Boudreau Disses MSG Facilities, Insults Volume of New York Fans

There are a few ways a coach can respond to a loss during the playoffs.  Coaches can praise the opposition, build up their own teams efforts or they can go off and talk about something that has nothing to with what goes on at ice level.  Apparently Washington Washington Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau decided the best way to deal with yesterday’s Game 3 loss to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden was to insult the building and New York fans. In an interview with the Washington's 105.9 Radio morning talk show, Boudreau said MSG did not live up to the hype:

“Well, the one thing, its reputation is far better than the actual building,” the coach said. “I mean, it’s nothing. The locker rooms are horrible. The benches are horrible. There’s no room for anything. But the reputation of being in Madison Square Garden is what makes it famous. Also, our building’s a lot louder, too. So I mean, they can say what they want, but it’s not that loud in there.”

The Garden did not get the reputation because of state of the art facilities, but for the number of historic events that have taken place there.  Maybe if he and his team were more concerned about putting some history in his building instead of the accommodations they get the playoff success of his team would be a little better over the past few years.   

If Boudreau thinks the Garden was quiet yesterday when Brandon Dubinsky put in the game winning goal to make this a series, then he needs a hearing aid.  All he did with these comments is find an excuse for it to get louder on Wednesday because the New York fans will take these comments personally and let him have it.  Maybe he has grown accustomed to horns and cowbells as a replacement for actual cheering so he is confused by fans that don’t feel the need to create fake noise or bang the glass incessantly. 

There is no doubt that facilities at MSG need a revamp, which is why the renovations are coming.  To go a step further and insult the New York fans all in an attempt to distract from his team losing yesterday and the discussion of previous year’s playoff failures is over the line.

Dubinsky Takes The Lead When Rangers Need Him Most

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The New York Rangers forward core is not the most skilled group in the league.  The group is one that has few dynamic players capable of creating consistent offense for themselves and instead relies on the team’s grinding system to put them into a position to garner results.  Brandon Dubinsky can certainly play the grinding game and is at his best when he does so, but he also has a different level of skill to make him one of the few forwards the Rangers have that can true difference maker up front.  He was that player in Game 3.

For the first two games of their playoff series against the Washington Capitals he failed to do so and his team was down 0-2 in the series.  After a career regular season in which he recorded 24 goals and 30 assists, Brandon Dubinsky had been a complete nonfactor in to start the playoffs.  That changed in Game 3 of the series and with it, potentially, so did the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series.

At different points throughout the season it has been Dubinsky who has stepped up to lead the Rangers to victory.  Some night he has done it with his goals.  Other nights he has been the playmaker for a critical tally.  On all of those occasions he has led most through his will and that is what was on display Sunday as much as anything else.  The game winning goal was certainly not the prettiest and will never be mistaken for a highlight reel quality tally.  What the goal did show was the dynamic play that he is capable of and the impact he has when he plays with a level of determination and confidence in his game that was lacking to start the series. 

Dubinsky did much more than just score the game-winner on Sunday.  In 25:45 of ice time for New York, he had the goal plus an assist, and a game-high seven hits.  He along with Brandon Prust and Sean Avery set the tone for a physical game that would bring the Rangers back to the style they must play to be successful.  Beyond just the style, this season has shown, especially in the absence of Callahan, Dubinsky is the only Rangers forward capable of leading the way for this team. 

The playoffs are the time where a team’s best players must step up to the challenge and carry them through.  While he likely would not be a star on a skill laden team like the Capitals, but for New York he is the star they need on the offensive end of the ice.  Sunday afternoon was one of those games for Dubinsky as he breathed life into his team by getting them back in the series against Washington with a chance to even the proceedings on Wednesday night.  Now the Rangers need him to show the way again.

Video: Raffi Torres Lays Out Seabrook With High Hit; Suspension Likely

Raffi Torres of the Vancouver Canucks made his return tonight following a four game suspension for a blindside hit to Edmonton Oilers rookie Jordan Eberle.  Midway through the second period tonight, Torres went high and on the blindside of Brent Seabrook with a hit that immediately led to talk of him being right back on the shelf with another suspension:

The referees on the ice gave Torres only two minutes for interference, but the question for the league will be whether it was a hit to the head that violated Rule 48.  There is no doubt that Torres hit will be viewed in the shadows of his previous hit on Eberle and any disciplinary action the league takes will have that in mind when assessing punishment to Torres. 

The fact that Torres could not go half a game in his return from a suspension without putting himself in the position to be up for review again says a lot and means while Seabrook spent part of tonight’s game in “the quiet room,” it will Torres that a some time to sit and think about the way he is hitting people before stepping back on the ice during these playoffs.

Video: Rangers Overturned Goal At End of Second Period

At the very end of the second period the New Rangers thought they had taken a 2-1 lead on a goal from Ruslan Fedotenko as the NBC clocked showed 0.1 seconds left on the clock.  The play was initially called a goal on the ice, but upon further review in the Toronto war room the play was ruled no goal as the official NHL time read 0.0 before the puck completely crossed the line. 

Here is the video which shows the overhead replay with the official NHL time on the screen and shows the call was right.  Why NBC did not have the official NHL time burned into the telecast today is a different question.

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Dubinsky's Late Goal Gets Rangers Back Into Series Against Capitals

The New York Rangers returned to Madison Square Garden looking to stake a claim in the quarterfinal series with the Washington Capitals.  Down 0-2 in the series the team needed to hold serve at home this afternoon if they were going to have a viable chance to take the series.  They got just that when Brandon Dubinsky finally made a mark on the proceedings with the game winning goal.  The goal came with just 1:39 left in the game as Dubinsky made a series of moves to step out in front on the short side and the deflected puck got in behind Neuvirth to give the Rangers the win and life in the series. Dubinsky's fake as if he was going to continue around the net was the key to the play as it froze Hannan, Alzner and Ovechkin and allowed for Dubinsky to step out and have the puck ping-pong into the net.

After playing two subpar games to open the series Dubinsky made two huge plays to help lead his team to this crucial victory.  The Rangers got back to playing to their style and it paid off as all three goals were created from hard work and their resiliency was on full display as well.  The 3-2 victory in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Washington gives the Rangers a level of hope at 2-1 that would not have existed down 3-0.  Now they will be looking to even the series on Wednesday night at MSG.

During the first period the team played their style and set the tone with physical play.  Sean Avery was the kind of spark the team needs him to be during the period and helped to key the offensive chances along with Boyle and Prust.  The problem, like the third period of Game 2, was that the Boyle, Prust, Avery line was the only one really generating any offense and the team still came out with no goals.  The Rangers had a two man advantage for 1:25 late in the period, but another passive power play failed to generate any really good chances with the time.

After another failed power play early in the second the Rangers got on the board first courtesy of a beautiful snipe from Erik Christensen with the man advantage.  The goal came 5:30 into the period and saw Christensen score from a seemingly impossible angle high to the short side.

The Rangers held the lead until Alex Ovehckin tied the score with just 59.2 seconds left in the period.  New York failed to clear the zone and in the scramble play that saw Ovechkin dive to get a call near the point and Staal take out Green in the slot, Arnott would flip a shot at the net which Ovechkin tipped in.

The air came out of MSG following the goal by Ovechkin, but there was hope momentarily when Ruslan Fedotenko appeared to score with 0.1 seconds on the clock to give the Rangers the lead back to end the second.  After review, the puck was ruled to have crossed after 0.00 on the clock, thus making it no goal and a 1-1 hockey game heading to the third.

New York took the lead again 8:01 into the third when Vinny Prospal put home an empty net rebound.  The goal was created by a cycle play from Gaborik, Prospal and Dubinsky that saw Dubinsky feed Staal with a cross ice pass to the point, Staal fired high on Neuvirth and led to the rebound for Prospal. 

For the third time in the series, second in the third period, the Rangers could not hold the lead they had gained on the Capitals.  Knuble was the one with the answer this time as he scored a power play goal with 5:12 remaining in regulation.  The play was a combination of brilliance from Washington and defensive breakdowns from the Rangers.  Dubinsky failed to get his stick in the passing lane allowing a cross ice pass from Ovechkin to Backstrom that had the defense scrambling and left Knuble wide open at the top of the crease.  Dan Girardi had a breakdown on the play as well when he over pursed Ovechkin beyond the faceoff dot and being that far out of the play was unable to get back to Knuble. 

• This is the version of Dubinsky the Rangers need every game, especially in the absence of Callahan.
• Brian Boyle consistently put himself in the right place to get chances, which is shown through his 9 shots on goal, but now he has to start finishing.

Video: Brandon Dubinsky Game-Winner Against Capitals

After being absent for the first two games of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal, Brandon Dubinsky made his presence felt in a big way with this game-winning goal in Game 3 vs the Capitals.  The goal with only 1:39 left in regulation is the difference from being a 2-1 series and potentially being down 3-0 right now.

Rangers Must Impose Their Will On Capitals Early and Often

One of the things the 2010-11 New York Rangers has done best this season is respond after a poor performance or when they were in danger.  They need that spirit again today.  Down 2-0 in the best of seven series with the Washington Capitals the Rangers must come out with a fire, passion and execution that tells everyone involved that this series is far from over.  The Rangers have been in both games for long stretches, but have not been able to play well enough to grab hold of either game.  This afternoon that must change and it must change early. 

If New York can get off fast and score an early goal their confidence will rise and doubt might creep back into the minds of the Capitals who have experienced their share of playoff shortcomings.  The longer it takes the Rangers to get on the board, the more confidence Washington will have and the tighter the Rangers players will become as they press to break the seal on Michal Neuvirth’s net.  Slumps in scoring are nothing new for this team and the way they break out of them is to get back to the basics of how they play. 

The Rangers at their most effective offensively are based on their dump and chase philosophy that allows them to get in on the forecheck, cycle the puck and just outwork the opponent to generate chances.  The goal from Matt Gilroy was created in that exact way when Brandon Prust disrupted the defense playing the puck behind the net and eventually it was worked to Wolski behind the net and he found a pinching Matt Gilroy.  The problem is that there has been no consistency to that system in the first two games and it is why the team has the one goal. 

The Rangers cannot and should not panic being down 0-2 to the Capitals, but they also cannot be complacent in trying to change the look and feel of this series.  Even when the Rangers went up 1-0 in Game 1 there was never really a feel that they were in control of the game and they need to start imposing the will that got them to this point or they will be down 0-3 in a hurry.

Absence of Callahan Only Further Proving His Worth To Rangers

The importance of Ryan Callahan to the New York Rangers was never in question, but the level of impact in his absence is making his value to this version of the team painfully evident.  There was a discussion of how the Rangers were able to play solid hockey without Callahan in the 19 games he missed during the regular season.  Now the team is seeing the difference between regular season and playoff hockey.  In the playoffs, stars have to be stars and the Rangers are trying to beat the top seed in the conference without their best forward.  The lack of Callahan shows up in all facets of the game.

The offense, sans the New Jersey finale, has scored one goal in three games without Callahan.  The forwards have zero goals in those games and beyond the lack of finishing is the inability to truly generate consistent chances.  The team is without a consistent forecheck, lacked energy all over the ice and is not as willing to go to the dirty areas.  I am not even arguing that Callahan is a great hockey player, but his absence shows you both his importance and the lack of top end players in this team’s forward core.  

The two guys most capable of picking up the scoring side of it are Gaborik and Dubinsky.  Those two are the most talented forwards in the lineup and both have failed to step up to the plate in the biggest games of the year.  Gaborik has played well in stretches over the two games, but the lack of finish is still haunting the team.  Dubinsky on the other hand has had two bad games and is clearly missing having Callahan on a line with him.  The spark for Dubinsky and especially the awareness of what his other linemates are going to do is very evident.  The result has been him seemingly wondering around at times right now.  

Beyond the offensive end it shows up on the first goal for the Capitals last night as the Rangers lost the battles along the wall and sucked too low in the zone and left Chimera alone for the one-timer.  The penalty kill has been fine, but the power play, which has struggled with and without Callahan has absolutely no clue and even less net presence.  

Someone has to take the reins of this deal starting tomorrow and either fill the voids Callahan has left behind or convince everyone else to stop waiting for Callahan to step on the ice and fix it for them.  They are without him for now and if they want to see him play again this year, they have to do what is necessary to give him enough time to heal.  At this current pace he will have plenty of time before training camp in the fall.

When talking about a player’s contract usually you reference what he has done on the ice.  In the case of Ryan Callahan, the reference might be more about what his team cannot do without him.