Rangers need sharp Mats & McDonagh
IF the result had truly mattered, then this eighth straight defeat on home ice would have been a crusher for the Rangers, beaten 4-3 in a shootout by the human bag of magic tricks otherwise known as Sidney Crosby and his Penguins.
But save for the ignominy of it all, this represented a stutterstep forward for the Blueshirts, who are attempting to recreate the vibe they had through the first five months of the season but lost somewhere along the way.
Most importantly, it represented a giant leap forward in the Kingdom of Lundqvist, for after two games on which rust could be seen hanging off the 35-yearold’s barnacles, Henrik was often spectacular in allowing his team to hang in on the edges, down only 3-1 early in the third before the Rangers mounted up to send the game into overtime on Chris Kreider’s score from in front with 11.6 seconds to play in regulation.
And with four games remaining, a playoff berth locked and one more point gained or Boston point lost clinching the first wild card spot and a crossover into the Atlantic, it is all about laying the groundwork for the first round.
To that extent, there is absolutely no reason for Ryan McDonagh, who sat this one out tending to what is believed a minor issue, to suit up again until he is completely healthy.
One can deduce that the captain has been playing through some sort of injury he sustained at the Garden against Florida on March 17, for it was the next night Marc Staal played the right side for the first time in his life while paired with McDonagh.
And it was prior to the following match that coach Alain Vigneault declined to explain the reasoning behind the move, saying only, “You’ll have to trust me on it.”
You can trust McDonagh’s game slipped in the interim. If McDonagh is not at his peak, the Rangers have essentially no chance to survive the first round, not with the wasteland the rest of the defense has become the last five weeks.
The warped defensive play is obviously not all on the defense corps, for coverage is a five-man responsibility. But it is confounding how a reasonably well structured team in its own end has become a house of cards. It is as if the front of the net is a radioactive zone, with the Rangers reluctant to become contaminated by venturing near it while enemy platoons camp out with nary a care in the world
“It is really curious how we went from being a really strong defensive team for 60 games to playing the way we are now,” Derek Stepan said. “I don’t know the reason behind it. But I do know we’re working extremely hard as a group to correct it.”
The Rangers need to correct their D-zone coverage and they need somehow to eliminate the lengthy lulls that have pockmarked their game. After an encouraging start in which they dictated the opening nine minutes or so in this one, the Blueshirts were outshot 18-2 over a span of 15:20 bridging the intermission.
“That happens when we turn the puck over in our zone or at the blue line and we can’t get it in deep,” Rick Nash, dominant in the comeback push, said. “It feels like we go through these stretches where we get away from our game plan.”
But even as there is much to clean up, the priority must be on putting the healthiest and most rested personnel possible on the ice for Game 1.
That means it is time for Mats Zuccarello to take a seat, even if Vigneault scoffed at the concept Tuesday morning in San Jose, saying, “Rest is a big word ... I’m not a big fan of resting guys. I think you keep playing, you keep your tempo, you keep your momentum.”
But though Zuccarello may have a big heart, he is not a big guy. Before Friday’s 18:39, he had played the 23rd-most minutes among forwards in the NHL. Plus, he has played more than 90 games this year, including the Olympic qualifiers for Norway and the World Cup for Team Europe in a season that began in mid-August.
If the Rangers are going to have a chance, they will need Zuccarello at his peppiest. This next week is not after wins and losses. It is about the week after that. It is about preparing. Zuccarello should prepare off-ice.