Eight games into the 2022-23 season and a pattern is starting to emerge. Against teams that play a similar style of hockey or are just porous defensively, the Rangers are 3-0-1 and their power play has gone 5 for 17.
But against teams that play a more defensive style of hockey and clog the passing lanes, they're 0-3-1 and their power play is an anemic 1 for 13. And that one power play goal, it should be noted, came courtesy of a defensive giveaway while on a two-man advantage.
The knock on the Rangers last season was that they were a team that relied way too much on their special teams and their elite goaltender Igor Shesterkin. Despite their impressive record - second place in the Metro division, their 5v5 play was middle of the pack at best.
The acquisitions G.M. Chris Drury made at the trade deadline last March no doubt helped the Rangers advance to the conference finals before finally petering out against the Lightning. Unfortunately, the same trends that dogged them last season have reared their ugly head this season, and if they aren't addressed soon, any hopes this team has of hoisting Lord Stanley's Cup will be dashed.
Stubbornness is their Achilles heel. This is a very talented team that genuinely believes talent alone will carry them across the threshold. Last night's shutout at UBS Arena proved otherwise. Against an Islanders team that didn't have a single goal from its centers, the Rangers were out hustled, and their vaunted power play was unplugged. Don't go by the 41 shots on goal they generated. Ilya Sorokin made maybe six tough saves the entire game.
Even against the Anaheim Ducks, a team nobody expects to be in the postseason, the Rangers were hardly overwhelming. Without the three power goals they scored, they likely would've lost that game too. They are predictable as dirt, and head coach Gerard Gallant must find a way to convince his players to snap out of it.
The good news is that when it comes to underachieving, the Rangers are hardly alone. The Lightning, Maple Leafs, Blues and Predators are 4-4, 4-3, 3-2 and 2-4-1 respectively. All four of those teams made the playoffs last season and all four are expected to return this season. Also, apart from their performance on the Island, in two of the other three losses, they had plenty of chances to win. This season, the Rangers have managed at least 35 shots on goal in six of their first eight games. Last season, they were routinely outshot by their opponents.
Look, there's still time to nip this in the bud. No hockey team wins or loses the Stanley Cup in October. But this group has to make up its mind how badly it wants a championship. As talented as they are, it was their foot soldiers who were responsible for putting the Lightning over the top. Their willingness to pay the price in the trenches was the difference between an early exit and back-to-back Cups. Drury has modeled his team after Tampa Bay. An argument can even be made that the Blueshirts are the more talented team. But like the Lightning learned in 2019 when they won the President's Trophy and were swept by the Blue Jackets in the first round, you need more than talent to win in the NHL.
With the Rangers pretty much at the salary cap ceiling, there's not much Drury can do personnel wise, at least not until the trade deadline. So the onus is on the players to right the ship. They have the grizzle, now they need to find the grit.
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