And they won it with their best defenseman and possibly the best defenseman of the playoffs in their lineup who without a doubt aided in their corsi. Then this year they repeat without him. just incredible.
2016-17 Around the NHL Thread 53: 2017 Stanley Cup Champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins
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And they won it with their best defenseman and possibly the best defenseman of the playoffs in their lineup who without a doubt aided in their corsi. Then this year they repeat without him. just incredible.
NYRSchrute217
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- Oct 28, 2008
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The Rangers were their own worst enemy in 2012. Letting an 8 seed Ottawa push them around and have comeback wins in Games 2 and 4, and getting shutout at home in Game 5 prevented that from being a short series.
Losing game 2 against NJ, and game 5 after coming back from 3-0 down twisted the knife.
Still say 2015 was our best chance and we probably win game 7 if we aren't playing with two healthy defensemen and boyle being one of them...yuck
Machinehead
Fox Mafia Consigliere
Bob Richards
Mr. Mojo Risin'
That's my go-to for ultimate disdain.
As much as it sucked for me to watch New Jersey win twice during my childhood (obviously missed '95), at least it wasn't at the level of the Islanders. That actually sounds horrible.
True, but Gaborik played with a bad shoulder since the start of the playoffs.
If only we got the version of Gaborik that the Kings had when he owned us in the finals.
JT Kreider
FIRE GORDIE CLARK
And with Stralman in our lineup instead of the Lightning. Letting him go was the beginning of the end considering the awful chain of events it set off. Such a bad bad bad bad decision.
totally the Rangers never had the killer instinct. if i remember correctly they even had to come back from 3-2 down against ottawa that year. then they let the devils 4th line dominate them in the ecf.
Machinehead
Fox Mafia Consigliere
That's another problem I have.
A top two corsi team from March 1st on wins like 10 Championships in a row - nobody bats an eye.
Pittsburgh does this once - "that's it, analytics are worthless"
That definitely could be the defining personnel decision for sure that did just that and continues to kill us with the ntc big contracts given to staal and G.
JT Kreider
FIRE GORDIE CLARK
Been saying this for years and it is a huge problem, this team has a masssssive lack of killer instinct. Never able to step on a team's throat and take a stranglehold on a series. Win Game 1 but lose Game 2, win Game 3 but lose Game 4, on and on and on.
Even our one "dominant" playoff series against the Penguins in 2015 we barely squeaked by them.
True
but they still should have made it to finals. You're right though we would have lost easilyTrue
Yeah we def should have, I'm actually glad the Devils saved us an embarrassment.
So true if i was smarter i would have bet against them after every time they won a game.
CommaSynapse
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I think 2012 would've been our year. Hank's GAA was well below a 2.0.
Really, the Pens winning is whatever. Not going to lose sleep over it. I do wish the game wouldn't have had the disallowed goal and the flukey winner. It just adds b/s to the whole thing. With a group that includes Malkin and Crosby and now a young goaltender who steps up in big situations, I wouldn't be surprised to see at least one more cup in the next few years.
This isn't to say that Murray is better than Hank. I don't think so at all. The Pens are a solid team, but Murray is holding up his end now where Fleury has struggled in the past.
For us, it seems to have been one or the other. Hank stepped up and scoring faltered. The Pens sucked their way to two of the best players of their generation and they have capitalized and have been able to build around them. They've also drafted and developed well, which always includes some degree of luck, and they've ended up with good, young players in Sheary and Guentzel. They built a strong supporting cast with guys like Rust, Hornqvist, and Hagelin. Shrewd moves that worked out.
The real problem is the defense, and if they can move Fleury and a supporting guy to get some D help, they'll be that much stronger. Scary.
What's the Rangers current problem? I think coaching. AV is not getting the most out of his players, and I don't think he's using them to the best of their abilities. I think this is the same problem you had in Vancouver. He can get teams deep, but he's not able to get them going once they hit the wall. Both teams got listless. Maybe this is where getting Ruff onboard will help.
The Rangers are going with a different blueprint. Depth throughout the lineup to even out overall, with the idea that the depth will shine through despite injuries or cold streaks. They have had to work with trading picks and a lack of hitting on picks in the earlier rounds (Sanguinetti, Jessiman, McIlrath, the sad case of Cherepanov, etc.) while doing well a bit later (Callahan, Dubinsky, Stepan, Hank, Fast, Buchnevich, Duclair, etc.). The problem is that without star players, I think it's easier to defend. You have a lack of focus for the other team, so it's easier to work against. If Crosby is out, the best defensive players are against him.
The Rangers will stay competitive until Hank is finished. I don't see that going any other way because Hank will typically get this team to the playoffs one way or another. After that is when a rebuild happens.
Holocene
Registered User
Vinny DeAngelo
Jimmy Easy to defend
we'd be better with stralman, but i think the bigger mistake was signing girardi for so long. hard to look at those moves seperately but if you do. girardi hurts more imo
NYRSchrute217
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Zuccarello being hurt in 2015 didn't help, obviously, but half of our defense being hurt set an ugly tone in Game 7 and the offense was lifeless.
It's always one or the other with this team though. When the offense gets going and gets 4, Lundqvist gives up 5. Elite players need to play at elite levels. That's why I'm all in on selling high on most of the 25-30 guys here, because you need to get these elite players in the draft.
Machinehead
Fox Mafia Consigliere
I'll give Sullivan credit - he kinda just puts the team on the ice and stays out of his own way.
As opposed to guys like AV, Bylsma, Torts, Hakstol, etc. who have these weird fetishes and put terrible players on the ice while benching effective players, to fit weird agendas that nobody really gets but them.
As opposed to guys like AV, Bylsma, Torts, Hakstol, etc. who have these weird fetishes and put terrible players on the ice while benching effective players, to fit weird agendas that nobody really gets but them.
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