Rangers Lightning - Pivotal Game 3

[Messiah717]

Once again. Run and gun doesn't work. They are playing Tampa the same way they did in the regular season.

The defense and Hank have been horrid. I don't see it as the Rangers trying to play a wide open run and gun style with Tampa. The Rangers need to be more physical or they will continue to get run over. Hank needs to put this behind him and play one of if not his best game of the playoffs on Friday. On one hand you want to just say screw Rick Nash but how do you win when you're 42 goal scorer in the regular season becomes completely invisible in the playoffs? I mean for crying out loud Boyle and Fast now have more goals than Nash.

 

[strudwickisthebest]

Still time for Nash and MSL but that window is closing... MSL gets chances but cannot finish

 

[strudwickisthebest]

How do they win next game? A two-goal lead was nothing in this game. Unless they play Rangers hockey and the defense and Lundquist play like they should they won't win

 

[kreidertime]

If the Rangers would play defense, they could get past Tampa without Nash. Not in the finals. However, doesn't seem like the team wants to do that. Especially the defenseman.

The positive is that Fast, Hayes and Miller are starting to look like they might be good, future, playoff players. Especially Fast and Hayes. Negative is that the 4th line should be a checking line to go against Tampa's top line and it isn't because AV has insisted on putting out Glass all season. That line has been ruined.

 

[chuckd3534]

I think everyone needs to chill out and let this series play out. Look at ALL the posts about how terrible we played last night. All the posts about Hank being awful last night. The D...terrible. Nash and MSL...terrible. Hank...terrible. On and on. And guess what...we lost a coin flip in OT.

So after ALL that terrible play and a couple of soft goals by Hank, we were right there to win a coin flip OT in their building.

I can tell you right now I still have faith. I believe the team will play better tomorrow night. I believe Hank will certainly play better tomorrow night. I also believe TB is going to score some goals tomorrow night, so to win we will need to score.

At 2-1 down I am not giving up, and after a coin flip OT game I am not sure why anyone would (despite 80% of the board doing so). You win tomorrow night and we are back in control heading home tied 2-2 off a win. Tomorrow night is it IMO. We are not coming back from 3-1 down against this team that can score like they can, so we need to win game 4. Not much else to say. And after seeing us play poorly on D and Hank allow a couple of soft goals and we STILL went to a coin flip OT, I see no reason we can't win game 4. At the very least I think the D/Hank play better and we have a solid shot, which is all we can ask for, from there the chips will fall where they may win or lose.

 

[TommyD]

I'll be in Tampa Friday night at game four. Perhaps I will bring them some Irish luck. I'll have to listen to that f%^&ing bugle like I had to listen to the cowbells at Jeter's last game in St.Pete. Hopefully I will not have liisten to that hick WWE type announcer give scoring on Bolts goals. Time for Hank to come up big and pitch a shutout.

 

[Malco]

To lose the game on that kind of shot when you have a world class goalie in the net is brutal. That is the kind of game you need to steal when you are playing a team that matches up real well with you. I definitely think they are better offensively than us, of this I have little doubt. Where we should be better is in the net and defensively and well we haven't been the last 2 games and that is why we are down..AV has to get in Nash's face and tell him to play brutally, for him and St Louis to be so invisible AND yet still get all the minutes they get is a huge disadvantage for us.

 

[TommyD]

Love JR's comment about Nash doing a "fly by" instead of going to net and looking for a rebound on his wrister late in the third.

 

[NYR31]

yea that was great, TD. I like JR and loved the way he played the game. He has every right to call Nash out.

 

[Messiah717]

yea that was great, TD. I like JR and loved the way he played the game. He has every right to call Nash out.

It's impossible for everyone not to be calling out Nash at this point. 56 career playoff games and 7 goals speaks for itself.

 

[NYR31]

ha, true story. JR's "fly by" term was great and spot on.

JR and Shanahan are 2 players i really enjoyed watching. Wish i was older when they were in their prime to better appreciate what they did.

 

[BigDaddyAl1973]

Why bench, move Nash and St.Louis to the 4th line. Don't bench them but simply put them on the 4th line. Hags, Moore, Miller and Hayes,Brassard and Shepard or even Glass. I actually think Glass is better than those two.

On a completely different note. I never would have thought how irrelevant Caly and B.Boyle are. I am so glad we don't have Caly's contract. Wow! That is 6M of savings and now we can just let St.Louis walk and free up 5.5M in the offseason. I mean Boyle would have been great on the 4th line here, but I got that one wrong. AV said last year, that there is a role for Boyle on the 4th line and if he wants it it is his. He was right. Strallman is a different story but he is not the reason at all why we lose or win this series.

I am very disappointed with outcome, but cannot say that I did not expect it. I was afraid of Tampa since game 1 of regular season.

By the way, Al by watching the replay McD did try to take a man. This one is completely on Hank.

You need to see the entire picture... 4 rangers were in the picture when he carries the puck over the blue line, Tampa was in the midst of a line change no reason to all the speed and access to the middle of the ice.


Again Hank is at blame big time for letting a soft goal. Not once have I said it was a hard shot and give him a pass..... But... Again there is no reason for that player to gain access to the zone unabated.

 

[Ranger71]

Staal, Girardi and McDonagh rarely knock anyone on their butt entering the zone, they rely on positioning and got burned by it.

 

[TommyD]

JR's book is great. I ran into him at Butler Golf course. Nash had just been traded to Rangers and asked him what he thought of the deal. He said it was great for the Rangers. He is a member of Whisper Rock in Scottsdale. A clubhouse guy tells me he runs up and down Camelback mountain just so he came come in and have a few vodkas on the rocks

 

[Messiah717]

I'd put Nash on the fourth line.

 

[chuckd3534]

Al, he skated 2 feet into the zone and put a wrist shot towards the net. Give me a break bro. That has NOTHING...0% to do with the D...ZERO.

Not sure what else to say. It was on Hank, as you said, and it should stop there no need to add any comment about the D on that play.

Anyway, I am done and over with it. We lost and the D and Hank played poorly. Must win game 4, that simple to me. Game 3 is over and nothing can be done about the outcome. Just focus on game 4.

 

[BigDaddyAl1973]

really...not one player touched him from the redline in...again...no way should hank not make that play but...why is four guys in the picture two of them drifting back? ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK

you were right about one thing...it had 0 defense...ziltch..nada...lets just let the guy fly in thru the neutral zone, gain the blue line and take a wrister...oh by the way...no one else was entering the zone with him...but hey lets just put blame on the END of the play

 

[chuckd3534]

It was a wrist shot from just inside the BL. Make the f'ing save. I mean come on now. At some point in time it is what it is. Hank needs to stop that puck...period. Not sure what else needs to be said.

 

[Messiah717]

Al you need to move on with this already. That was a joke of a goal.

 

[strudwickisthebest]

Yea Al, the guys been the backbone for this team for years and all these playoff runs but he is our best player hands down.... That wrister was just horrendous to give up in overtime

 

[chuckd3534]

That's the point. I am saying soft goal. That is all. I am saying nothing bigger than that, and I fully expect him to bounce back big tomorrow night. Bad goal at a really bad time, now we move onto game 4.

 

[Messiah717]

That's the point. I am saying soft goal. That is all. I am saying nothing bigger than that, and I fully expect him to bounce back big tomorrow night. Bad goal at a really bad time, now we move onto game 4.

Yup, can't replay the games except in your mind. Doing that isn't going to change the result. The series is 2-1 Tampa and they need to win game four tomorrow night. That's all there is to it.

 

[panzerporter]

So much negativity but that's the one definite constant on this board, same shit went on when the Caps went up 3-1. I'm with you Al, that picture epitomizes the Captain's play this year, all he has to do is give Kucherov a shove and the shot never happens but instead McD opts for the weak one handed poke check. Yes Hank's play in the last 2 games has been spotty to say the least and he gave up a terrible goal but the defense has been brutally soft. The guy I'm most concerned with now is AV, he knows how to win in the regular season but seems to be very stubborn with his postseason game plan. As crappy as they played the Rangers still had an opportunity to win early in overtime.