This wild race is winding down. Last night, one of the four teams wrapped up a playoff spot with the Canadiens posting a 2-1 overtime win over the defending champs at The Bell Centre. Controversial rookie defenseman P.K. Subban's power play goal won it for the Habs, allowing them to make the playoffs a second straight season. The lowscoring Original Six club can thank Carey Price, who was outstanding finishing with 42 saves, including a few close calls late in regulation on tricky deflections. It was his goaltending that saved Montreal's bacon and certainly is worthy of a Vezina and Hart candidacy. Though he'll probably get left out of the MVP discussion with frontrunner Daniel Sedin, Corey Perry and Henrik Sedin all in the mix along with darkhorse Jarome Iginla if the Flames somehow sneak in.
While the Habs took care of business to clinch, the Sabres inched closer to a second straight postseason of their own, doubling up the Lightning at home 4-2 on the strength of Thomas Vanek's sixth career hat trick. Following Ryan Malone's early goal for the Bolts, Buffalo responded with three straight including a pair from Vanek that allowed him to reach 30 for the fourth time in his career. Tim Connolly followed with his 13th, which stood up as the winner thanks to Swede rookie Jhonas Enroth, who again was sharp minus Ryan Miller- finishing with 23 saves. Enroth's strong play has allowed the Sabres to win three of four (3-0-1). Who would've thought that a once perceived weakness could be the ticket to meaningful Spring hockey? Credit Lindy Ruff and the organization for entrusting the '06 second round pick with the backup job over vet Patrick Lalime, who drove our Buffalo resident batty. The Lightning didn't even get a look late thanks to stellar D from Ruff's club, who were so good that Guy Boucher's team couldn't even get Dwayne Roloson to the bench. With less than 15 seconds left, Vanek picked Martin St. Louis' pocket and fired into a vacated net as Roloson watched hopelessly, completing the trick. Buffalo is one point away from the playoffs. A Carolina OT or shootout loss would allow them to clinch tonight.
Speaking of the Hurricanes, they face a must win tonight at home versus the Red Wings. So much for the schedule makers doing them any favors. On that note, can anyone explain why such a crucial contest involves the other conference. Echoing Brian's sentiments with his team finishing in Columbus, what the heck? The final week, you should play only your conference. Preferably rivalry games like the Devils visiting the Rangers Saturday. In any event, the Canes trail the Rangers by four with three left. Their extra game is tonight at 7 ET in Raleigh. The tiebreak has the Blueshirts leading Carolina 34-33 in regulation/OT wins. A win puts the pressure back on the Blueshirts, who learned Team MVP Ryan Callahan broke his leg after blocking a Zdeno Chara shot the other night. If the Canes pick up only a point, a Ranger victory tomorrow versus the Thrashers would allow them to wrap it up. Carolina's gotten great play from Erik Cole, Eric Staal, Calder hopeful Jeff Skinner and Cam Ward. The game is meaningful for Detroit only if they want to pass San Jose for the West's second seed. They've already won the Central over Nashville.
As a hockey purist, it'd be more interesting if the Canes won, putting the pressure back on us. As a Ranger fan, I'd certainly welcome a Red Wing win but am not expecting it. If we're going to make it minus our emotional leader, I'd rather earn it. As I've said before, let's win out.
The Western race is much more exciting with only the three division winners in while the Preds, Coyotes, Kings, Ducks, Hawks, Stars and even the Flames scramble for the remaining five spots. In order to have any shot, Calgary must win their remaining two against Alberta rival Edmonton later and at arch enemy Vancouver on Hockey Night In Canada. Assuming the Flames do what must be done, that game should have meaning. But the Flames need plenty of help with Anaheim, Chicago and Dallas all having three left. The Flames cannot catch Nashville (97), Phoenix (96) or LA (96). There are four games of interest for West observers. Chicago hosts the Blues looking to bounce back from a tough OT loss in Montreal, which had Joel Queeneville fuming about the 10 minors his team received. Facing an old Norris rival who'd like nothing better than to play spoiler, is no picnic. Then there's the aforementioned Alberta clash between the Flames and Oilers at The Saddledome. This rivalry is one of the best and is worth watching after Detroit-Carolina. Then you have another intense rivalry California style between the Ducks and Sharks at The Pond. San Jose is still fuming from their first round ouster two years ago as the top seed. Need I say more? And finally, the Yotes and Kings break the tie in the standings at Staples Center. The best aspect is it's all rivalry games. Here's when each plays:
Stl @ Chi 8 ET
Edm @ Cgy 9:30 ET
SJ @ Ana 10 ET
Phx @ LA 10:30 ET
Covering the Rangers, Devils, Islanders and Sabres five years running along with the rest of the puckers!
BONY
Battle Of New York
Showing posts with label PK Subban. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PK Subban. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Prust sets tone in statement over Habs
#InPrustWeTrust. That's become a familiar rallying cry over on Twitter between Ranger tweeps. It sticks for good reason. Gritty Blueshirt Brandon Prust has been a constant from Day One of the season. When it came to choosing who deserved the Extra Effort Award, there were only two choices for myself between Prusty and running mate Brian Boyle. I voted for Boyle, who carries more responsibilities anchoring our grind line that's back intact with Ruslan Fedotenko finally healthy. It's no secret that this trio has been the club's most valuable due to the relentless forecheck and battles they win, injecting energy.
In a game versus another team we hadn't beaten in God knows how long, John Tortorella started their line against the Canadiens last night. Prior to the final regular season meeting which included a strong contingent of roughly 5,000 screaming Montreal fans (never seen anything like it), the Rangers had dropped the previous three all by a goal. Bad starts were the theme before in each, our team rallied only to fall short. Ironically, that had been an Achilles heel on home ice till blowout wins over the Flyers and Islanders. At the most critical time of year, suddenly our guys are coming out flying. In winning convincingly over the Habs 6-3, the start once again reigned supreme. Not shockingly, Prust got the Original Six contest that was like a playoff atmosphere by challenging Travis Moen off the opening draw. They talked right away with a buzz and then each danced for what felt like forever with Prust landing a couple of better shots before a takedown- setting the tone for the evening.
You had to know Tortorella was in their ear about the other three games. When you see our warrior start off by beating their similar rugged vet, it sends a message. It didn't take long for Prust's teammates to follow suit in what amounted to the best period of the season. The Rangers responded by putting a five spot, chasing Carey Price, who really was blameless in the second of a back-to-back. Our guys came ready and won every single battle. The five-goal explosion happened methodically with the fireworks in the second half, highlighted by an odd Ryan Callahan tally that took several minutes up in Toronto before touching off a three-goal barrage in 67 seconds.
Artem Anisimov has made improvement during this critical stretch. In his second season, the lanky Russian has probably blown almost as many chances as Marian Gaborik. After he missed from 12 feet out, I overheard Anthony and his buddy discussing how Arty could have 30 goals. The talent's there and was on display when minutes later, he broke in on Price and went backhand deke, steering the Rangers ahead. The unassisted tally was his 17th.
But before we could breathe, the Canadiens came right back when loathed rookie defenseman P.K. Subban wisely waited before firing a laser thru a double screen to tie it 1:43 later. The controversial talented blueliner then ran Prust from behind, leading to a scrum post-whistle. They nabbed Prust for a questionable interference taking both players off after Subban refused to fight. Playing four-on-four, the Habs' Roman Hamrlik was taken off for a cross check, handing us an unconventional four-on-three power play. On it, our guys got looks but couldn't beat Price. However, after Prust and Subban returned, they kept the puck alive. After it expired, a mad scramble ensued with Price kicking out an Erik Christensen shot right to Dan Girardi, who made no mistake burying it upstairs as our section was screaming for another penalty for a hit from behind in the corner. No one cared anymore with Christensen and Mats Zuccarello setting it up for 2-1.
Leading by one, the Rangers asked Henrik Lundqvist to make a few important stops, which he obliged. The eerie period got even wilder when Brandon Dubinsky outmuscled Scott Gomez and tried a stuff in which caromed out to Ryan Callahan, who seemed to score through a maze of players only to have the refs blow it dead. They couldn't tell if the puck was in, going upstairs for a lengthy review. From our vantage point, it had to cross the line because the puck bounced and Price was inside his net. As it took longer and longer to determine, I wondered if we'd get the shaft due to no conclusive replay. Instead, they managed to get it right, giving Callahan his career tying 22nd from Anisimov and Dubinsky at 17:09.
That's when the real fun began. With fans mocking "Go Habs Go," Gaborik scored for a second straight off a broken play, taking a Christensen pass and roofing it past Price 32 seconds later. Vinny Prospal also assisted, extending his point streak to eight (2-8-10). Before the Habs could breathe, an odd-man rush led by Prust and Marc Staal allowed Boyle to join the party for his 21st 35 ticks later. Prior to the game, he mentioned to Larry Brooks that he had gotten away from what had worked when he was scoring regularly. It was nice to see one of our hardest working players get rewarded. Price's night was over, allowing five on just 12 shots. He really was hung out to dry as his team fell apart following the Callahan review.
Replacing Price was one-time backup Alex Auld, who played strong finishing with 18 saves including a stone job early in the second that would've made it a laugher. Instead, a sharper Habs team warmed to the task courtesy of former Islander James Wisniewski's right point blast eluding Lundqvist, cutting it to three with plenty of time left for a comeback. Having reminded a few buddies along with a very nice couple from Sudbury, Ontario where Marc Staal starred about the ridiculous five-goal comeback a couple of years back, I didn't like what I was seeing. Montreal was quicker to the puck and forcing Lundqvist to come up big. You knew the Canadiens wouldn't quit because they're a good team. In a period they played better even getting a couple of power plays, they were only able to get one with our goalie and the PK doing the job.
Of course, Subban ran into Lundqvist for an obvious goalie interference, drawing a crowd that included Mike Sauer, who immediately challenged him. In typical punk fashion, Subban skated away hiding behind the refs who didn't want any part of it. Considering that the Pens and another talented douche Kris Letang are next, it felt appropriate. Sauer is the kind of defenseman we haven't had since Jeff Beukeboom. No. I'm not comparing the two as there's only one Beuke and Sauer has a long way to go. But in a year it wasn't even a given he'd become a regular, he's our toughest blueliner, never putting up with any shenanigans. This kid is the most overlooked rookie in the league. Thank God Slats at least held onto him. The last link to the unpopular Brian Leetch deal looks like he'll stick around a while.
In the second, the Rangers didn't play smart with both Christensen and even Callahan taking offensive zone penalties with the latter roughing up a Hab with under a minute left. As predicted, the Canadiens finally made it 5-3 thanks to a nifty tip-in by American captain Brian Gionta off a Wisniewski shot. The little engine that could got position in front and I knew it was coming. He's always killed us since the Devil days. It was his 26th of the season from Wiz and Hamrlik that made it 5-3 with still 19:06 left.
A once potential rout became a hockey game with each team taking turns attacking. Our cycle came back with some effective shifts, stemming the tide. However, Lundqvist flat out robbed a Hab on the doorstep with a sliding glove stop that had everyone chanting, "Hen-rik, Hen-rik, Hen-rik." The biggest save of the night allowed his teammates to breathe easier. When Prospal converted at the doorstep on a late power play for 6-3, the Rangers had their biggest win to date, allowing them to move four points up on both Buffalo and Carolina, who rallied past the Islanders 3-2 to stay in the race.
The reason for the power play was Benoit Pouliot running over Lundqvist, who was shaken up and stayed down for a while before getting up to cheers. For a goalie that is extremely popular and has the GQ look ladies can't get enough of, the King is also tougher than he looks. He stayed in for his record-setting sixth straight season of 30 victories or more to start a career. Even if shootout induced, it's still impressive and speaks to the competitiveness of a guy who was stolen in the seventh round, becoming our franchise netminder. Sometimes, you luck out. Hopefully, he'll be alright.
Lundqvist is usually a regular after each win or loss but suffered from a stiff neck and didn't partake afterwards. Tortorella wouldn't rip the Canadiens for going hard to net, terming it a "hockey play." He's not wrong here. Every team does it. Lundqvist is questionable for tomorrow versus the Pens. If he can't go, former Pittsburgh draft pick Chad Johnson will get the call. A pretty interesting development with 10 games remaining. If it comes to that, it would be nice to see Ocho Cinco stun his former club. We'll just have to wait and see.
PLAYOFF PICTURE: With the Caps shutting out the Devils 3-zip for a crushing defeat Friday, the Devs now need a miraculous 10-1 stretch to reach 90 points. Here's how the race looks.
GP Pts GR
*1.Flyers 70 94 12
*2.Caps 73 94 9
*3.Bruins 70 88 12
4.Pens 71 90 11
5.Bolts 71 88 12
6.Habs 72 85 10
7.Rangers 72 80 10
8.Sabres 70 76 12
9.Canes 72 76 10
10.Atlanta 71 72 11
11.Leafs 72 72 10
12.Devils 71 70 11
13.Florida 71 67 11
14.Isles 72 66 10
15.Sens 71 61 11
*Division leaders
Saturday: CBJ 4 Min 3 3rd
NYI @ Fla 7 ET
Atl @ Buf 7 ET
Bos @ Tor 7 ET
TB @ Ott 7 ET
Det @ Nsh 8 ET
Phi @ Dal 8 ET
Col @ Edm 10 ET
Ana @ LA 10:30 ET
Stl @ SJ 10:30 ET
In a game versus another team we hadn't beaten in God knows how long, John Tortorella started their line against the Canadiens last night. Prior to the final regular season meeting which included a strong contingent of roughly 5,000 screaming Montreal fans (never seen anything like it), the Rangers had dropped the previous three all by a goal. Bad starts were the theme before in each, our team rallied only to fall short. Ironically, that had been an Achilles heel on home ice till blowout wins over the Flyers and Islanders. At the most critical time of year, suddenly our guys are coming out flying. In winning convincingly over the Habs 6-3, the start once again reigned supreme. Not shockingly, Prust got the Original Six contest that was like a playoff atmosphere by challenging Travis Moen off the opening draw. They talked right away with a buzz and then each danced for what felt like forever with Prust landing a couple of better shots before a takedown- setting the tone for the evening.
You had to know Tortorella was in their ear about the other three games. When you see our warrior start off by beating their similar rugged vet, it sends a message. It didn't take long for Prust's teammates to follow suit in what amounted to the best period of the season. The Rangers responded by putting a five spot, chasing Carey Price, who really was blameless in the second of a back-to-back. Our guys came ready and won every single battle. The five-goal explosion happened methodically with the fireworks in the second half, highlighted by an odd Ryan Callahan tally that took several minutes up in Toronto before touching off a three-goal barrage in 67 seconds.
Artem Anisimov has made improvement during this critical stretch. In his second season, the lanky Russian has probably blown almost as many chances as Marian Gaborik. After he missed from 12 feet out, I overheard Anthony and his buddy discussing how Arty could have 30 goals. The talent's there and was on display when minutes later, he broke in on Price and went backhand deke, steering the Rangers ahead. The unassisted tally was his 17th.
But before we could breathe, the Canadiens came right back when loathed rookie defenseman P.K. Subban wisely waited before firing a laser thru a double screen to tie it 1:43 later. The controversial talented blueliner then ran Prust from behind, leading to a scrum post-whistle. They nabbed Prust for a questionable interference taking both players off after Subban refused to fight. Playing four-on-four, the Habs' Roman Hamrlik was taken off for a cross check, handing us an unconventional four-on-three power play. On it, our guys got looks but couldn't beat Price. However, after Prust and Subban returned, they kept the puck alive. After it expired, a mad scramble ensued with Price kicking out an Erik Christensen shot right to Dan Girardi, who made no mistake burying it upstairs as our section was screaming for another penalty for a hit from behind in the corner. No one cared anymore with Christensen and Mats Zuccarello setting it up for 2-1.
Leading by one, the Rangers asked Henrik Lundqvist to make a few important stops, which he obliged. The eerie period got even wilder when Brandon Dubinsky outmuscled Scott Gomez and tried a stuff in which caromed out to Ryan Callahan, who seemed to score through a maze of players only to have the refs blow it dead. They couldn't tell if the puck was in, going upstairs for a lengthy review. From our vantage point, it had to cross the line because the puck bounced and Price was inside his net. As it took longer and longer to determine, I wondered if we'd get the shaft due to no conclusive replay. Instead, they managed to get it right, giving Callahan his career tying 22nd from Anisimov and Dubinsky at 17:09.
That's when the real fun began. With fans mocking "Go Habs Go," Gaborik scored for a second straight off a broken play, taking a Christensen pass and roofing it past Price 32 seconds later. Vinny Prospal also assisted, extending his point streak to eight (2-8-10). Before the Habs could breathe, an odd-man rush led by Prust and Marc Staal allowed Boyle to join the party for his 21st 35 ticks later. Prior to the game, he mentioned to Larry Brooks that he had gotten away from what had worked when he was scoring regularly. It was nice to see one of our hardest working players get rewarded. Price's night was over, allowing five on just 12 shots. He really was hung out to dry as his team fell apart following the Callahan review.
Replacing Price was one-time backup Alex Auld, who played strong finishing with 18 saves including a stone job early in the second that would've made it a laugher. Instead, a sharper Habs team warmed to the task courtesy of former Islander James Wisniewski's right point blast eluding Lundqvist, cutting it to three with plenty of time left for a comeback. Having reminded a few buddies along with a very nice couple from Sudbury, Ontario where Marc Staal starred about the ridiculous five-goal comeback a couple of years back, I didn't like what I was seeing. Montreal was quicker to the puck and forcing Lundqvist to come up big. You knew the Canadiens wouldn't quit because they're a good team. In a period they played better even getting a couple of power plays, they were only able to get one with our goalie and the PK doing the job.
Of course, Subban ran into Lundqvist for an obvious goalie interference, drawing a crowd that included Mike Sauer, who immediately challenged him. In typical punk fashion, Subban skated away hiding behind the refs who didn't want any part of it. Considering that the Pens and another talented douche Kris Letang are next, it felt appropriate. Sauer is the kind of defenseman we haven't had since Jeff Beukeboom. No. I'm not comparing the two as there's only one Beuke and Sauer has a long way to go. But in a year it wasn't even a given he'd become a regular, he's our toughest blueliner, never putting up with any shenanigans. This kid is the most overlooked rookie in the league. Thank God Slats at least held onto him. The last link to the unpopular Brian Leetch deal looks like he'll stick around a while.
In the second, the Rangers didn't play smart with both Christensen and even Callahan taking offensive zone penalties with the latter roughing up a Hab with under a minute left. As predicted, the Canadiens finally made it 5-3 thanks to a nifty tip-in by American captain Brian Gionta off a Wisniewski shot. The little engine that could got position in front and I knew it was coming. He's always killed us since the Devil days. It was his 26th of the season from Wiz and Hamrlik that made it 5-3 with still 19:06 left.
A once potential rout became a hockey game with each team taking turns attacking. Our cycle came back with some effective shifts, stemming the tide. However, Lundqvist flat out robbed a Hab on the doorstep with a sliding glove stop that had everyone chanting, "Hen-rik, Hen-rik, Hen-rik." The biggest save of the night allowed his teammates to breathe easier. When Prospal converted at the doorstep on a late power play for 6-3, the Rangers had their biggest win to date, allowing them to move four points up on both Buffalo and Carolina, who rallied past the Islanders 3-2 to stay in the race.
The reason for the power play was Benoit Pouliot running over Lundqvist, who was shaken up and stayed down for a while before getting up to cheers. For a goalie that is extremely popular and has the GQ look ladies can't get enough of, the King is also tougher than he looks. He stayed in for his record-setting sixth straight season of 30 victories or more to start a career. Even if shootout induced, it's still impressive and speaks to the competitiveness of a guy who was stolen in the seventh round, becoming our franchise netminder. Sometimes, you luck out. Hopefully, he'll be alright.
Lundqvist is usually a regular after each win or loss but suffered from a stiff neck and didn't partake afterwards. Tortorella wouldn't rip the Canadiens for going hard to net, terming it a "hockey play." He's not wrong here. Every team does it. Lundqvist is questionable for tomorrow versus the Pens. If he can't go, former Pittsburgh draft pick Chad Johnson will get the call. A pretty interesting development with 10 games remaining. If it comes to that, it would be nice to see Ocho Cinco stun his former club. We'll just have to wait and see.
PLAYOFF PICTURE: With the Caps shutting out the Devils 3-zip for a crushing defeat Friday, the Devs now need a miraculous 10-1 stretch to reach 90 points. Here's how the race looks.
GP Pts GR
*1.Flyers 70 94 12
*2.Caps 73 94 9
*3.Bruins 70 88 12
4.Pens 71 90 11
5.Bolts 71 88 12
6.Habs 72 85 10
7.Rangers 72 80 10
8.Sabres 70 76 12
9.Canes 72 76 10
10.Atlanta 71 72 11
11.Leafs 72 72 10
12.Devils 71 70 11
13.Florida 71 67 11
14.Isles 72 66 10
15.Sens 71 61 11
*Division leaders
Saturday: CBJ 4 Min 3 3rd
NYI @ Fla 7 ET
Atl @ Buf 7 ET
Bos @ Tor 7 ET
TB @ Ott 7 ET
Det @ Nsh 8 ET
Phi @ Dal 8 ET
Col @ Edm 10 ET
Ana @ LA 10:30 ET
Stl @ SJ 10:30 ET
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