M AAV for the next three seasons.
The Pens will now advance to the second round where they will play either Washington or Philadelphia.
What becomes of the Rangers?
They will have to get rid of fat, oppressive contracts like Nash's and then invest those savings in their RFAs. Trading Nash won't be easy. His contract is ugly and virtually untradeable. Rangers GM Jeff Gorten will have to find a team that has available salary cap space plus draft choices and young players to rebuild with. I say good luck trading Nash's contract.
The Rangers will also have to re-invest in their D corps.