The Rangers were unable to make the most of their second opportunity to take a two-game lead in the series and once again, they are even with the Flyers after falling 2-1 Friday. An early 1-0 lead fell by the wayside and the Rangers were unable to tally again in the contest. Much of the reason for their struggles was the fine play of Steve Mason, who made 37 saves in his first start after missing the first two-plus games with an injury.
The loss, unlike Game 2, wasn't due to a lack of effort but resulted from two pieces. First, obviously, a lack of execution, seen in just the one goal scored. But, despite the effort, there was a lack of urgency. Philly had it Friday, as they did in Game 2, while the Rangers failed to match that intensity. That lack of intensity can be seen on the two goals scored by Philly, which wasn't the case for NY.
On the first, Matt Read - and we all know that most Rangers fans felt he should have been suspended for the shot to Carcillo's head - was able to get to the far post, as John Moore had to decide slot or post since no forwards were back. On the second, Marc Staal failed to make the most of a shot to clear the puck, just tapping it on the boards, enabling it to get back to the point. Then he allowed Jakub Voracek to get inside position and tap the puck past Henrik Lundqvist, those two plays were intensity and effort plays. For NY, other than Rick Nash early and Ryan McDonagh late in the second and Mats Zuccarello with about seven minutes to go, most of the Rangers shots did not from dangerous areas on the ice. They failed to create traffic in front or pounce on any rebounds that Mason left. Intensity and effort.
Historically, we have seen that the Rangers don't like making things easy, in 2012, they won Games 1 and 3 and lost Games 2 and 4 in all three of their series. Against Washington last year, they lost Games 1 and 2 then won Games 3 and 4. In addition, they lost Game 5 to Ottawa in 2012 and to Washington last year, then won Games 6 and 7 in both series. They won Game 5 against Washington in 2012, then lost Game 6 and won Game 7. They lost Game 5 to the Devils in 2013, then lost Game 6, too. So, the pattern we have seen is that there is no specific pattern, so regardless of what happens today has no bearing on Game 6. Of course, we hope the pattern of winning odd games continues, but a few things are needed.
First, win special teams. Philly is giving the Rangers chances on the power play, yet they have been unable to take advantage. After scoring a pair of power play goals to win Game 1, NY is 1-for-their-last-17 on the man advantage. Not enough pucks on the net, as seen on the 4-on-3, or traffic in front of Mason. In addition, the personnel usage was off Friday, as with one minute and 27 seconds of 4-on-3 time, instead of having Derick Brassard or Benoit Pouliot or Mats Zuccarello, coach Alain Vigneault went with Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh. With more ice space available, go with the creative players. It's not surprising that Philly eventually converted, going 1-for-2, as before that, they had two goals in 10 chances, with one an empty netter in Game 2.
Second, traffic in front of Mason. The Rangers had 38 shots and out-attempted Philly 72-61, so it wasn't a lack of chances. But, as noted above, the shots did not come from high-quality areas, making life difficult for Mason. New York needs to pay the price and get into the dirty areas to score. In the post-season, like all year, a pretty goal is worth as much as a dirty one, and this time of year, a dirty one is more deflating, because it came about after out working your opponent. New York needs to find a way to get more of those type of chances and goals.
Third, it's because too easy to criticize Nash. I didn't hear a word said when he had four assists the first three games, yet it seems to have become the default position to criticize Nash when things don't go right or as well as they should. That doesn't mean that Nash is blameless, as he was brought to New York to score, which he has failed to do consistently. The numbers back this up, as he has just one goal and eight assists in 16 playoff games with New York. That said, Nash may have the Rangers' best forward and had the best chances Friday, especially on the last shift, though the bottom line is he failed to convert. When you add in that he was brought in for a group that includes Brandon Dubinsky, who has had a tremendous series against the Penguins, the focus on him, especially when he struggles, grows even more and spotlight becomes a bit hotter. For Nash to quell the criticism, he must produce, plain and simple. Be willing to use his body to get in front or do what he did on the last shift, power past players to create chances and then convert.
Fourth, lineup changes. There is some speculation that JT Miller could be inserted in the lineup. Nothing like putting in a player that has been bounced up and down to Hartford and in and out of the lineup when he has been up with the Rangers. I could see trying to generate more offensive by putting Miller on the second line, moving Carcillo down and sitting Derek Dorsett, as he and Carcillo are fairly similar players. But Carcillo has been more effective when in the lineup and has a bit more of an edge to his game than Dorsett. As Pat Leonard pointed out, Miller did show hostages and skill in an early-season against the Flyers in Philly, when he had a goal disallowed off his skate. That offensive ability is something the Rangers need to better transition through the neutral zone and not solely rely on dump and chase, so it wouldn't be shocking if a lineup change is made.
Fifth, Hank being Hank. He has had a strong series, but in the two losses, one could argue he was outplayed by Ray Emery and Mason. Of course, the flip-side of that is that he outplayed Emery in Games 1 and 3 and was a big reason why they won. Lundqvist's I real numbers are fine, but it would not shock me - and would be a huge boost - if he played as he did in 2012 and in Games 6 and 7 last year against Washington, when he was a brick wall between the pipes.
Line Combinations
Rangers:
Forwards: 61 Rick Nash - 21 Derek Stepan - 26 Martin St. Louis 67 Benoit Pouliot - 16 Derick Brassard - 36 Mats Zuccarello 62 Carl Hagelin - 19 Brad Richards - 13 Daniel Carcillo 12 Jesper Fast 22 Brian Boyle - 28 Dominic Moore - 15 Derek Dorsett
Extras: Jesper Fast (healthy, played games 1 and 2 but replaced by Carcillo in Game 3), JT Miller (could possibly get in Sunday, as I noted above) and Chris Kreider (recovering from left hand injury; still can't stickhandle with that hand and likely out all of this round and part of the next).
Defense 27 Ryan McDonagh - 5 Dan Girardi 18 Marc Staal - 6 Anton Stralman 17 John Moore - 8 Kevin Klein
Extras: Raphael Diaz (a heck of a lot better than having to dress Roman Hamrlik) and Justin Falk.
Goaltending 30 Henrik Lundqvist 33 Cam Talbot
Flyers
Forwards 19 Scott Hartnell - 28 Claude Giroux - 93 Jakub Voracek 10 Brayden Schenn - 40 Vincent Lecavalier - 17 Wayne Simmonds 24 Matt Read - 14 Sean Couturier - 42 Jason Akeson 36 Zac Rinaldo - 12 Michael Raffl - 18 Adam Hall
Healthy Scratches - Tye McGinn, Jay Rosehill, Chris VandeVelde
Defense 44 Kimmo Timonen - 5 Braydon Coburn 75 Hal Gill - 32 Mark Streit 47 Andrew MacDonald - 22 Luke Schenn
Extras - Erik Gustafsson (healthy), Nicklas Grossman (injured right knee Friday)
Goaltenders Steve Mason Ray Emery
Healthy Scratch - Cal Heeter
Schedule
No. 3 Flyers vs. No. 2 Rangers (Metro Division) first-round scheduele Game 1: Rangers 4 Flyers 1, Thurs., April 17 Game 2: Flyers 4 Rangers 2, Sun., April 20 Game 3: Rangers 4 Flyers 1, Tue., April 22 Game 4: Flyers 2, Rangers 1 Fri., April 25 Game 5: Flyers at Rangers, Sun., April 27 at 12 p.m. (NBC, CSN) Game 6*: Rangers at Flyers, Tue., April 29 at TBD Game 7*: Flyers at Rangers, Thurs., April 30 at TBD
New York needs to come out and play throughout with the desperation that Philadelphia showed in Games 2 and 4. Find a way to get the win and head down I-95 with a chance to wrap up the series Tuesday. In addition, by winning today, all the pressure would shift to Philly, as Game 6 would be a do-or-die game for them, if not, it's the Rangers that would be in that position.
Let's Go Rangers!!!!