Henrik Lunqvist isn't counting his chickens before they hatch. This isn't his first rodeo. The King was asked after Wednesday's practice about the fast 2-0 start that his Rangers have gotten off to against the Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Finals. The veteran let all reporters know that his singular focus right now is on the next game. Then, the next game. And if need be, the next two games.
Lundqvist says that its a matter of winning four games, not two, or three. You won't hear Lundqvist crowing about a 2-0 series lead.
PK Subban quipped after Monday night's Rangers win that he thought Lundqvist had gotten lucky on a few occasions. Lundqvist was the Rock of Gibraltar on that night. Luck didn't have much to do with The King's virtuoso performance. The guy held his position, played perfect angles and made the saves that he had to make when he had to make them.
Thanks, Rangers TV
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Was Mike Therrien trying to get a rise out of the enigmatic Thomas Vanek by rotating the sluping sniper through on the Montreal fourth line at practice on Wednesday?
Thomas Vanek was paired with Brandon Prust and Daniel Briere, while Tomas Plekanec had a new winger by his side.
Therrien told the Habs website that he's not tipping his hand
“The Plekanec line has to give us more. I’m ready to keep a few line combinations together, as long as I see something good out of them. Sometimes, the results you’re looking for aren’t there, but the chances are,… mentioned Therrien, who elected to add Alex Galchenyuk to the Plekanec-Gionta combination at practice. “When nothing’s happening, you come to a point where decisions need to be made. That’s the reason why a coach makes line changes. We don’t only judge a line’s effectiveness in terms of goals and assists. If I see that players are getting chances, it’s a good thing. If the opposite is true, it’s time to switch things up. The hope is that those moves will yield results.…
Therrien may opt to scratch Vanek for Game 3.
It makes no sense at all to disrupt an effective fourth line by throwing Vanek there and sitting a grinder.
Maybe Therrien is taking a page from Lindy Ruff's book and only pushing Vanek's buttons.
We'll see on Thursday.
Personally, I'd play Vanek with Desharnais and Pacioretty on the top scoring line. Play him 18-20 minutes, too. Not 11 minutes on a makeshift second line.
Thats just me.
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