Post-Game Talk: Game 2 of a Day-Night Double Header

[Infinitum Vitae*]

So... we're not that far away from the pens.... we could take the conference

 

[Paulie Walnutz]

This game was so much fun to be at, I highly recommend going to an outdoor game

 

[SwedeAmerican]

For those who were there, what was the % of fans?

 

[SnowblindNYR]

So... we're not that far away from the pens.... we could take the conference

We're 15 points behind them and they have 2 games in hand. To put that in perspective, the Pens just have to go 20-9 to get a better record than us if we win EVERY game remaining.

 

[Whiplash27]

For those who were there, what was the % of fans?

I would say about 60/40 Rangers.

 

[trilobyte]

So... we're not that far away from the pens.... we could take the conference

15 point difference, Pens with 2 games in hand.
I say let's just knock them out in the playoffs instead.

 

[Infinitum Vitae*]

15 point difference, Pens with 2 games in hand.
I say let's just knock them out in the playoffs instead.

Hell yea!

 

[JohnC]

For those who were there, what was the % of fans?

According to the social poll displayed on the jumbotron it was 59% Rangers but I'm not too sure honestly. I was in a section with plenty of Isles fans but mostly Rangers fans.

Also, Brian Boyle seemed to go full playoff Brian Boyle for these two games. Had a few great hits tonight

 

[HockeyBasedNYC]

Marc stall was an absolute beast tonight.

BEAST

Best game of the season

I thought the Rangers played fantastic defensively and as the game went on got better and better with puck possession and smart decisions. Good system game.

 

[BarbaraAlphanse]

Cally summed up his worth in his parting interview.

"We're back to playing Rangers hockey"
"What's Ranger's hockey, Ryan? This year's team philosophy is much different than last years"
"Hard working - that has always remained consistent, and that's the ethos of Rangers hockey"

Get rid of him... and watch the team take a huge hit. Trading him may be the right thing to do, but it'll take a while to recover.

As for thoughts on the game:

- 4th line has been consistently good this entire year. When Dorsett is healthy, trade him for a 4th or a 5th. Resign Carcillo for next year.
- Poo had a good game. Problem is, it's not consistent. Try and upgrade the top 6 and slot Poo out. He'll be perfect as the 13th forward moving forward this season. Or trade him for what you can get.
- The entire 2nd line is NOT gelling. Hagelin is a checker and should not be on the same line as Richards. Callahan has been playing more offensively lately, but is also not on the same offensive page as Richards. In contrast, Zuccarello has been on a tear no matter what line he's on. He deserves to be in the top 6. Brassard is a fringe 2nd liner, but his offensive skill set fits Richards' moreso than Hags or Cally.
- Hank has got it down.
- The defense has definitely improved, but the transition game tonight looked a little weak. Klein has been solid defensively, I don't blame him for the first goal, but his outlet passing is quit horrendous. His skating, North-South, is also below average. No doubt he's made us more solid defensively, but his style is more representitive of a Torts style of hockey rather than a Vigneault style of hockey. We need a bomb shot puck mover... we sorely lack it. The Klein trade is making less and less sense to me. Stralman and Staal have been lock down together. Girardi looks to be close to resigning. McIlrath is in the wings ready to come up. There must be something we're not getting here with that trade...
- Finally, if Henrik continues to play like this... the sky is the limit for this team. Cup bound? It's not inconceivable anymore.

 

[aufheben]

So... we're not that far away from the pens.... we could take the conference

The Panthers are closer to us than we are to the Penguins.

 

[JESSEWENEEDTOCOOK]

So... we're not that far away from the pens.... we could take the conference

 

[JESSEWENEEDTOCOOK]

According to the social poll displayed on the jumbotron it was 59% Rangers but I'm not too sure honestly. I was in a section with plenty of Isles fans but mostly Rangers fans.

Also, Brian Boyle seemed to go full playoff Brian Boyle for these two games. Had a few great hits tonight

Boyle had like 4 huge hits tonight, no joke. One of them helped generate the Carcillo goal.

 

[Ryan McDonut]

I would say about 60/40 Rangers.

i think this is the most accurate. plenty of isles fans, but many more rangers fans.

 

[Ola]

OMG we get it you like DZ your a fan of his, but DZ is gone turn the page & accept the fact that DZ was never going to live to his potential as a NYR & be happy we got back a decent return.

I don't know, I think it's relevant.

In the other thread people are talking about dumping Stralman.

We play well when we manage to get up ice. Klein seems to be a possibility to get a top 4 role in the near future. I think it's valid to discuss him.

 

[gardenparty]

I am loving the Carcillo acquisition more every day. Pretty decent hockey sense for a guy with as many PIMs as he has. He adds the right amount of sandpaper to this roster and can pot the odd goal. As long as he doesn't take dumb penalties, he can be extremely useful down the stretch.

 

[Pizza]

Marc stall was an absolute beast tonight.

BEAST

Best game of the season

I thought the Rangers played fantastic defensively and as the game went on got better and better with puck possession and smart decisions. Good system game.

Staal getting back to what he's capable of is a big part of what could make the Rangers a dangerous team.

Call me crazy but I think Poo has been very consistent. He's become an asset. He looks to be about as good a hockey player right now as he ever has been as a pro.

I think trading Callahan would be a huge, HUGE mistake.

 

[Kokoschka]

What? We only need 8 more wins than the Penguins in 2 less games. Boston and Tampa will certainly collapse. Piece of cake.

@ Kenjets: I'm a bit concerned about our 2nd line too, but honestly I have no clue how to shuffle the lines. The best combo I can come up with is
Kreider-Brassard/Richards-Zucc
Pouliot-Brassard/Richards-Nash
Hagelin-Stepan-Callahan

Problem now is, you have two lines which really aren't that good defensively, and you break up the Kreider-Stepan-Nash combo, which has been working really well lately. I'd be honestly interted in seeing what Zucc and Kreider can do together though. I'd try this, if we have a meaningless game before the playoffs start.

 

[Blueshirt Believer]

I think Ranger fans need to temper the expectations a tad. This team is not a contender right now. We will probably settle into being a decent playoff team this season. But there are too many question marks on our third line, too streaky first line, not enough offense coming from our blueline. Not to mention we are a bit undersized and still have too many passengers on this team.

We just beat two mediocre teams back to back. The islander game could have gone either way(despite that we played well). The idea that the Rangers could beat a team like Boston in a 7 game series is laughable. Even if the hockey gods throw us a bone and the Rangers cinderella(while getting the best possible match ups) their way to a SCF: any of the top six teams in the west(maybe except Colorado)would kick the living crap out of the Rangers in a finals series.

Team is still a work in progress folks.

 

[Blueshirt Believer]

Btw, people that were asking about the stammering "boy" asking questions. I forgot the name of the person but I believe he is transgendered(female to male). Its actually a beat reporter that has covered the team for about 2 seasons.

I have no idea why he was stammering so badly however. He was fine when asking Torts questions in the past. Sounds like he had a stroke.

 

[RothmanHockey]

BRONX, N.Y. - If it was a pure exhibition of high-skill hockey you were looking for, Yankee Stadium wasn't the place to be this week.

If it was an exhibition of what hockey means to its fans, then Yankee Stadium was the only place to be this week.

http://web.yesnetwork.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20140130&content_id=67262972&oid=0

 

[The Lunatic Fridge]

We're 1 pt out of 4th in the conference and 6 pts behind tampa. We're also 1 of only 4 teams with a + team rating in the east now.

 

[silverfish]

Hm. I thought the first period and a huge chunk of the second period might have been the WORST hockey we've seen from this team in a long time. Surprised to see so much optimism in this thread tonight.

Definitely 2 big points, and they defnitely turned it on after the Islanders scored, which was good to see. Unfortunate that it took them a while to wake up though.

 

[Baby Punisher]

I don't know, I think it's relevant.

In the other thread people are talking about dumping Stralman.

We play well when we manage to get up ice. Klein seems to be a possibility to get a top 4 role in the near future. I think it's valid to discuss him.

You may very well be correct. Klein seems to have that in him.

 

[Thunderhead]

Did u guys hear Stan trying to make Vigneault admit that Rangers were lucky to win the game ?