No Mess, No Way

This time there was no Messier.  This time there was no Miracle on the Hudson.  The team that worked hard all season to have a game seven in their building never got the chance to use it.  The New Jersey Devils' superior depth proved too much for the New York Rangers to overcome and now it is 18 years and counting since the last championship, and the team that has won three Stanley Cups since 1994, is four wins away from their fourth.

In what can only be described as poetic justice, the Devils ousted the Eastern Conference top seed in overtime in game six.  No Stephane Matteau this time around.  Indeed, not once in the six games did the Rangers dominate play.  By my count they played a total of seven good periods the whole series and it was only due to the sheer brilliance of Henrik Lundqvist in games one and three that the Rangers were even in position to win, so bad was their play.

For the Rangers, it is a bittersweet moment.  Not since 1997 had they gone so far in the post-season.  Fans understandably felt that this was the year this team would drink from the Cup.  But in reality this team, as hard as it worked all year - and no team bought into a team concept better than this - had some profound problems that almost cost them in the first two rounds.  The Ottawa Senators and Washington Capitals both pushed the Rangers to a game seven.  Teams with Stanley Cup aspirations don't allow clearly flawed teams to extend them that deep in preliminary rounds.  The '94 team needed a grand total of nine games to dispatch their first two opponents.  Yes, the NHL of today is far different than the NHL of the '90s and yes, the President's Trophy Vancouver Canucks were ousted by the L.A. Kings in five games.  So what?  Great teams can overcome the parity of their league.

But the Rangers, despite what the standings said, were hardly a great team.  Indeed they had many flaws and the Devils, the most dangerous lower seed in the tournament, exploited those flaws brilliantly.  Consider this, had it not been for Lundqvist, this would've been a four-game sweep.  That's how lopsided this series was in so many ways.

And now the Rangers' brain trust will have to deal with those flaws, not the least of which is to find a way to build some depth on a team that was terribly thin up front.  You can only go so far with a system that demands your players turn themselves into human piñatas and relies on all-world goaltending.  You need to put the puck in the net.  Since scoring four goals against the Senators in the first game of the playoffs, the Rangers failed to score more than three the rest of the tournament.  Even in today's NHL, you need to at least make your opponent aware that you can light them up. Throughout most of the season and most of the playoffs when the Rangers gave up more than two goals, they lost the game.  This issue must be addressed by Glen Sather during the offseason.

Then there's the issue of leadership.  Marion Gaborik was simply dreadful.  Scoring one goal in the Conference Finals is unacceptable.  Brad Richards' performance was equally abysmal - no goals, two assists - but he gets a pass because of his superior play in the first two rounds.  Sather has to find a goal scorer that isn't afraid to grind it out and can score in the clutch.  The team that worked harder than any other team in the league, in the end had nothing left in the tank by the third round and it showed.  If this team has any intentions of winning a championship next year, they will have to fix all this and perhaps more.

The bright spots were obvious: great goaltending and arguably the best four defensemen in the league.  Ryan Callahan is a fine captain and a natural leader.  He's no Messier, but then who could be?  But he needs some help.  The Devils' fourth line outperformed the Rangers' third and fourth lines combined.  Chris Kreider had a marvelous playoffs and has a promising future.  His speed and deceptive shot should give the team a solid number two winger.  If Sather can get creative with the salary cap he might be able to land a proven scorer via free agency and/or trade.  At the risk of second guessing a prior posting of mine, it's time to revisit Rick Nash. In hindsight, he might've made a difference against the Devils, assuming Sather could've pried him away without trading one of his prized defensemen.  If he can land him during the offseason, he should go for it.  Then dump Gaborik for a center who can win faceoffs and score.

Daunting tasks for sure, but that's why they pay him all that money.  The window of opportunity will be open for a few more seasons.  Lundqvist is 30 and the defense is young, so the future remains bright.  If the above flaws are effectively dealt with a Cup may be in the offing.  If not, 1994 may go down with 1940 in a few more years.

Devil Dogs

So it's round two of The Battle of the Hudson.  The Rangers and the Devils face off for the first time in the conference finals since 1994 and, if history is any indicator, this series should be one for the ages.

Eighteen years is a long time.  Only one player from either team has appeared in both series.  Whatever else you may say about Martin Brodeur, know this: he's still an elite player and he would no doubt love the chance to avenge the loss he suffered at the hands of Messier, et al.

As a Rangers' fan, my main concern is not the match ups, which favor the Blueshirts.  It's stamina.  No team has ever won a Stanley Cup being extended seven games in each of its first two series.  Fatigue is bound to play a role sooner or later.  The Devils, meanwhile, are well rested, having dispensed with the Broad Street Pussies in five games.  Though it is worth noting that it took them the full seven to beat the Putty Tats from Miami.  Still, going into this year's tournament, I felt the Devils were the most balanced and dangerous team in the hunt. They can come at you with three solid lines, while the Rangers pretty much will rely on the Brad Richards' line for the bulk of their offense.

And let's get one thing straight.  Unlike '94, whoever wins this war is NOT a lock to win the Cup.  L.A. has played a whopping ten games this post season and won nine of them.  Their goaltender is as good as any in the league.  With all the talk about Henrick Lundquist winning the Vezina trophy this year, Jonathan Quick has been his team's most valuable player.  Period!

Of course I'm picking the Rangers, but barely.  This is going the full seven, no doubt about it.  So buckle up and get ready.