Why The New York Rangers Are In First Place In The Eastern Conference
by Brandon C. on Dec 28, 2011 9:00 AM EST
in New York Rangers Analysis
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PrintThe New York Rangers won their fifth straight game last night, four of which rivalry games, by defeating the New York Islanders 3-0 at Madison Square Garden.
The win put the Rangers in first place in the Eastern Conference, something Rangers fans have been waiting for for a long time.
There are many reasons the Rangers are in first place right now, not even including Olivia Munn. Let's take a look at the reasons.
Depth- As I mentioned in the game thread last night, the Rangers have four complete lines that are working out right now.
The GAS line (Marian Gaborik, Artem Anisimov, Derek Stepan) has two players capable of scoring, but also especially talented at setting up the best offensive player on the team, Marian Gaborik. Gaborik is skilled at turning the passes into goals.
The 2nd line, which is home to Carl Hagelin, Brad Richards, and Ryan Callahan, outworks teams and has a little bit of everything. Speed from Hagelin, a great veteran passer that can also score in Richards, and the captain that will out hustle you and turn that hustle into goals in Callahan.
The best defensive line is perhaps the third line, which consists of two players struggling on offense. This line, which consists of Brandon Dubinsky, Brian Boyle, and John Mitchell, completely shuts down the opposing offense by using their strength to hold onto the puck and by using their bodies to block opposing shots.
Finally, the fourth line of Ruslan Fedotenko, Michael Rupp, and Brandon Prust can fight, terrorize, or wear down the opponents.
Filling in the holes- Injuries to Marc Staal, Wotjek Wolski, Michael Sauer, Steve Eminger, and more should have created problems for the surging Rangers this season. Instead, the players filling in for the injured players used the opportunities to prove their talent.
Ryan McDonagh does not know what a sophomore slump is, while a player that struggled from a sophomore slump is breaking out, Michael Del Zotto. Del Zotto is 2nd in the league with a +25 rating, and is first on the team in assists.
Follow me for more after the jump.
Henrik Lundqvist and Martin Biron- Henrik is the king. Posting a 2.03 GAA (prior to the shutout last night) three shutouts (including last night) and a .934 save percentage, (prior to last night) Lundqvist has caused nightmares for opposing offenses.
Meanwhile, Lundqvist's backup, Martin Biron, is having a fantastic season as well. Biron boasts victories over the Sabres and Sharks, among others. Biron has gotten the job done, winning seven of his eight starts.
Marian Gaborik's MVP type season- I am not sure yet if Gaborik is my MVP as of now, but he's certainly in the top three. Gaborik owns a five game goal streak, and has already tallied more scores than all of last season.
While some wanted Gaborik out of New York, it seems like they have been quieted by Gaborik's amazing season,
****
The beauty of all of these reasons are that they do not seem to be going away any time soon. The depth, even if injuries occur, will be replaced by players returning from injuries. Lundqvist and Gaborik will continue to be Lundqvist and Gaborik, and the players that have filled in are only gaining confidence as they go.
This season is not a fluke. (Although I do know Rob L. and George will likely have stats that disagree!)
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This season is not a fluke. (Although I do know Rob L. and George will likely have stats that disagree!)
Early season success was flukish. They’re much better now.
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The way of the current NHL is depth. The days of having one great line to win doesn’t cut it anymore. Scoring is down from past decades as the goalies are much better today than they were in the past. Gaby said it perfectly: his goals are now around the blue circle. The Bees are a perfect example of having good depth, good team D, and exceptional goaltending. That’s the formula to win the Cup and that’s what the Rangers have. IMO, we have become the Cup winning Devs. Someone goes down and you put another player in. Who would have thought that having Staal out so far, Sauer down, etc. and we would be #1 in the conference. I am really (cautiously) excited for this year. This team is the real deal for today’s NHL. Sather and company have finally gotten it right. Add Kreider, et al to this? Very promising future also.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 9:18 AM EST reply actions 2 recs
Great comparison to the Bruins. I argued this to some people (friends or somewhere) last year that the Rangers were a pretty similar team.
There weren’t many changes in the lineup, and most were improvements (Richards > Drury). Another year in Torts’ strategy and development among just about everyone (how many players over 30 do we have?) and it’d be extremely surprising if they weren’t better. I wouldn’t have said they’d be at or near the top but felt they’d be capable of some nice things and a dangerous playoff matchup.
It’s a promising year, and future, for the organization.
what I like best is the team toughness. while I still think an “enforcer” doesn’t hurt in some games it is the overall team toughness that counts game in and game out. The Rangers don’t get pushed around like they used to. I think the Rangers and Bees are much the same team, maybe the Bees have slightly more skill which gives them an edge. can’t wait for the first game against them at the end of january.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 11:53 AM EST up reply actions
Agreed!
You’ve hit the proverbial “puck on the stick” with this one, BC.
My only beef? Not sure how many Ranger fans have truly been “waiting for a long time” to be first in the Eastern Conference in December. Or even in April for that matter. Just about everyone’s waiting for the same thing…
Me? I’m simply waiting for a Round 2 playoff game to be played again at MSG. :)
I thought they were in first cause they have more points than the other guys?
by teknics on Dec 28, 2011 10:02 AM EST via mobile reply actions
dammit
You stole my snarky comment
"Don't look now, but there's one too many people in this room and I think it's you." Groucho Marx
In Prust We Trust
"Kovalev would work with Tortorella like a kitty would work in a microwave.
A lot of smoke and desperate clawing at the door. It wouldn’t work. It would just be a big, hot mess." -Dig Deep
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by Kevin Power on Dec 28, 2011 10:15 AM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
You must be getting slow in your old age gramps ;)
by teknics on Dec 28, 2011 10:32 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Fedotenko
The one hole I see in the linup is Ruslan Fedotenko. Yes, he’s a solid player and doesn’t make too many mistakes, but I don’t see him belonging on the fourth line. He’s not a physical player and doesn’t really provide any offensive spark.
I’d much rather see someone like Andre Deveaux or even Avery be on the fourth line.
Where do you guys see Feds fitting in?
Feds
fits in just fine in the 4th line. he brings the “little bit of everything” Brandon describes about each line.
"Fantasy, reality, science Fiction. Which is which? Who can tell?"
It helps that Tampa beat Philly yesterday but those pesky pens still won
gotta keep winning if you wanna maintain first place.
Is hockey hard? "I don't know, you tell me. We need to have the strength and power of a football player, the stamina of a marathon runner, and the concentration of a brain surgeon. But we need to put all this together while moving at high speeds on a cold and slippery surface while 5 other guys use clubs to try and kill us, oh yeah did I mention that this whole time we're standing on blades 1/8 of an inch thick? Is ice hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. Next question."
-Brendan Shanahan
by RichieToGabbySCORE on Dec 28, 2011 10:50 AM EST reply actions
I fear the Pens more than the Flyers quite honestly.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 11:54 AM EST up reply actions
i heard we might see some trades today.
"It's far from done, but we did get something accomplished."-#19 B.Richards
by -19-AgainstAll on Dec 28, 2011 10:58 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Biron and Woywitka in tonight
Though Woy may be in for Bickel rather than Erixon, we’ll see.
I think for Bickel because of his eye from the other night when Haley mugged him.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 11:54 AM EST up reply actions
so sorry, it is for Erixon. Guess Bickel is ok. his eye didn’t look it though. he’s a tough guy.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 12:01 PM EST up reply actions
he got jumped by Haley. Haley started throwing them while Bickel was prone as opposed to giving Bickel a chance to engage at the same time. Stu didn’t back down though.
by Richter1994 on Dec 28, 2011 12:24 PM EST up reply actions
Interesting lineup change
I see why Woywitka for Erixon but I would’ve thought Hank in tonight then Biron for the pussycats and a nice two day rest until the Classic.
Homo homini lupus est - Human beings are wolves to each other
I guess asking yourself “Where do we put everyone once everyone is back healthy?” are good problems to have.. What do we do with EC, Avery, and Wolski once WW is healthy? If we placed EC and WW on waivers I can gurantee some club would pick them up regardless of how much we bash on those two.
EC would clear waivers. Wolski won’t.
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by George E. Ays on Dec 28, 2011 1:30 PM EST up reply actions
Even with WW’s 3.8 mil cap hit? I wouldn’t be in favor of placing him on waivers but I can agree that Avery would definitely clear waivers.
EC was a waiver wire rescue by us, Avery already cleared both ways this season, WW is on the last year of his contract and has elite level skill, as long as a team had cap room he’d be a perfect free deadline-type acquisition.
by teknics on Dec 28, 2011 3:57 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Wolski?
Has elite level skill? I dont mean to be obtuse (as I have butted heads with George on this already) but what is your definition of “elite”? Ovy, Crosby, Malkin, Gaborik are elite. For Wolski i think you need to move the letters around- e,L-I-T-E .
"Shoot the Puck Barry, Shoot the puck !" Bill Chadwick
by RangerFanInChicago on Dec 28, 2011 5:19 PM EST up reply actions
In terms of pure skill, Wolski probably is elite level; the problem is that the guys you mentioned also have the work ethic to be elite. Same goes for guys like Semin or Kostitsyn who could put up 90-100 pts a year if they worked as hard as Crosby does.
Take it to the net and keep jamming and jamming until somebody comes on you.
- Eddie Olczyk
by Scratch and Snif on Dec 28, 2011 6:18 PM EST up reply actions
Wolski in for Feds or Rupp
Probably Feds … Hags picks up his penalty kill time.
by Gabby the Gutless Sniper on Dec 28, 2011 12:20 PM EST via mobile reply actions
So it seems probable that WW will be put on the 4th line and not the 3rd (which would entail a demotion for Dubi, Boyle, or Mitchell)?
Homo homini lupus est - Human beings are wolves to each other
Wolski/Boyle/Mitchell 3rd
AVERY/Dubinsky/Prust 4th
Will not happen, but puts best guys in lineup IMO.
by Gabby the Gutless Sniper on Dec 28, 2011 1:00 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
The way the Boyle Mitchell Dubi line completely nuetralize and tired out that top line of the isles was a thing of beauty… they did the same against the flyers… i wouldn’t break them up…
@clalicata17
ESPN Podcast on the Rangers
I asked Adam over at SNYRangers.com if he could write up a summary as I can’t listen to a 20 minute podcast at work. Thanks Adam!
http://www.snyrangersblog.com/2011/12/28/recap-espns-hockey-today-podcast-on-the-rangers/
Why are we in first place?
We beat the teams we should… Teams like the islanders last year we would have come out flat and lost the game handily instead we come out each and every night, bar a few games, ready to go…
I think the flyers are starting to come back down to earth… they have played a lot of games against lesser opponents and lost a few against them as well… not to say they are a bad team just to say they clearly are not a 7 goal a night team… 0 points for Giroux in 2 games against the rangers…
Our biggest test will be Boston in February… hopefully Staal will be back by then and that makes us that much more dangerous… imagine have 3 defensive pairs that can shut you down… With staal and sauer we could have that… just dreaming
@clalicata17
That’s awesome, thanks for letting me know!
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"No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball."
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Lots of hurt Bruins fans in the comments
R.I.P Derek
Rangers FTW!
by BleedsRangerBlue on Dec 28, 2011 6:37 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
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