The New York Rangers defeated the division rival Philapdelphia Flyers 2-0 Monday night, again at Madison Square Garden. Chalk that up as 4 Ws in a row for the Rangers, as they now have a record of 7-6-1. After a tough start to the season, New York now finds itself just 1 point behind the first place Flyers. The long homestand really did wonders for the Rangers, as they went 5-1 in 6 games on the Garden ice. Overall, the Rangers are now 7-2 for the year at home, but are a dismal 0-4-1 on the road. They are the only team in the entire NHL without a road win this season.
The key factor in this game was once again the stellar play of Henrik Lundqvist. To tell you the truth, it's getting difficult to write these game recaps without sounding extremely repetitive. But the biggest story night in and night out has been King Henrik's dominance. Tonight, he stopped all 30 shots he faced to earn his 4th shutout of the year, and his 3rd in his last 6 games. Keep in mind, these shutouts are not coming in games in which the Rangers are lighting up the scoreboard. Tonight for example was just a 2-0 victory, but was only a 1-0 game until 4 minutes left in the 3rd period. New York is leaving their star netminder no room for errors, which is okay for now- but only because he isn't making any. What makes Henrik's outstanding start to the season all the more impressive, is that he's started and finished every game this season and still has shown no signs of fatigue. If anything, he's sharper now than he was the first week or so. Flyers' goalie Martin Biron was also outstanding, saving 43 of 45 NY shots. But I guess "outstanding" just isn't good enough when you're facing a goalie who's playing as close to perfect as possible. The Rangers have the fewest goals in the league (25), but are now above .500, because thanks to Lundqvist they have also allowed the fewest (23).
The Rangers' first goal came right at the end of the 1st period. Jaromir Jagr lifted one of his vintage wrist shots over Biron's shoulder for his 4th goal of the season. The goal was assisted by Scott Gomez and defenseman Daniel Girardi. The Rangers' second goal came with just 4 minutes left in the 3rd period, and was scored on the power play by Brendan Shanahan. Shanahan found open ice in the middle of the Philly penalty-kill and received a sharp pass from Jagr. Shanny blasted a one-timer low and past Biron's right pad for his 4th of the year as well.
Stars of the Game:
3rd-Brandon Dubinsky-NYR
2nd-Jaromir Jagr-NYR
1st-Henrik Lundqvist-NYR
I feel like I must once again give honorable mention to Henrik Lundqvist's opposing goaltender, Martin Biron. He played well, but was simply overshadowed by the King.
Next on the slate for the Rangers are the New York Islanders. The Rangers will make the short trip out to Long Island in search of their first road victory of the year tommorrow night.
Showing posts with label Hockey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hockey. Show all posts
Monday, November 5, 2007
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Rangers/Devils Recap: Avery Returns
The New York Rangers hosted the rival New Jersey Devils on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. It was the second meeting between the 2 this year, and it marked the first game a of a key 4 game stretch for the Rangers in which they will play each member of their division once. The big story was the return of agitator and crowd favorite Sean Avery to the Rangers' lineup. Avery injured his shoulder in the second game of the season on a cheap shot by the Ottawa Senator's Chris Neil. Last season the Rangers were hovering on the bubble of the playoff picture when they brought Avery in at the trade deadline. New York then went on a tear, and many attribute the turnaround to Avery's energy and toughness. On a side note, Marek Malik, a member of the Rangers' top defensive pair was out with a knee injury. He is considered day to day. Jason Strudwick took his place in the lineup.
Avery's return to the lineup caused head coach Tom Renney to make some changes in the line combinations. Rookie Brandon Dubinsky centered Jaromir Jagr and Marcel Hossa. Scott Gomez centered Avery and Petr Prucha. Chris Drury centered Brendan Shanahan and Nigel Dawes, to round out a 3rd very dangerous scoring line for the Rangers. The 4th checking line of Blair Betts, Colton Orr, and Ryan Hollweg remained in tact.
Right away, Avery's contribution to lineup was noticable. The Prucha/Gomez/Avery line provided a spark all game long, often holding the puck in the Devils' zone for the duration of their shifts. In fact, Scott Gomez netted a goal against his former team early in the 1st period. Petr Prucha made some nice moves as he carried the puck from end to end. He threw it at Devils' goalie Martin Brodeur, and the puck bounced back out to Gomez, who blasted it through a Sean Avery screen and past Brodeur. Unfortunately, the Devils answered right back as Sergei Brylin jammed one passed Henrik Lundqvist in a scram in front of the Rangers' net only 33 seconds later. Although Avery did not record a point, he registered 5 hits and agitated the Devils into some penalties. He had a pretty typical Avery game, and the crowd was certainly glad to have his energy back on the ice.
While the line changes may have energized the Gomez and Drury lines, I felt like the Hossa/Dubinsky/Jagr line was lacking energy throughout much of the game. Dubinsky and Hossa simply don't control the puck well enough to help Jagr keep the puck in the opponent's zone. Maybe I'm just accustomed to the puck dominance that the Jagr line used to display when Michael Nylander centered Jagr the past 2 seasons. Renney really needs to find the right combination of linesmates to get his superstar winger going.
From then on, the story of this game was all about the 2 outstanding goalies. Lundqvist and Brodeur are arguably the two best in the game, and both certainly played that way for the final 2 and a half periods. Lundqvist made an outstanding save midway through the 2nd period. As he was lying on the ground, the puck was flipped over his head, at which point he bent over backwards and swatted the puck away with his glove just before it crossed the goalline. Brodeur answered a little later on with an outstanding glove snare on Brendan Shanahan. Lundqvist again made an outstanding stop in the 3rd period. The puck rolled slowly into the Rangers zone and a Devils forward and Lundqvist both charged the puck at the same time. Lundqvist attempted to clear it with his stick, but it hit off a Rangers defenseman right to a Devils player. Despite an open goal, Lundqvist dove backwards and made an awesome pad stop to keep the score a tie.
Regulation time ended in a 1-1 tie and the game went to overtime. There wasn't too much offensive action in OT, except for a Chris Drury breakway on Martin Brodeur. Drury received an outlet pass and had a 1 on 1 situation with Brodeur. He wound up and took a slap shot but the Devils goaltender blockered it away. OT also ended in a 1-1 tie, and the game commenced to the shootout.
A shootout in the NHL is always a treat, but its even more exciting when it includes 2 premiere goalies. The first shooter for the Rangers was Marcel Hossa. He deeked Brodeur to the left but then flipped it too high over the top of the net. The Devils first shooter, Zach Parise, got Lundqvist leaning the wrong way, but lost control of the puck and could not get a shot off. The Rangers second shooter was Petr Prucha. Prucha moved in on Brodeur, faked a wrist shot, and then put one into the back of the net just over Brodeur's outstretched left pad. With the Rangers up 1-0 in the shootout, Brian Gionta tried to beat Lundqvist low and to the left, but Henrik stoned him with his right pad. Brodeur then knocked away Nigel Dawes' wrister with his glove, leaving it up to John Madden to beat Henrik Lundqvist to extend the shootout. Madden moved in but shot it well over the net, giving the Rangers the 2-1 (1-0) victory.
The Rangers have now won 3 in a row to even their record up at 6-6-1. Henrik Lundqvist was once again outstanding in a low scoring game, and again asserted his dominance in shootouts. The stars of the game were as follows: 3rd Star: Scott Gomez, 2nd Star: Petr Prucha, 1st star: Henrik Lundqvist. I also however give honorable mention to Martin Brodeur and Sean Avery. The Rangers now continue with 3 in-division games against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night, the New York Islanders on Tuesday night, and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.
Avery's return to the lineup caused head coach Tom Renney to make some changes in the line combinations. Rookie Brandon Dubinsky centered Jaromir Jagr and Marcel Hossa. Scott Gomez centered Avery and Petr Prucha. Chris Drury centered Brendan Shanahan and Nigel Dawes, to round out a 3rd very dangerous scoring line for the Rangers. The 4th checking line of Blair Betts, Colton Orr, and Ryan Hollweg remained in tact.
Right away, Avery's contribution to lineup was noticable. The Prucha/Gomez/Avery line provided a spark all game long, often holding the puck in the Devils' zone for the duration of their shifts. In fact, Scott Gomez netted a goal against his former team early in the 1st period. Petr Prucha made some nice moves as he carried the puck from end to end. He threw it at Devils' goalie Martin Brodeur, and the puck bounced back out to Gomez, who blasted it through a Sean Avery screen and past Brodeur. Unfortunately, the Devils answered right back as Sergei Brylin jammed one passed Henrik Lundqvist in a scram in front of the Rangers' net only 33 seconds later. Although Avery did not record a point, he registered 5 hits and agitated the Devils into some penalties. He had a pretty typical Avery game, and the crowd was certainly glad to have his energy back on the ice.
While the line changes may have energized the Gomez and Drury lines, I felt like the Hossa/Dubinsky/Jagr line was lacking energy throughout much of the game. Dubinsky and Hossa simply don't control the puck well enough to help Jagr keep the puck in the opponent's zone. Maybe I'm just accustomed to the puck dominance that the Jagr line used to display when Michael Nylander centered Jagr the past 2 seasons. Renney really needs to find the right combination of linesmates to get his superstar winger going.
From then on, the story of this game was all about the 2 outstanding goalies. Lundqvist and Brodeur are arguably the two best in the game, and both certainly played that way for the final 2 and a half periods. Lundqvist made an outstanding save midway through the 2nd period. As he was lying on the ground, the puck was flipped over his head, at which point he bent over backwards and swatted the puck away with his glove just before it crossed the goalline. Brodeur answered a little later on with an outstanding glove snare on Brendan Shanahan. Lundqvist again made an outstanding stop in the 3rd period. The puck rolled slowly into the Rangers zone and a Devils forward and Lundqvist both charged the puck at the same time. Lundqvist attempted to clear it with his stick, but it hit off a Rangers defenseman right to a Devils player. Despite an open goal, Lundqvist dove backwards and made an awesome pad stop to keep the score a tie.
Regulation time ended in a 1-1 tie and the game went to overtime. There wasn't too much offensive action in OT, except for a Chris Drury breakway on Martin Brodeur. Drury received an outlet pass and had a 1 on 1 situation with Brodeur. He wound up and took a slap shot but the Devils goaltender blockered it away. OT also ended in a 1-1 tie, and the game commenced to the shootout.
A shootout in the NHL is always a treat, but its even more exciting when it includes 2 premiere goalies. The first shooter for the Rangers was Marcel Hossa. He deeked Brodeur to the left but then flipped it too high over the top of the net. The Devils first shooter, Zach Parise, got Lundqvist leaning the wrong way, but lost control of the puck and could not get a shot off. The Rangers second shooter was Petr Prucha. Prucha moved in on Brodeur, faked a wrist shot, and then put one into the back of the net just over Brodeur's outstretched left pad. With the Rangers up 1-0 in the shootout, Brian Gionta tried to beat Lundqvist low and to the left, but Henrik stoned him with his right pad. Brodeur then knocked away Nigel Dawes' wrister with his glove, leaving it up to John Madden to beat Henrik Lundqvist to extend the shootout. Madden moved in but shot it well over the net, giving the Rangers the 2-1 (1-0) victory.
The Rangers have now won 3 in a row to even their record up at 6-6-1. Henrik Lundqvist was once again outstanding in a low scoring game, and again asserted his dominance in shootouts. The stars of the game were as follows: 3rd Star: Scott Gomez, 2nd Star: Petr Prucha, 1st star: Henrik Lundqvist. I also however give honorable mention to Martin Brodeur and Sean Avery. The Rangers now continue with 3 in-division games against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night, the New York Islanders on Tuesday night, and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Henrik keeping the Rangers afloat
The Rangers took to the Madison Square Garden ice tonight coming off a 3-1 home win Monday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Coming into tonight, the Rangers were still yet to win consecutive games during the young 2007-2008 season and their overall record stood at 4-6-1. Entering the season, the Broadway Blueshirts were a popular choice to eventually represent the Eastern Conference in the battle for Lord Stanley's Cup. On paper it certainly seemed that way. New York was coming off 2 straight playoff appearances, and in the offseason they added the offensive talents of centers Chris Drury and Scott Gomez. The newcomers in addition to captain Jaromir Jagr and top-line scorers Brendan Shanahan and Martin Straka were supposed to form a formidable scoring attack. However despite a high payroll filled with scoring threats, the Rangers have struggled to find the net in the early stages of the season. In fact, coming into tonight, New York had the lowest amount of goals in the entire NHL at just 19 in 11 games. The only reason the Rangers have managed to stay afloat has been due to the stellar play of Vezina Award candidate Henrik Lundqvist in net.
Tonight's game against the Washington Capitals was no different. Washington is a team that is typically easy to gameplan against. They feature 2 top scoring lines, and 2 checking lines that get limited ice time. Their top line includes veteran center Viktor Kozlov and superstar Alexander Ovechkin and the second scoring line features former Ranger Michael Nylander and the up and coming Alexander Semin. The key to beating teams structured with 2 elite lines rather than 3 or 4 deep lines, is puck control. The Rangers gameplan was likely to try to control the puck for as long as possible while the Ovechkin line was on the ice by matching the Jagr line up against them. By doing so, the Rangers hoped to keep the puck in the Cap's zone and limit the shots on King Henrik.
Unfortunately the Rangers have not been able to do this all season. They have been outshot in practically every game. Tonight Washington also outshot the Rangers, putting 31 on Lundqvist including 6 from Alex Ovechkin (so much for limiting his touches). But just as he always does, Henrik Lundqvist once again stood on his head for New York. He saved all 31 shots he faced, including an awesome pad stop late in the 2nd period that robbed Viktor Kozlov of a goal. Lundqvist tacked on his second shutout of the season, as the Rangers were able to scrounge for 2 goals. Free agent addition Chris Drury scored early in the 2nd period, assisted by Shanahan and rookie defenseman phenom Marc Staal. It was only the talented Drury's second goal of the season, and first since opening night. The Rangers second goal came on the powerplay midway through the 3rd period from their top defensemen Michal Rozsival, this time assisted by both free agent additions- Chris Drury and Scott Gomez.
As I said, the Rangers currently have the least goals in the league, however they have also let up the least. One might attribute this to stingy defensive play, but not when Lundqvist has still faced the 6th most shots in the entire NHL. Henrik currently boasts a .930 save percentage and a paper thin 1.82 goals against average. Such credentials are typical of a Vezina Award winner (best regular season goalie). Last season Lundqvist finished third in the Vezina voting to the Devil's Martin Brodeur and the Canuck's Roberto Luongo. However the Rangers' anemic offense this season has prevented Lundqvist from gathering up the Ws early, which is a key statistic toward winning the award. Award or no award, Henrik Lundqvist is the reason the Rangers aren't winless this season.
Take tonight for example. New York still only netted 2 goals. On average, that is not enough to win a hockey game. The Rangers have only scored more than 2 goals in 2 of their 12 games this season. Yet they still have 5 Ws and 1 OT. This is evidence of Henrik Lundqvist's contribution to his team this year. He practically IS the team. I personally believe the Rangers will eventually find their stride offensively this season. They simply have too much offensive talent not to. Its all about finding the right combinations. And perhaps the iminent return of Sean Avery will provide a spark just as it did when the Rangers acquired him at the trade deadline last season from the Los Angeles Kings. Perhaps it will come when Martin Straka and Ryan Callahan return to the lineup in a couple of weeks. While I believe that it will happen eventually, for now all the Rangers can do is lean on their outstanding netminder. Long live Henrik Lundqvist, the King of Sweden.
Tonight's game against the Washington Capitals was no different. Washington is a team that is typically easy to gameplan against. They feature 2 top scoring lines, and 2 checking lines that get limited ice time. Their top line includes veteran center Viktor Kozlov and superstar Alexander Ovechkin and the second scoring line features former Ranger Michael Nylander and the up and coming Alexander Semin. The key to beating teams structured with 2 elite lines rather than 3 or 4 deep lines, is puck control. The Rangers gameplan was likely to try to control the puck for as long as possible while the Ovechkin line was on the ice by matching the Jagr line up against them. By doing so, the Rangers hoped to keep the puck in the Cap's zone and limit the shots on King Henrik.
Unfortunately the Rangers have not been able to do this all season. They have been outshot in practically every game. Tonight Washington also outshot the Rangers, putting 31 on Lundqvist including 6 from Alex Ovechkin (so much for limiting his touches). But just as he always does, Henrik Lundqvist once again stood on his head for New York. He saved all 31 shots he faced, including an awesome pad stop late in the 2nd period that robbed Viktor Kozlov of a goal. Lundqvist tacked on his second shutout of the season, as the Rangers were able to scrounge for 2 goals. Free agent addition Chris Drury scored early in the 2nd period, assisted by Shanahan and rookie defenseman phenom Marc Staal. It was only the talented Drury's second goal of the season, and first since opening night. The Rangers second goal came on the powerplay midway through the 3rd period from their top defensemen Michal Rozsival, this time assisted by both free agent additions- Chris Drury and Scott Gomez.
As I said, the Rangers currently have the least goals in the league, however they have also let up the least. One might attribute this to stingy defensive play, but not when Lundqvist has still faced the 6th most shots in the entire NHL. Henrik currently boasts a .930 save percentage and a paper thin 1.82 goals against average. Such credentials are typical of a Vezina Award winner (best regular season goalie). Last season Lundqvist finished third in the Vezina voting to the Devil's Martin Brodeur and the Canuck's Roberto Luongo. However the Rangers' anemic offense this season has prevented Lundqvist from gathering up the Ws early, which is a key statistic toward winning the award. Award or no award, Henrik Lundqvist is the reason the Rangers aren't winless this season.
Take tonight for example. New York still only netted 2 goals. On average, that is not enough to win a hockey game. The Rangers have only scored more than 2 goals in 2 of their 12 games this season. Yet they still have 5 Ws and 1 OT. This is evidence of Henrik Lundqvist's contribution to his team this year. He practically IS the team. I personally believe the Rangers will eventually find their stride offensively this season. They simply have too much offensive talent not to. Its all about finding the right combinations. And perhaps the iminent return of Sean Avery will provide a spark just as it did when the Rangers acquired him at the trade deadline last season from the Los Angeles Kings. Perhaps it will come when Martin Straka and Ryan Callahan return to the lineup in a couple of weeks. While I believe that it will happen eventually, for now all the Rangers can do is lean on their outstanding netminder. Long live Henrik Lundqvist, the King of Sweden.
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