Schneider feeding off 'energy' of physical play
The controlled physicality with which the Rangers have played the Devils has been a crucial underlying factor in this first-round playoffs series.
They aren’t throwing their bodies just to finish checks.
They aren’t engaging in fights just to land some punches.
Each bump along the boards, puck battle in the corner and post-whistle scrum has been intentional and executed in a way that hasn’t come at the cost of the Rangers’ defensive structure. That wasn’t always the case during last season’s playoff run, but it has been through the Rangers’ first two wins over the Devils this year.
Braden Schneider, and his 22 playoff games of experience, has been at the forefront of the club’s physical play.
“It’s something that carries over you, you feel some confidence and you feel the energy,” Schneider said of feeding off fights and physical play after the Rangers’ practice in Tarrytown on Friday. “You get tired, but then you feel energized after. It’s a battle out there, it’s playoffs and everyone’s fighting for every inch.”
Shortly after Kaapo Kakko put the Rangers up 5-1 in Game 2 on Thursday night at the Prudential Center, Schneider and Devils forward Michael McLeod dropped the gloves and went punch for punch.
The 6-foot-3, 208-pound defenseman more than held his own, as he always has in each tussle he’s gotten into since his NHL debut on Jan. 13, 2022. Fighting was never part of Schneider’s game during his junior days in the Western Hockey League, but it sure is now in the NHL.
“It was getting emotional in the game,” Schneider said of his fight. “After we got that last one, we had a little pushing and shoving in the corner and obviously their guys are trying to get some energy. I was pretty fired up as well, so it kind of just happened. One of those things where it’s just out of raw emotions.”
➤ It is just the seventh time in team history that the Rangers have taken a 2-0 series lead with both wins coming on the road. The Rangers are 5-1 when holding a 2-0 series lead under such circumstances.
The Blueshirts have opened the playoffs with two victories of four-plus goals for the first time since 1994, when they beat the Islanders 6-0 in both of the first two games.