Chimera Silences Garden Crowd With Winner In Second OT; Capitals Take 3-1 Series Lead

For the second time in the four games of the Eastern Quarterfinal Series between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals took overtime to decide the outcome.  The bad news for the Rangers was the outcome was the same with the Capitals getting the game on Jason Chimera’s goal 12:36 into the second overtime to give Washington the 4-3 victory.  One has to wonder if that goal was one that will silence the Garden crowd for the rest of the summer as the Capitals now have a 3-1 series lead with a chance to close it in Game 5 on Saturday in Washington. 

The utter silence of the Garden crowd as the puck went in was even more shocking when compared to the raucous nature of the crowd from the beginning of the game and especially after the Rangers took the 3-0 lead in the second.  The best chant came after that goal when the Garden had erupted with a beautiful “Can You Hear Us?” chant directed at Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau.  The beauty of that chant seems so far away at this point, as does the level of noise that came with it.

The winner for the Capitals came on a breakdown between Marian Gaborik and Henrik Lundqvist as Lundqvist went to smother the puck for a whistle while Gaborik poked the loose puck away from his goaltender and to Chimera for the winner.  For many it is ironically fitting that Gaborik who has struggled so mightily to regain the form he had last season in the scoring department helped assist the Capitals in scoring the winner.  To blame Gaborik is easy at the moment, but the loss tonight is much bigger than him or any one play in the game.  

The Rangers were a perfect 29-0-0 when leading after two periods during the regular season, so blowing a three goal lead in the final period was a bigger problem than just Gaborik’s mistake in the second overtime.  If you want to truly blame something for the loss, look no further than the power play which was 0-for-7 tonight and now 1-for-18 in the series.  You cannot win in the playoffs when your power play is that anemic.

The first period was yet another scoreless first as it has been in every game of the series.  The second period saw the Rangers dominate the action while scoring three goals.  Artem Anisimov would open the scoring 5:24 into the period when he scored from behind the goal line.  Anisimov got the puck behind the net and banked it off Mark Hendricks before getting by Neuvirth.  

Marian Gaboirk extended the lead to 2-0 at 13:40 of the second.  Gaborik will get credit for the goal in the boxscore, but the goal belongs to Ruslan Fedotenko and his tremendous work from behind the net to the slot where he fired a perfect backhand pass to Gaborik for the tap-in.  The goal was Gaborik’s first of the series.

With the Garden flying from the second goal of the game, the Rangers tacked on a third seven seconds later when Brandon Dubinsky beat Neuvirth with a shot from the slot.  Once again full credit for the goal goes to Fedotenko.  Fedotenko broke in the zone off the face-off at center, shot wide, but hustled behind the net to win the puck back and fed Dubinsky for the goal.  The two goals in seven seconds was one off the team record of two goals in six seconds and two seconds off the NHL playoff record.

The Rangers outstanding second period was overshadowed by an abysmal third in which they squandered all three goals of their lead.  The Capitals came out with tremendous energy to start the third and the Rangers didn’t match it.  Alex Semin scored just 2:47 into the third on a goal in which Henrik Lundqvist attempted to cover the puck, but the whistle never blew and Semin finally stuffed it in.  There were definitely some quick whistles on the Capitals end of the ice in terms of stoppage for Neuvirth, which is fair as a comparison.  In terms of the play itself, Lundqvist never had control of the puck, so the fact there was no whistle was the right call.

Just 57 seconds after the Semin goal, Marcus Johannson brought the Capitals to within one when he was left all alone in front for the tap-in off the feed from Brooks Laich.

The worst call of the night came at 10:03 of the third when Avery was whistled for a phantom slash on Alex Ovechkin after Dubinsky was pulled down at the other end and got no call.  The Capitals did not officially convert on the call, but just four seconds after the penalty ended Washington tied the game, as Marcus Johansson deflected John Carlson's point shot by Lundqvist at 12:07.

Early in the overtime the Rangers were going to have a 2-on-0 with Dubinsky and Gaborik after a beautiful outlet pass from Ryan McDonagh, but Dubinsky was stopped by referee Paul Devorski.

Alexander Ovechkin broke in with 8:59 left in overtime only to be turned aside by the glove of Henrik Lundqvist.  Ovechkin came out at Staal on the point and when Staal’s shot attempt was blocked Ovechkin kept going leading to breakaway.

Video: Rangers Fans Serenade Boudreau With "Can You Hear Us?" Chant

On Monday, Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau said that the New York fans in Madison Square Garden were not loud enough.  You knew that the New York crowd was going to respond in a huge way.  After the Rangers took a 3-0 lead during the second period of Game 4 Madison Square Garden erupted in a chant asking Boudreau "Can You Hear Us?!"

Chris Drury Playing A Key Role Against Capitals

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Much has been written this season about the value of Chris Drury to the New York Rangers and most of it has to do with his lack of scoring for his salary.  The criticisms about his offensive production for his salary are clearly valid, but through three games of the Rangers series with the Washington Capitals Drury is showing where he can have an impact for this team. 

During the season the Rangers struggled with face-offs during the regular season but have seen Drury win 27 of his 35 (77%) trips into the circle during the series.  Making that stat more notable is the fact that no other Rangers center has won even 50-percent of their draws in the three games.  Because of the struggles of the other players on draws and Drury’s success, in Game 3, he only recorded 7:58 of ice time, but had 22 shifts in the game because he was used as a face-off specialist by coach John Tortorella.  In the game he went 15 of 19 on draws.  The numbers alone are impressive, but the impact it has on the game goes far beyond just the statistics. 

The Rangers are a team that when at their best possesses the puck and is able to grind on their opponent’s.  Puck possession starts with the face-off.  Winning draws allows the Rangers to work on their own game, but also keep the puck away from the highly skilled Capitals players.  Winning draws in the defensive zone allows for the team to breakout and stop the opposition from setting up their offense and Drury has been a crucial component of that in this series.

Beyond face-offs Drury has made his impact felt doing what he does in killing penalties and blocking shots.  Yes, there are a lot of players on the Rangers roster who do both of those things, but it still sends a message to every player in the room when the man with the “C” on his sweater, who has missed much of the year with various injuries, is diving in front of shots to help the team win.

It was also reported that before Game 1 of the series Drury pulled all of the players who had not seen playoff action aside and gave them an idea of what to expect which is what a veteran leader who has been through the wars before is supposed to do.  There is a lot of talk about giving Ryan Callahan the captaincy and he will certainly get it, but in his absence Chris Drury is showing why he was ever named the captain to begin with.  

Rangers Reaping Rewards of Avery Playing With an Edge Again

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Sean Avery is back in the New York Rangers lineup and back to playing the type of hockey he needs to so that he can be effective.  Down the stretch of the season there was a lot of discussion about not only his role this year, but his future with the Rangers organization.  Avery was a healthy scratch in five of the Rangers' final 11 games, as well as the first game of the playoffs.  Since being inserted into the lineup for Game 2 he has played like the Sean Avery of the past in that his energy level has been consistently high, he has been effective on the forecheck and caused havoc for the opposition.   He has logged 19:07 of ice time in the two games. 

There is still the lingering possibility that on any shift Avery is on the ice there is the risk he could explode and hurt the team with a bad penalty, but he has played smart disciplined hockey in the series and has helped to make his line with Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust the Rangers best line. 

Avery has impressed to the point that the Rangers sent Mats Zuccarello down the AHL because he was not going to get back in the lineup.  His play has been so effective that it led coach John Tortorella to praise the winger.  Matt Ehalt of ESPN.com had the following quote:

"I think in the minutes he played (in Game 3), he was pretty consistent, as far as getting in on the forecheck, getting around the net, finishing his checks," Tortorella said. "Sean's biggest assets are his legs. If he starts thinking, he hurts himself. He just needs to go play and use his legs."

That quote from Tortorella is accurate, but also speaks to the way Avery has been mismanaged this year.  Avery is a player who has to play on the edge and without overthinking the game.  The problem is when the coach makes it clear that any mistake or bad penalty will lead to him sitting on the bench, then you end up with a player who does not do the things that makes them most effective.   

In the series Avery has been able to strike the balance between the energy the team needs and the discipline that Tortorella demands.  The Rangers need that balance to continue if they are going to even the series this evening as the Avery, Boyle, Prust line sets the tone for everything New York wants to do in this series.

Rangers Focused On Game 4 As Boudreau Backs Down On MSG Comments

The criticism of the facilities at Madison Square Garden and the noise level by Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau yesterday caused a stir amongst Rangers fans and many different commentators (full story here).

Today Boudreau attempted to back down from the comments during his meeting with media.

"You know, you guys mustn't have a lot of work to do, because they're making improvements to the arena. Are they not? Are they not making $800 million worth of improvements to the arena? It's a fabulous place to play, the atmosphere is great – it's the world's most famous arena. All I said was that the conditions in the dressing room were not up to par."

The best news of all of this discussion about MSG and what Boudreau had to say is that the Rangers are staying out of it and letting Boudreau continue to dig while they focus on Game 4. Jesse Spector over at the Blueshirts Blog runs through some of the reactions from the Rangers to the brouhaha

John Tortorella: “Our mindset is just focusing on what we need to do, how we play – play the right way and get ready for Game 4,” Tortorella said after the Rangers practiced today in Greenburgh. “That’s our main focus. We have confidence in the league, we have confidence in the officials that they won’t be influenced by all the whining going on here right now. We’re staying away from it, and we’re focused on what we need to do. And like I said, we have confidence in the league that this doesn’t affect the series. It’s a pretty good series. Two pretty good teams, going at it pretty hard.”

Henrik Lundqvist: “I haven’t heard that,” Lundqvist said. “As long as we’re happy and we enjoy ourselves playing, we’re happy at home. I think last game was a great feeling, going out there – in warmups, it was fun, a lot of excitement. We’ll see. They’re loud enough for us, and they’ve been great. I love playing at home, and especially in the playoffs, when it’s more intense. I look forward to it.”

Brandon Dubinsky: “Us, as players, we love playing here at home, and we feel like our fans are the best and most passionate. I guess everybody’s entitled to their own opinion.”

The approach from Tortorella on down is the right one in that they praise their own fans, but keep the focus on the game itself and evening the series.  The comments by Boudreau were clearly intended to distract from past issues his team has had in the playoffs and the Rangers can bring all of those back with a win tomorrow to send the series back to Washington 2-2 for Game 5 Saturday.

NHL Agrees To Stay With NBC/Versus for Next 10 Years

Over the past few months there has been speculation as to where the NHL would be spending its next TV deal.  This afternoon the speculation ended with NBC and Versus announcing they signed a new 10 year, $2B deal to keep the NHL on their respective networks.  The other suitors over the course of the negotiations included: Fox, Turner and ESPN.  In the end the NHL is staying where it has been with an increased price and with some new wrinkles to the product.

According to Sports Business Daily some of the new wrinkles include:

The deal will see NBC and Versus carry all Stanley Cup playoff games nationally, with the conference semis appearing exclusively on the two nets. 

One of the biggest gripes I have with the NHL playoffs is that the league had not figured out a way to air all of the games to allow fans to watch as much hockey as they want and choose their games.  Using the full assortment of NBC affiliated channels to do so is a great move to further advance the NHL audience.

It also will see NBC and Versus televise 100 regular-season games, including a new Thanksgiving Friday telecast on NBC. 

The idea have adding a Thanksgiving Friday game is an interesting one with the number of families that are together and there is little on after all the football of Thanksgiving day.  This move also moves the hockey season up into the national space earlier in the year than just starting it around the Winter Classic.

NBC has committed to a national "Game of the Week" and Winter Classic, and Versus will televise a national "Game of the Week," plus the All-Star Game, NHL Premiere Games, NHL Faceoff and any future NHL Heritage Classic games in Canada. NBC and Versus will continue to share the rights to the Stanley Cup Final.

As part of the deal, NBC Sports Group agreed to build a new studio for NHL Network in Stamford, Conn. The deal also includes targeted promotions across the Comcast/NBCUniversal TV and digital assets.

Promotion is always a key in gaining market share for a product so any increase in the promotion of the sport is a good thing.

The $200 million annual fee for the NHL rights is a dramatic increase from the current $77.5 million that Versus currently pays for the rights.  The previous record was $120 millionduring the '99-'04 seasons while the NHL was on ESPN.

Reactions about the deal are mixed amongst fans as many wanted the game to go to ESPN and get more of a marketing push.  ESPN is the largest sports media outlet in the US and between showing, promoting and featuring highlights of the game they would have a great opportunity to push the game to a more mainstream audience. 

Versus does not appear to offer that sort of mainstream access that many thought ESPN might.  Versus has improved the quality of its coverage since the merger NBC/Comcast so there is hope that will continue through the life of this contract.  Ultimately it will come down to whether NBC/Versus can create an atmosphere enjoyable for the fans to watch the game or what will end up is the NHL and NBC end up with a good deal and the fans end up with something they dont enjoy for the next decade.

Rumor: Rangers To Offer Multi-Year Deal To Gilroy?

In today's column, Larry Brooks of the New York Post, reported that Rangers’ GM Glen Sather is expected to offer 26-year-old defenseman Matt Gilroy a new multi-year deal after this season. Gilroy’s two year deal expires at the end of the season and it has long been understood that the Rangers were unlikely to tender the pending restricted free agent at the required 2.1 million to retain his rights.

The fact that the Rangers would consider giving Gilroy a contract well below his current salary is not a surprise. The fact that they are looking to lock him up to a multi-year deal is unexpected however.  Between inconsistent play on the ice and inability to consistently crack the lineup, sitting ten of the final fourteen games this season as a healthy scratch it is odd that the Rangers would be looking to construct a deal for multiple years.  Gilroy has shown some of the things he can bring to the table during the current playoff series against Washington, but the flashes have never really been played out over any consistent time before.  Hopefully he is finding his niche in the NHL and will move from there if the Rangers keep him this summer.

The most logical conclusion I can come to as to why the Rangers would bring Gilroy back and for multiple years is they view him an ideal seventh defender and if they can lock him up at a reasonable rate it is worth the look. They know that he can sit in the press box and be ready to contribute in a limited role when necessary without bring a problem for the team, which is critical to any seventh defender.  I cannot see a scenario where the Rangers think a pairing of Michael Del Zotto and Matt Gilroy is a good idea heading into next season.

Gilroy obviously has the ability to decline the offer and would become an unrestricted free agent.  The desire to lock up Gilroy also likely means that Steve Eminger is not in the Rangers plans beyond this season.

Video: Brandon Dubinsky History Will Be Made Commercial

Dan Girardi: Underrated Around The League But Not Underappreciated By Rangers

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The fact that the attention and spotlight goes to the most talented players is nothing new in sports.  When talking about the New York Rangers defense the natural topic is Marc Staal or even the play of rookies Michael Sauer and Ryan McDonagh.  Dan Girardi often gets lost in the shuffle as a key component not only to why the Rangers defense is so strong but to the success of the team as a unit.

"He's one of the more underrated players in this league, I'll tell you that right now," Tortorella said. "I think Marc gets a lot of the notoriety. Danny wasn't drafted and all that stuff. But he's a good player. He continues to get better."

The 26-year-old Girardi was an undrafted defenseman who little was expected of when he came up five years ago.  In the five years since he has become a top pair defender in the NHL because of how he plays.  The Rangers have built their identity around the idea of being larger than their individual talents, being tough to play against and willing to sacrifice for one another.  Girardi does that every night with the way he blocks shots and uses the talents he has as a stay at home defender to do his job.

For anyone around the league who does not know who Dan Girardi is or how well he plays at this level they should ask every opposing top line player that plays against New York and has him pair with Marc Staal to shut them down.  

Girardi’s offensive contributions also get easily overlooked in comparison with his more famous partner.  In 80 games this season he had four goals and 27 assists to establish a new career high 31 points.  The biggest difference for Girardi on the offensive side of the ice is that he is doing a much better job of getting shots through from the point this year for deflections than he was in the past.  His trademark will always be his positionally sound defense with shot blocking, but he is a contributor on the other end.

It is easy to overlook the job that Girardi does and what it allows Marc Staal to do, but the New York Rangers are well aware of how valuable he is to this team.

"I think the experience helps," Staal said. "He sits back a little more, allows me to get into the rush when I feel the opportunity to jump in. Communication is a big thing for us, too. We talk a lot on the ice and on the bench just to work things out if they're not going our way."

Whether he gets the credit he deserves in the media the team and fans cannot overlook the critical role that Girardi plays to the success of the Rangers.  In the meantime you will find Girardi diving on the ice to throw himself in front of another shot to do whatever he can to help this team win.

Video: Downie Charge, Kunitz Elbows To Head Leaves NHL More Discipline Questions

Through the first week of the NHL playoffs it seems as if there is as much discussion of questionable hits and suspensions as the games themselves.  That was the case again tonight during Game 3 of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning.

Steve Downie opened up the questionable hits when he left his feet to charge Ben Lovejoy at 5:39 of the first period.  The fact that he left his feet, let alone made contact with the head of Lovejoy should guarantee a suspension.  Downie’s charge is not the first time he has made a move like this in his career.



Later in the first period, Chris Kunitz did his best Matt Cooke impression with a blatant elbow to the back of the head of Simon Gagne.  The Kunitz hit might be worse than the one that got Cooke suspended for the rest regular season and first round of the playoffs.  What makes Kunitz elbow so bad is the intentionally swinging of the elbow at the back of Gange’s head. 

Video via The Score:


Both players should be out for at least the rest of the series, if not longer.  Neither play was at all hockey related and while both players stayed in the game after the intent and/or potential for serious injury still remains.  The level of injury or lack of one to the opponent should have no bearing on whether supplemental action is taken, or the severity of that action. The spotlight once again turns to the league office to see how they dole out the supplemental discipline to see exactly what is out of bounds right now and how severely it will be punished