The Rangers sit on the verge of elimination following their 3-0 loss to the Kings on Monday at MSG. While the script was different from the first two losses, the end result was the same, a disappointing loss. If Games 1-2 were shots to the gut, Game 3 was more them getting sliced up slowly and before you realize it, it's almost a bloodless defeat.
While several have criticized the team's effort, I actually thought that for the most part the effort was there. I can't say that for all 20 skaters, but for the vast majority, at least in my opinion, a high effort level was evident. Unfortunately, what was clearly lacking was execution, and when you fail to execute, more times than not, your effort will be questioned. Mike Keenan really took the Rangers to task yesterday for what he viewed as a lack of effort. To me, that failure to execute rather than lack of effort now leaves the Rangers on the brink of extinction from the 2014 Playoffs.
Good teams deal with adversity, great teams overcome it. LA overcame adversity the first two games of the Finals, rebounding from a pair of two-goal deficits to win each contest. They put the Rangers on the other side of that coin and they were unable to overcome it. Fortunate bounces coupled with solid, and at times, spectacular goaltending and the end result was a 3-0 win for the Kings.
Quick and the Dead. Quick was too Quick for the Rangers. Use whatever cliche you want and they all will be true. Before the Finals started, one major key was for Henrik Lundqvist to outplay Jonathan Quick. While Lundqvist hasn't been horrible, he has not been the stalwart he usually is, while Quick, when needed, has stepped up when he called upon in each game. In Game 1, after surrendering two goals in the first, he stoned NY the rest of the way. In Game 2, after going down 4-2, he made several spectacular saves, including ones on Brad Richards, Mats Zuccarello and Chris Kreider. Last night, Quick was the best player on the ice. Jason Lewis in his blog posted the GIF from his two best saves of the night, including a robbery of Zuccarello at the post. In addition, the Rangers outshot LA 32-15 last night and outchanced them 59-34, yet came up empty because of Quick.
A few other things:
Luck/Bounces. You know I am a firm believer in you make your own breaks and they even out over a season. The same came be said about bounces. The Rangers received some fortunate bounces along the way, including Carl Hagelin's goal in Game 1 that went off Slava Voynov and into the net, so it's hard to complain when it goes against you. Unfortunately for NY, all three of LA's goals last night came off a deflection.
That's not to say they weren't quality goals because the set up of the goals clearly were due to solid play, but a little luck never hurts. The biggest issue on two of the markers was a major misplay by a Ranger, leading to the opportunities. The Kings made the most of their chances, while the Rangers did not, which has been the story of the series to date.
First goal:
Nash has been the main whipping boy on the goal for his failure to get the puck in deep, but he wasn't the main protagonist here. Yes, Nash should have gotten it deeper in the Kings' zone, and maybe he should have gone cross-ice, but it did take a good play to knock it down and while the play was going on, most likely didn't have that thought. It only came up after the goal was scored.
To me, John Moore had the biggest failure on the play. Nash did get back and was in perfect position on Justin Williams. Moore vacated where he should have been to either attempt a hit on or mark Williams. By doing so, he left Jeff Carter open with Dan Girardi left to defend a 2-on-1. I can mildly understand Girardi going down, since it's engrained in his make-up, but he was too far away to get there. He should have left Lundqvist with a good chance at stopping the shot, as he looked to be in solid position to do so. By diving, Girardi got a piece of the puck off his skate, changing its direction, resulting in it getting past Lundqvist. That late goal sucked the life out of the building, especially since the Rangers had played a good period till then. Plus, given when it occurred, there was a major carryover effect to the next period.
Second goal:
Two silly penalties back-to-back to start the period. After New York killed off the first one, the second one, by Marc Staal, put them right back on the penalty kill. This time, LA burned them. Good work along the boards got the puck back to Jake Muzzin, his shot looked like it hit off Martin St. Louis, then Jeff Carter's skate and behind Lundqvist. Lucky, likely, but again, traffic in front, which the Rangers have not had on their power play, resulted in the goal.
Third goal:
The dagger. Down 2-0, we all were hoping that maybe the Rangers get a goal of any sort and then anything could happen. Once it became 3-0, given the way Quick was playing, that deficit looked insurmountable. This goal is on Martin St. Louis. Girardi appropriately pinched down to try and keep the puck in, but when he does so St. Louis has to fill in for him. Instead, St. Louis went directly to the half-boards rather than taking a parabolic approach, and when the puck was chipped up the boards, he was caught deep.
Richards came in on a 2-on-1. McDonagh played it well, blocking the pass. Unfortunately, like many other events yesterday, the puck came back to Richards. Lundqvist, who had moved over in the crease to get the potential shot from the other side, couldn't recover and Richards beat him for the 3-0 lead and game over.
A few thoughts:
I spoke about the effort level above. Even when 3-0, I thought some of the Rangers played hard, not all, but most of them. Chris Kreider was stoned seven seconds into the third and he was buzzing. Zuccarello was the best player on the ice for New York. But the bottom line is they failed to score and that really is all that matters.
Nash. Either 1 or 1a as whipping boys for the Rangers. He is paid a lot of money to score and his playoff history is not reflective of what he makes given his production. That said, we have complained that Nash wasn't going strong enough to the net. He did that yesterday. Granted, that mentality should have been there throughout the post-season and doing it in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals doesn't obviate his failure to do so the remainder of the playoffs. It's easy to say they should amnesty or deal him, but on the former, there is a more deserving candidate for that, and on the latter, who are you getting back? If you are doing just to free up salary, don't forget he did score during the regular season. It was uneven, but he did produce.
Richards. Running out of words to describe just how bad he has been. I will discuss his role on the PP and moving forward in this series and future below. Needless to say, regardless of the "leadership" he brings, it fails to even closely equate or outweigh his lack of production.
Moving forward: So what to do?
- Bench Richards. I don’t like embarrassing players, but this is a case where desperate times call for desperate measures. Dan Carcillo has now served his six-game suspension. I would move Dominic Moore up to the second line, bench Richards and insert Carcillo on the fourth line with Boyle and Dorsett. It's unlikely that AV does this, but Moore has shown he can step up, the team needs an infusion of energy and Carcillo will be heavily motivated to face his former squad and atone for his suspension.
- Change up the PP. AV finally put Nash on the man advantage. Why he waited so long and why no one asked him about this are two major unknowns. The Rangers needed traffic in front, like what Kreider has brought to that PP combination. Even if Richards plays, get him off the PP. Put J. Moore or Stralman there, since they have more speed and are better at the point than Richards. Going 0-for-6 last night and 0-for-their-last-and-I-can't-believe-this-is-right-31 at home should be enough to prompt change. If not, being down 3-0 should suffice.
- Hope history repeats itself. Unfortunately, I think LA will learn from it. Los Angeles won Games 1 and 2 in 2012 in OT. They won Game 3 via shutout, then let NJ back in the series, losing games 4 and 5 before winning Game 6 in a blowout. This year, they came back 3-0 down to SJ. They rebounded from 3-2 down to Anaheim. The Kings had a 3-1 lead but lost games 5 and 6 to Chicago before winning game 7. Teams learn from history. I hope that's not the case, but because LA has been through this on both sides of the equation, they know not to take anything for granted.
This may get me in hot water, but I don’t care. To all those hating or piling on the Rangers., do me a favor, shut up. We know the situation they are. We know how they look "inferior" to the Kings, even though the first two losses were in OT and double-OT, though each came after blowing two-goal leads. We know that it looks bleak. But if schadenfreude is your thing or you like piling on, please go elsewhere. Show a modicum or respect and class for those in great distress and pain over the deficit. Just like you wouldn't us to troll or pile on if you were in the same situation, don't do it here. I think I and my regular readers have been pretty respectful to those from other teams that want to come in and talk hockey. Plus, I think I have done a pretty good job of reminders the guys on the site not to take the bait and to make sure to welcome those who do want to talk history, regardless of team affiliation. Granted, it has not been smooth and quite bumpy in fact, but I believe many have enjoyed the interplay on my blog. If you want to troll or toss us the pity party, especially to rub it in, don't. Show some class or stay the heck out.
The hopes from just a week ago of winning the Cup, now are all but packed up and put to the recesses of the closet or basement for another year. Have I given up hope completely? No, but on a scale of 1-10, it's sitting at .00001. Whatever went wrong for the Rangers the past three games has to completely go right. What went right has to do exponentially for them to have a chance at just forcing a Game 5, let alone winning four in a row. If not, the blissful memories of the first three rounds will be lost in the ugly ones from this round.