Rangers vs. Capitals: Keys to the Game
by Nick Montemagno on Nov 25, 2011 11:00 AM EST
in New York Rangers Pregame
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PrintIt's amazing to me that we are almost two months into the season and today will be the very first time the Rangers and Capitals square off this year. The last time these two met was back in April at the Verizon Center for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which the Rangers lost to be eliminated from the playoffs. Having played each other twice in the playoffs over the past three years, New York and Washington have developed somewhat of a rivalry between each other, s0 this afternoon's match will have a little added emotion to it than the last two the Rangers have played in.
Better Effort: Maybe that added emotion is what the Blueshirts need, because they struggled to "get up" for their previous two games against the Montreal Canadiens and Florida Panthers, both of which they lost. They were outskated, outshot - they were pretty much beaten in every aspect of the game. The coach has made it very clear to his team that their effort against the Habs and Cats was unacceptable and that a lot more will be needed out of everyone today versus the Capitals.
Offense Starts with Defense: Brad Richards made a good point when talking about the Rangers' transition game yesterday, as he said the lack of puck possession and offense starts with the defense. In other words, the Rangers have been chasing the puck around too much in their own zone, are unable to obtain control, and if they do, they have no choice but to dump it out, defeating any hope of breaking out. It's crucial that the Rangers keep the Caps to the outside today and force them into taking low percentage shots, or better yet, turnovers.
This, in turn, would enable the offense to create more odd-man rushes and scoring chances on the fly, which is where the Rangers have been most successful this season. Just look at Derek Stepan's goal against Florida; McDonagh made the defensive play, Gaborik carried in, and Stepan ended up scoring as the trailer. It all started in the D zone and quickly transitioned into a scoring chance. The Rangers need to do more of that today.
More pregame info after the jump....
Hank Loves Playing the Caps: Henrik Lundqvist is expected to start in goal after a marvelous 36-save performance against the Panthers on Wednesday night, but let's hope he is given a little more support in this one than he was the other day. Hank always seems to bring out the very best in him against the Caps.
Tune In Today!
Today's game will be televised on MSG Network, with pregame coverage beginning at 7 p.m. You can also catch the radio broadcast on 1050 ESPN Radio and on satellite radio at XM 214.
All Time -- Rangers vs. Capitals
Overall: 83-83-18-5
At MSG: 46-36-9-2
At Washington: 37-47-9-3
2010-11 Review -- Rangers vs. Washington
Nov. 9 Rangers 3, Capitals 5 at MSG
Dec. 12 Rangers 7, Capitals 0 at MSG
Jan. 24 Rangers 2, Capitals 1 (SO) at Washington
Feb. 25 Rangers 6, Capitals 0 at Washington
2011-12 Rangers vs. Washington
Nov. 23 Rangers vs. Capitals at Washington
Dec. 28 Rangers vs. Capitals at Washington
Feb. 12 Rangers vs. Capitals at MSG
April 7 Rangers vs. Capitals at MSG
Upcoming Regular-Season Schedule
Nov. 25 Rangers at Washington, 4 p.m.
Nov. 26 Rangers vs. Philadelphia, 2 p.m.
Nov. 29 Rangers vs. Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 1 Rangers vs. Carolina, 7 p.m.
Dec. 3 Rangers at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Injuries
* Marc Staal has missed 18 games after being put on the Injured Reserve list on Oct. 5 due to a concussion.
* Mike Rupp has missed 11 games due to a knee injury, suffered on Oct. 24.
* Wojtek Wolski has missed seven games due to a groin injury, suffered on Nov. 3.
* The Rangers have lost 45 total man-game to injuries or illness this season.
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They better come out with energy and keep up the tempo in this game. They should direct inject that viagra right in the taint if they are having problems getting their game up. No excuses we see this week if this team is for real
This is our first shot at the Caps Flyers and then the Pens… we better bring our shit… no more pussy footing around
@clalicata17
by Clalicata17 on Nov 25, 2011 12:13 PM EST up reply actions
Off Topic rant about NHL Center Ice
It’s so nice to know I paid $130+ for NHL Center Ice through Comcast this year, only to find out that besides the 2 or 3 Ranger games already that have NOT been on Center Ice, they will NOT be televising the NEXT 3 Ranger games (Caps, Flyers and Penguins)!!!! What an absolute rip-off! This is the first time in the 10 years I’ve paid for NHL Center Ice that so many games have been arbitrarily not broadcast! The only Ranger games I did not get over the past 10 years have been a couple of games against the Canadiens, whichever games were on VS., and the Panthers home games against the Rangers (since I live only a few miles from Panther stadium, I’m in the blackout area).Apparently Center Ice is trying to lower their costs by not televising games wherever they can get away with it.
They are also impossible to contact, and I can’t even get a schedule of games for December yet. I’m almost afraid to see how many games over the course of the season won’t be broadcast. It’s apparent they are trying to charge the same amount for fewer games. Well, they got my money this year, but for damned sure I won’t be back next year!!!!
Thanks for letting me rant—— the steam is still coming out of my ears.
Just another sleazy company looking to screw the customer!!!
I've heard Gamecenter is much better
If that’s a viable option
"In the '60s I slept with many women, often outside in the mud and rain. It's possible a man may have slipped in there, there's no way of knowing."
Rangers/Jets/Yankees/Knicks/Barcelona/Tottenham fan
Hank
Hope Hank got some good sleep last night, he’ll be seeing a lot of rubber once again today most likely.
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