The improbable run is over. Heading into the playoffs, the Rangers were a long-shot to win the Eastern Conference and advance to the Stanley Cup Finals, but they did it. Against the Kings, most didn't give them a shot, but they gave LA all they could handle. An overtime loss combined with a pair of double-OT defeats, including 3-2 on Friday night, gave Los Angeles their second championship in three years but gained New York a large measure of respect in the hockey community.
There is lots of work to be done, mainly due to the substantive number of restricted and unrestricted free agents, but the future looks bright. There are several young players who either should be ascending or hitting their peak years, coupled with solid veterans. The team needs to be bigger and stronger to play with the West, seen in how many of these games played out. But that needs to be done without sacrificing the speed and transition game that made NY so tough to face. Changes are inevitable, given the number of RFAs and UFAs, but even if there weren't any, staying static is deadly. However, I would prefer if a full-blown revampment like what occurred after the 2011-12 season doesn't take place again this off-season. (More on that to follow).
The Rangers took the Kings' best punch, yet kept coming back for more. The same can be said for LA, whose ability to look two-goal or series' deficits in the eye and laugh is what makes them champions. As a Rangers fan and the blogger on this site, seeing through the forest through the trees or the truth at times is not easy. I try to stay level-headed but as any fan, sometimes it's tough, so when many of us speak about officials' calls and the like, it's a way of deflecting the pain of the loss with a rationalization.
As we have all too many times in the past, including with our own Rangers, just because you got to this point is no guarantee that you will be back. It's been 20 very long years since 1994, and while NY reached the ECF twice before this season, that's as far as they got. So when you reach this point and fail to advantage of the opportunity, it hurts that much more. This is what every Rangers fan has been feeling since 12:27AM on Saturday morning. June 14th will always be a great day but with the loss Saturday AM, that date now has a twinge of pain in it.
The officiating horrific, plain and simple, including in Game 5. Were there poor calls on both sides, of course there were, but it just looked as if the Rangers were on the short end of the stick. More important, LA made the most of those calls while NY didn't, which added further fuel to our fire when discussing the penalties that shouldn't have been called. That includes the goalie interference call on Benoit Pouliot and tripping call on Mats Zuccarello against Jake Muzzin. Good teams deal with adversity, great teams overcome them. The Rangers just dealt with them while LA was able to capitalize on those opportunities, which is why they are the cup champions.
For me the season has so many memories, many of which I laid out during the Montreal series:
Season. From the Derek Stepan holdout to the Yukon trip. The horrific road trip to start the season and 3-6 start, which included the absences of Ryan Callahan and Carl Hagelin. The Tomas Hertl between the legs goal in a game where Rick Nash suffered another concussion. Henrik Lundqvist's struggles and questions on if his looming free agent status was impacting his play. Cam Talbot stepping in to calm everything down and really help rescue the season. The benching and rebirth of Mats Zuccarello. Debating if or should Callahan and Dan Girardi should be brought back. Re-signing Girardi and the Callahan negotiations. The Michael Del Zotto for Kevin Klein trade that solidified the third pairing. The unsung play of Brian Boyle and Dominic Moore, another great one-year signing by Sather. Adding Daniel Carcillo for nothing. Ryan McDonagh becoming an elite defender. The rumors and finally compilation of the Callahan for Martin St. Louis trade followed by acquisition of Raphael Diaz. The closing stretch, which included an injury to Chris Kreider, and just one goal by St. Louis. Raising additional questions on the wisdom of the deal.
Playoffs. First round victory against Philly, punctuated by Game 7 win by Hank after a poor Game 6. Winning Game 1 against Pitt but losing three straight. The return of Kreider in Game 4 and poor team performance in that contest. The unfortunate passing of St. Louis' mom, France, which seemed to galvanize and unify the team, as trite as that sounds. Leadership in the locker room by Brad Richards and solid play by Benoit Pouliot/Derick Brassard. Winning Game 5 in Pitt. The win at home in Game 6. Lundqvist standing on his head in Game 7 to help the team advance to the ECF. Two wins in Montreal, the Prust hit on Stepan and Game 3 OT loss, followed by top-shelf Marty in OT in Game 4. Spitting the bit in Game 5 and the John Moore hit/suspension, then Game 6. Dominic Moore's goal and Henrik Lundqvist's stellar goaltending propelling the Rangers to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Then the Finals. Game 1: a 2-0 lead thanks to Pouliot, then a Carl Hagelin shorthanded one. Just 2:30 later, a weak Derek Stepan clear and it was 2-1, giving LA all the momentum. Drew Doughty with the toe-drag move to tie the game and it was wave upon wave of Kings the remainder of the game. Lundqvist with 20 saves in the third and Hagelin getting stoned by Quick on a breakaway late in the period. Dan Girardi with the turnover and overtime goal by Justin Williams.
Game 2: Another 2-0 lead, this time on goals by McDonagh and Zuccarello. A weak Brad Richards clear and it was 2-1, giving LA momentum. Martin St. Louis answers, then Willie Mitchell does the same on the PP followed by Derick Brassard 11 seconds later. The non-interference call on Dwight King giving LA a goal and the momentum with Marian Gaborik tying it under six minutes later. The speed and power and physical play of LA wearing out the Rangers. McDonagh off the post, a theme this round, Kreider stoned on a breakaway and Dustin Brown with a deflection goal in double-OT.
Game 3: First SCF game at MSG in 20 years. An even first, thanks to a air of unreal saves by Quick on Brassard and Zuccarello. After a missed opportunity for NY on the power play, Nash and John Moore go to pick up Justin Williams. He feeds Jeff Carter, who was left wide open in the slot by one of those two Rangers, and it was 1-0 Kings with just 0.8 left in then period after the puck deflected off Dan Girardi's skate and by Lundqvist. Jake Muzzin with PP goal off St. Louis and Carter and Mike Richards following a pass that came back to him off McDonagh, enabling him to beat Lundqvist. NY came with everything they had but Quick was unreal, stealing the game.
Game 4: Puck luck. Two shots fail to cross the goal line, thanks to Anton Stralman's stick and Derek Stepan's glove. Pouliot with the deflection just as the PP expired in the first and St. Louis in the second, Two minutes later, G's stick breaks, Brown scores on a beautiful set of moves on the PP and momentum has shifted. The Kings throwing everything they can at Lundqvist, who was a brick wall. The Stepan save thanks to slush in the crease and it's back to LA.
Game 5: Justin Williams off a scramble in front 6:04 into the first. Kreider on a deflection from a gorgeous feed by McDonagh and Brian Boyle shorthanded late on a beautiful top shelf shot wide side. Hope raised in every Rangers' fan that we will have a Game 6. A crappy call on Zucc and Gaborik capitalizes on more traffic in front to tie it. LA coming on in the third. An even OT, highlighted by McD off the post, Toffolo off the crossbar and then NY again off the post. Nash with half an empty net has hit shot deflected by Voynov over the crossbar, continuing his snakebite and futile playoffs. In double-OT, a 3-on-2 for LA. Shot by Toffoli rebound to Alec Martinez, and like he did against Chicago, the game-winning goal off his stick.
Despite the loss, as Slimtj wrote, I am proud to be a Rangers fan and proud of this team. Proud how they played in the playoffs. Proud how they rebounded and dealt with adversity. Proud at how they left it all out on the ice. While the end result was not what any of us wanted, the strides made this year would seem to put us in a good place moving forward. The heart and will of this squad was evident throughout, aided and abetted by the camaraderie and familial environment that came to the fore after Martin St. Louis' mother passed away. Add a coach that proved to be a perfect fit, elite goaltender, young and skilled player along with an owner who will spend to bring a winner, I am proud to be a Rangers fan.
I will get a another blog up tomorrow going through the 20+ questions facing the Rangers this off-season. As noted above, much of that is due to the myriad of RFAs and UFAs, the return or departure of which will play a big role how this team is constituted moving forward. Of course, the big one is the start of the compliance buyout period Monday, putting Brad Richards, who struggled as the playoffs wore on, firmly in the cross-hairs. Feel free to PM me your questions and I will consider them, as I always have, when putting together my list.
Thanks again to all those who read me during the year and those who joined in when the playoffs began. I appreciate all the comments, suggestions and yes, even the criticisms, as we all have hopefully made this one of the best Rangers' blogs on the internet. I get more out of you than you likely get from me, so thank you for all the great information during the season. Here's to an even better 2014-15 season.