What I Learned in Game 2 of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final
You don't actually have to hold a lead to win a hockey game. With tonight's 2OT win, the Kings have now won three games in a row without holding a lead for even a second. In every game, they've had to come from behind to force bonus hockey and have won. They say they can't keep playing this way, but clearly…they can. They've been doing it consistently the past two months and it's a direct result of them finding ways to get better and better as the game goes on. Some look at it as a bad start, but a case could be made that this is just how they play and they're very good at it.
The Kings are the Kings of giveaways. It is absurd how many times they just cough up the puck. There's a reason one teams giveaways doesn't not equal another teams takeaways and that's because sometimes they're not forced turnovers….they just don't protect the puck. Like I said in Game 1, a win is just a win. It doesn't always mean the best team won and this is definitely something the Kings have to work on. As fun as the idea of every game in this series going to overtime might be, I'd rather not have the Stanley Cup decided by chance. I want convincing, dominate hockey to determine a winner and right now I don't know if that's possible.
With that in mind, a lot is being said right now about the apparent weakness of the Eastern Conference and I think that's a bunch of bologna. Have you been watching these games? They are tightly contested - Hello? They both went to overtime!!! - and there's a whole lot of "I didn't see that coming!" in what they're giving us. I mean, who thought we'd have a game with nine goals scored on two of the best goalies in the world? These games are fantastic and this series could easily be 2-0 New York, so let's hop off the West is Best bandwagon until the Kings can actually hold a lead.
As far as the Rangers go, they were pretty defeated after last night's 2OT loss, but they've shown their resiliency throughout this postseason and there's no reason to believe that they can't show it again. They just need to be consistent with their efforts and not let up on the gas pedal. They say that winners know how to win and it seems like such a stupid saying, but what it really means is that they know how to keep going until the job gets done. They have a killer instinct and when an opponent is on the ropes they know how to step on their throats and break their necks….or if you're a Game of Thrones fan, they know how to push in your eyeballs and literally bust your brain. (I watched one episode. That one. I think I'm done.)
Another key for the Rangers to turn this series around is going to be utilizing their speed in their attack. The long the OT went the more I liked the Rangers chances of winning because they still had their legs whereas the Kings looked to be skating through mud more often than not (had it been because of poor ice I would have lost my mind because I was still in need of a blanket and parka last night). The Rangers speed is so dangerous as we've seen by their many breakaway or odd-man opportunities, but it's what they do - or don't do - with those opportunities that can make you shake your head.
In all, I still think we're in for a 6 or 7 game series.
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What I Learned on the First Off Days of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final
Ryan McDonagh is a stand up guy. As he, Stepan and Hagelin took the podium and I tried to make jokes in my head about two Badgers and a Wolverine walking into a Stanley Cup Final press conference, McDonagh took full responsibility for his role in the Kings OT GWG. With so much heat on Girardi for whiffing on the clearing attempt that lead to the defensive zone turnover and wide open shot at the net by Justin Williams to win the game, McDonagh said he should bear the brunt of that mistake as well for not supporting his defensive partner and anticipating a rush up the ice that ultimately put him out of position to do his job as a defenseman. Open accountability is so rare for us in the media as coaches and teammates try to protect each other with the "everyone makes mistakes" cliche that this type of brutal honesty is appreciated, regardless if it's an attempt to deflect attention from Girardi.
It is obvious that the Kings have been here before and know what to do. They know how to prepare. They know how to relax. They know how to handle the pressure. They know how to be quotable. They know how to comeback from a two goal deficit. They just know what to do. It's a rather valuable intangible in a series of this magnitude.
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What I Learned in Game 1 of the 2014 Stanley Cup Final
There is a boisterous collection of Rangers fans in attendance. You see them roaming around and it seems like quite a few, but it's not until the Rangers score that you realize just how many there are. I will be curious to see if it's the same for the Kings in New York.
Ryan McDonagh is a workhorse. As good as we all know that he is, I still feel like he flies under the radar with how good he is defensively. He really just runs the show on the blueline. Maybe it took me seeing him play in person to really see it, but his contributions to this team are immeasurable.
As we saw by his goal, Doughty's got some moves….He's another player that I don't think you can fully appreciate until you see him live. He has the ability to take over a play and make magic out of absolutely nothing. It's incredible to watch. He is also a defensive stud and while his style of play might lead to miscues and mistakes that can end up costing them on the scoreboard, he always seems to find a way to make up for them….like with that beautiful goal of his tonight after playing a key role in the Ranger's first two goals of the night.
The Kings need to be more effective with their perimeter shots. If Lundqvist can see it, he will stop it. They need to be more aggressive on the rebound and make him work for position in the crease. On the flip side, the Rangers were shooting anything and everything and constantly kept the puck moving in the offensive zone like a hot potato while didn't allow Quick to get set and had him flopping around like a fish out of water on most chances. The Kings neutralized their offensive pressure in the third with only three shots on goal, two of which were breakaways, but they will need to remember how they did that in Game 2. While they might have won this one in overtime, I'm not convinced they were the better team.
Finally, I need to bring a blanket and wear a parka to Staples Center. This rink is understandably cold as they battle the beautiful weather outside to keep the ice in tip-top shape, but I'm seriously thinking about bringing a personal space heater to Game 2…it's THAT cold!
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What I learned at the 2014 Stanley Cup Final Media Day
No doubt about it, Dom Moore definitely when to Harvard. He is so articulate and thinks before he speaks and doesn't give you all sorts of cliches. It was so refreshing to hear his take on this season and this series. He knew that getting back into hockey after taking 18 months off wouldn't be easy for a variety of reasons, but he knew he wanted to do it and he wanted to do it with the New York Rangers. Having already known many of the players and most of the staff, he knew playing for them would be the smoothest transition for him and is so grateful that they gave him the benefit of the doubt in regards to his progress and ability to improve as the season went on. He said, "It took until December for me to feel like I was a decent hockey player again, before that, I was playing like crap….but they kept putting me out there and giving me opportunities and now I feel like I'm able to contribute in a variety of ways."
Carl Hagelin never saw a year like this coming. Between playing for Sweden at the Olympics and now in the Stanley Cup Final, this has been a surreal season for him. He explained, "I went to Michigan to improve my skills and hopefully play in the NHL some day. I had no fantasies about how soon that would come or how successful I'd be or how long I'd play. I just wanted to be good enough to have a shot and the more I saw that as a real possibility the more I wanted to push myself and challenge myself to be better. Never did I think that this could be my life and there are days when I think about just how crazy all of this is, but I never want to be complacent or comfortable where I'm at. I always want to be improving and getting better. While I've dreamed of playing for the Stanley Cup as a kid, I don't want to just be happy to be here. I want to win and I want to push myself to help my team do that."
Mike Richards says that being the favorite or the underdog is a distinction the media uses to have something to write or talk about. "We never look at ourselves as the favorites or not. We always believe that we can win and we compete like we know we can win. You guys write a lot more about it, but that's the end of the story as far as we're concerned." He said the same about the debate between being rested and being in a rhythm of playing every other day. "It's always good to have rest, but we play games every other day during the regular season. This is no different. I mean this is for the Stanley Cup.... I have all summer to rest and I want to do it as a champion. I know I'm going to empty the tank and I know my teammates will too." Speaking of teammates, I think the proud Canadian might be watching Miracle too much because listening to him talk about how much of a family this Kings team is is straight out of the scene in the movie when the boys want to send Timmy Harrington back to Minnesota because…. "We're a family. We protect each other, stand up for each other and play for each other. We might not be blood, but we are a family in every other sense of the word."
Tanner Pearson & Tyler Toffoli are an interesting pair. With a huge crowd around Jeff Carter's station these two sat separately and mostly undisturbed. It was quite the juxtaposition for the members of That 70's Line! As the technical third line, they are providing so much more than expected and part of that reason is that there is no spotlight on them. They don't have to carry the load. Their contributions are a bonus. You just have to wonder if things will change as expectations grow.
I also learned that Glen Sather is a rather funny individual. He held comedic court during his press conference that even had Alain Vignault laughing. My favorite was when he was asked what he does during the Final since his job of building the team is done and he replied by saying he still had a lot of tough decisions to make and just this morning he spent three hours trying to figure out where the staff was going to golf later and then they had to figure out where to eat for dinner and the what was on tv….. all said with the straightest face possible while Vignault was cracking up beside him! Needless to say, he's added himself to the list of hockey people I'd like to have lunch with.
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Julie
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