Down the Frozen River

Tag: Carl Hagelin

Colby’s Corner: Rangers success continues after offseason

The New York Rangers were disappointed with their lack of success in the playoffs last year, and knew they were going to face a tough off-season with the salary cap issues and players needing new contracts. The Rangers needed to make moves, and they ended up trading Carl Hagelin to the Anaheim Ducks for Emerson Etem and draft picks. Their moves continued as the Rangers then traded Cam Talbot to the Edmonton Oilers for picks in the draft.

The Rangers lost a few more players to free agency, like Matt Hunwick going to Toronto. They experienced another loss when Martin St. Louis, retired after 18 years of professional hockey, one Stanley Cup, three Olympic medals and one Hart Trophy. He finished out his career with the Rangers scoring 22 goals and 38 assists during his 2 seasons combined.

The Rangers went on to resign players like Derek Stepan, Jesper Fast, and J.T. Miller. They also tried to fill the holes they created with the moves by acquiring Antti Raanta to replace Cam Talbot, and they signed free agents Viktor Stalberg and Jarett Stoll.

Going into the season, many believe the Rangers wouldn’t have the same level of success as they had last year. Obviously, Antti Raanta is not Cam Talbot. When Henrik Lundqvist went down last year, Talbot stepped up and play phenomenally to help lead the Rangers to the franchise’s third Presidents’ Trophy.

However, Raanta has started this season with an excellent performance, winning both of his starts and posting a goals-against-average of 0.50 and a save percentage of .987. Obviously, with the season being so young and the Rangers only having played 12 games, they seem to be continuing their success from last season.

But how is this possible? Viktor Stalberg and Jarrett Stoll aren’t Carl Hagelin, and Emerson Etem has only seen three games this season.

My Opinion

There are two main answers to this question: the defense core and the stepping up of the young role players.

The Rangers arguably have the best D-core in the league, with a solid 6: Marc Staal, Keith Yandle, Dan Boyle, Kevin Klein, Dan Girardi and the captain Ryan McDonagh. All these players have been in the league for so many years and have great experience. If any of these players were on a different team, they would all be considered to be on the top two defense lines. The Rangers’ defenseman and goalies have allowed the fewest goals this season and the six defensemen have 6 goals on the season. They are truly doing it on both ends.

The stepping up of players like Mats Zuccarello, Oscar Lindberg, and others are the reason the offense is continuing to flow in New York. Zuccarello is making up for the lost time in the playoffs last season by storming out of the gates with 7 goals and 2 assists. He might truly be the heart of the Rangers; when he went out last year, the offensive production of the team dropped dramatically.

(Photo: Brad Penner, USA TODAY Sports)

Oscar Lindberg, a rookie, has been one of the biggest surprises of the Rangers this year. He has had a few multi-point games thus far, including a two-goal game in his first few games this season. Lindberg has 6 goals and 3 assists on the season. In the first few games he made an argument for the Calder Trophy, however the success would have to continue all year for him to beat out Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel for this award.

Overall, the success will be there for the Rangers throughout the season if their players stay healthy and they find a way to get the puck in the back of net. (Yes, I know, that’s what every team needs) The defense and goaltending for the Rangers will be there all year long. So it won’t be surprising seeing them in the playoffs again this year.

November 6, 2015
Bolts Strike Twice and Beat Rangers, Stamkos Leads the Way to a 3-2 Series Lead

2015 Eastern Conference Finals Game 5 Recap

By: Colby Kephart

The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Rangers 2-0 in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. The first line from Tampa stepped up with Steven Stamkos and Valtteri Filppula each scoring a goal in the second period. Ben Bishop and Tampa’s defense found a way to keep the Ranger’s off the board entirely, earning Bishop the shutout.

The first period saw few chances for both teams, along with a lot of scrappy play and board battles. Tampa had a quick chance in the first minute of the game, when Tyler Johnson got a shot wide of the net. The Rangers also had a few chances on a 2 on 1 breakout led by Martin St. Louis but it was stopped by Bishop. Nearly 4 minutes into the period Tampa took the game’s first penalty, as the Lightning were called for too many men on the ice.

On the ensuing power play, quick passing from the Rangers gave Chris Kreider a great chance that hit the side of the net. About 3 minutes later the Rangers took their first penalty, when Marc Staal was penalized for interference. New York held their blue line and didn’t give up any major chances while on the penalty kill.

The game then transitioned to many battles along the boards and a lot of grind-it-out play. New York held Tampa in their defensive zone for a decent amount of the period. Tampa was struggling to get their offense going and frustration took over as Johnson took a slashing penalty with 5 minutes remaining in the period. The Lightning then killed off the penalty kill with ease. Offense was a rarity during the period as the Rangers only had 6 shots on goal and Tampa had a measly 4 shots on goal through 20 minutes of play.

Tampa got yet another quick start to the second period, similar to the first period. This time it was Stamkos alone in front, after a turnover, firing a wrist shot that was matched by Lundqvist’s glove hand. Riding the momentum of the save, the Rangers had an upper hand on the game-playing along the boards, behind the net. This made a terrific chance for Derek Stepan, as he sent a one-timer on Bishop that was denied.

Tampa then took a series of penalties; the first one came at 7:19 of the period for a high stick from Jason Garrison on Rick Nash. The penalty kill for Tampa was unmatched by the New York’s power play unit and actually created a chance for Alex Killorn on a 2 on 1 heading the other way, but was denied by Lundqvist. Tampa killed off Garrison’s penalty, but found themselves shorthanded again a minute later as Andrej Sustr tripped Carl Hagelin. Similar to the last penalty kill, the Lightning made the kill and only allowed Rick Nash a chance that was thwarted by Bishop.

Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images

Finally, Valtteri Filppula scored the game’s first goal as Stamkos received a stretch pass from Anton Stralman, who then passed it to Filppula in the slot, putting it past Lundqvist with six minutes remaining in the period. Tampa had found their offense and began to establish the zone and eventually was able to draw a penalty, that sent Marc Staal to the box for tripping with 3 minutes remaining in period.

The Lightning didn’t pass up the opportunity to double their lead, as Steven Stamkos rocketed home his seventh of the playoff, with help from Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat on the power play. Ben Bishop had stopped all 16 of New York’s shots to this point and Lundqvist’s numbers weren’t looking as good with 13 saves on 15 shots.

The third period witnessed a strong defensive performance by the Lightning and saw the Rangers try everything to get their offense going. Even though the Rangers were on the attack from the opening faceoff of the period, Tampa managed to pressure in their offensive zone and brought a penalty on New York. Chris Kreider went to the sin bin for a delay of game penalty. Tampa couldn’t amount anything on the power play and the Rangers killed it off.

New York juggled their lines in hopes of seeing a result and had a line consisting of Nash, Stepan, and Kreider that created a great chance after Nash spun around a pass to Stepan for the one timer, but Ben Bishop was there to make the save. New York was dominating play and it was tilted in their favor, but couldn’t beat Bishop try after try.

The Rangers pulled Lundqvist with 3 minutes left and a minute later Palat and Brassard took matching minor penalties for slashing. The clock counted down to zero and gave Ben Bishop another shut out in this year’s playoffs. Bishop stopped all 26 shots he faced, while Lundqvist allowed 2 goals on 22 shots.

Tampa’s defense was the story of Game 5, as they protected Bishop and preserved the shutout. The Lightning’s penalty kill was also strong in Game 5, forcing the Rangers empty handed on the man advantage- New York wound up 0 for 4 on power plays. The first line continued to produce with both Stamkos and Filppula scoring goals. The Rangers got the type of game they wanted with a low scoring game, but couldn’t find a way past Ben Bishop. The series is now 3-2 in favor of Tampa, with Game 6 back in Tampa, Florida at Amalie Arena on May 26^th at 8 pm with televised coverage on NBCSN.

May 25, 2015
Rangers, in Dominant Fashion, Take Game 4 and Tie Series 2-2

2015 Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 Recap

By: Colby Kephart

The New York Rangers bounced back from Game 3 to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1 in Game 4 at Amalie Arena on Friday night. The stars for the Rangers showed up with two goals from Rick Nash and one from Martin St. Louis. Henrik Lundqvist had 38 saves, while only allowing one goal. The Rangers also managed to keep Tampa’s Triplet Line off the scoresheet altogether.

The first period saw a better defensive performance from the Rangers as they limited the chances for Tampa. The Lightning’s first true scoring chance came 4 minutes into the period when Nikita Kucherov found the puck in front of Hendrik Lundqvist and shot it over the net. New York took the first penalty of game 8 minutes into the first period when Martin St. Louis was sent to the sin bin for interference.

Tyler Johnson then got a great chance on the power-play, as he found the puck in the front of the net and rang it off the post. About 4 minutes later, Tampa’s Anton Stralman took an interference penalty of his own on a hit delivered to Kevin Hayes. Tampa managed to kill the penalty without even allowing on shot on Ben Bishop. With under 3 minutes left in the period Rick Nash snapped his cold streak with a power move, in which he slid the puck past Bishop’s leg pad into the net. Both teams finished the first period equal in shots on goal with seven apiece.

The second period saw the undisciplined Rangers show up from the first minute when Marc Staal took a holding penalty on Cedric Paquette. While on the penalty kill the Rangers had a great chance with a 2 on 1 that ended up with Nash trying another power move that was denied by Bishop’s pad. Just a few seconds later, Alex Killorn had a breakaway from a stretch pass sent by Victor Hedman on the power play and was denied by Lundqvist. The Rangers killed the penalty, but a few minutes later Killorn got another chance while on a 2 on 1, but the puck slipped off the end of his stick and went wide of Lundqvist.

At this point in the game, it was all one way traffic in favor of Tampa. The Rangers found themselves down a man again, when Chris Kreider took a penalty for tripping Brenden Morrow. Tampa had a few chances on the power play, but the Rangers managed to kill it off again. The Lightning couldn’t be kept off the board long after that though, as Steven Stamkos managed to beat Lundqvist with a slap shot from the slot.

The game didn’t stay tied for long, however, as just 3 minutes later New York regained the lead. Kreider managed to find his 7^th goal of the playoffs on what was yet another rebound goal. The Rangers weren’t done however, as two minutes later Keith Yandle got his first of the playoffs, sending a shot that bounced off Hedman past Bishop.

Tampa continued to fire at the net, but Lundqvist remained superior and continued to shine through two periods. After forty minutes of play, Lundqvist had 25 saves on 26 shots. While at the other end of the ice, Bishop was having a rough game, stopping only 10 shots on 13 shots against.

The third period started similar to the second period, as Tampa continued to shoot without any rewards to show for it. The Lightning took their second penalty of the game just 4 minutes into the period with Nikita Nesterov high sticking St. Louis. On the ensuing power play, St. Louis finally got his first of the playoffs, putting a shot in the open side of the net on a back door pass from Derick Brassard.

Halfway through the period Tampa’s Brenden Morrow was called for hooking. The Rangers capitalized again with Yandle’s shot from the point deflected on goal by Kevin Hayes and banged home on the rebound by Nash, past the legs of Bishop, for his second of the night.

The game finished with a lot of scrums from frustrated Lightning players, culminating in a barrage of penalties. Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat, Carl Hagelin, and Ryan McDonagh all received roughing penalties. Severl game misconducts were handed out to a few players, including Nikita Kucherov, Kevin Klein, Morrow, Tanner Glass and Paquette. Eventually time expired, ending Lundqvist’s great night- stopping 38 of 39 shots on goal. It also brought the end of Ben Bishop’s rough night- only stopping 19 of 24 shots on goal.

Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

This game saw the appearance of all of the Rangers superstar’s, Rick Nash, Martin St. Louis, and Henrik Lundqvist. All of them had amazing games in Game 4. St. Louis finally got the all-important first goal of his playoff run, and his play changed immediately afterwards, as he continued to create chance after chance.

Rick Nash had a two goal night, and his form looked as it did during the regular season. Keith Yandle also had a terrific night with a goal and two assists in the best performance of these playoffs for him. The first star of the game still goes to Lundqvist who had a huge bounce back after Game 3’s uncharacteristic performance.

Tampa’s Triplet Line and big stars had a lot of chances, but couldn’t find a way to put the puck to the back of the net. Ben Bishop struggled and the puck didn’t bounce in his favor on Friday night. The series is now tied at 2-2 with it now effectively becoming a best of 3 to see who will represent the Eastern Conference in the 2015 Stanley Cup finals. Game 5 is Sunday at 8 PM with TV coverage on NBCSN.

May 23, 2015