National Post (National Edition)
The Rangers have his back, but Rick Nash knows he needs to start lighting the lamp.
Rangers forward Rick Nash might not be lighting the lamp, but teammates say he is generating plenty of offence
On the morning of Game 3, reporters and teammates each took turns trying to convince Rick Nash, the second-highest goal-scorer in the NHL this season, that scoring goals was not really important. That it was the little things, like providing a screen for a power-play goal or winning puck battles along the boards or just playing sound defensive hockey that makes the difference.
It was a gesture that made the New York Rangers forward smile, if not laugh out loud.
“Thanks for noticing that,” said Nash, who had one goal heading into Monday night’s game against the Washington Capitals. “I appreciate the positives.”
Around this time a year ago, there were no positives from a drought that saw New York’s US$7.8-million star forward finish the playoffs with three goals in 25 games. Fans booed him on home ice after he went the first two rounds without a goal. When he finally did score, the headline in the New York Daily News read, “Hell freezes over.”
It is easy to carry that criticism into this year, especially with Washington’s Alex Ovechkin having already scored two GIF-ready goals and having set up the winner in Game 1 against the Rangers. But the 30-year-old Nash, who said the disappointment of going the entire Stanley Cup final without a goal stayed with him all summer, seems a bit wiser this time around.
“I’ve been through this before,” said Nash, who, heading into Monday night’s game, had not scored since Game 2 of the first round. “The negative doesn’t get you anywhere. I feel like all the negatives come from (the outside). In here, we’re positive things will go in. But we’re winning. We’re tied 1-1, like you said, so it’s still an exciting time.”
This has been a difficult year for scoring goals. The NHL failed to have a single player reach the 90-point mark for the first time in a season — at least one uninterrupted by a labour dispute — since 1967-68. That trend has carried into the playoffs, where Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin went without a point in the first round, Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos went without a goal in his first eight games and Chicago’s Marian Hossa has still yet to score.
Nash, who scored 42 goals in the regular season (second only to Ovechkin’s 53), has been getting a steady diet of Washington defencemen Brooks Orpik and John Carlson in the second round and has mostly kept to the perimeter where he is least dangerous. “They’re boxing out,” he said. “I just got to keep trying to get on the inside, not allow my game to be completely on the outside.”
Still, the Brampton, Ont., native is making a difference. In a 3-2 win against the Capitals in Game 2, he took away goaltender Braden Holtby’s eyes with a block-the-sun screen on Dan Boyle’s shot from the point. Heading into Monday’s game, he led the Rangers with 25 shots — six more than the next player on the team — and was tied with Derick Brassard with five points.
“We have some stats that go beyond goals that show he’s generating more chances than anyone on the team in every single game,” said Rangers forward Chris Kreider. “He’s been pretty successful.”
“Obviously, he’s known for scoring goals and being offensive, but there’s plenty of things he’s doing to help our chances to win,” said Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh. “If we need a good defensive play, we feel just as confident with him in that situation too.”
For now, the Rangers can afford to let Nash slowly find his scoring touch. As the playoffs continue, however, more pressure will be placed on every team’s star player to perform. At the same time, with opposing teams devising specific game plans to lock down the top scoring threats, New York will need secondary scorers like Kevin Hayes and Jesper Fast — each have a goal — to continue to contribute.
“Each team has guys that have that ability to find the open space and make it very challenging on the defence,” said Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault. “What we’re trying to do to their skilled players is the same thing that they’re trying to do to ours. It’s competition at its best.”
Added Nash: “It’s definitely not an easy thing to put the puck in the net.”