With lots of hype leading up to this regular season finale of the Battle of the Hudson, the Rangers rough first period led to them falling short in the end, as they lost to the Devils 2-1. Certainly not the effort fans were hoping to see from the Blueshirts but the hope is that this will prove to be a valuable lesson to take into playoffs. You can’t, not even for a second, take a shift off against this team. Led by Hughes, Meier and several others, the Devils are a fast team who move the puck really well. The Rangers have to either learn to defend that effectively or keep the puck off their sticks all together.
Once again, Igor Shesterkin was a key player for the Rangers and arguably the biggest reason this wasn’t a blowout for the Devils. With 31 saves on the net, Shesterkin continued his brilliant play, shutting down many high danger chances from the Devils offense. Not much you can do about tough bounces though, and that’s what happened when Erik Haula redirected a Douggie Hamilton shot to make it a 1-0 game five minutes into the first. From that moment on, the Rangers just could not seem to get anything done. The Devils controlled the play and while the shots weren’t as drastically lopsided as they’ve been in the past, it was clear Jersey was in control. Shesterkin was tested big time and came up strong until finally, the Devils found the back of the net once more on their first power play chance of the night.
Timo Meier, who was left hovering all around the slot area, got the chance to let a clapper go that beat Shesterkin on the blocker side. It looked like it may have taken a redirect off the stick of Goodrow but regardless, that is something the Rangers penalty killers are going to have to be extra cautious about come playoffs. Hughes and Meier move the puck really well together and Timo showed how dangerous his shot could be on that play there. The Rangers had a turn on the power play to wrap up the first which would have been a great opportunity to begin climbing back in this one but alas, no dice. The Rangers would head to the locker room down 2-0 in desperate need to turn this thing around.
Things picked up for the Rangers as slowly but surely, they started to get more chances. Vladimir Tarasenko in particular continues to be quite an effective player with and without the puck. Erik Haula would get sent off again, this time for tripping to give the Rangers another power play chance, this time one they were able to convert on. After nearly turning the puck over, it bounced over to the stick of Zibanejad who threw it to the net for Chris Kreider to put away, cutting the Devils lead in half for his 33rd of the season. Another friendly reminder to those who didn’t want to give Kreider the contract he has, it was incredibly worth it. Kreider now ties Rangers great Vic Hadfield at fifth most goals in franchise history at 262.
Unfortunately, that would do it for the score as the third would remain scoreless. The Rangers played a much better period in the last 20 but it would become too little too late. There were several chances to tie it up, including one that was shut down by Ryan Graves, who was part of one of the worst Rangers trades of all time. (Ryan Graves for Chris Bigras, still not over that one). Time would run out and the Rangers would fall short. The main takeaway here has to be starting the game on time. If the Rangers didn’t spend the first period running around like chickens with their heads cut off, things could have been different but by the time they figured things out, it was already the Devils game.
A couple other things to note: There were some uneasy moments but for the most part, the Rangers defenders played pretty well. K’Andre Miller had some big plays, Trouba continues to make impacts in both ends of the ice, Fox keeps doing his thing. One guy in particular though is Niko Mikkola, who has really stepped up in Ryan Lindgren’s absence and was seemingly all over the ice in Jersey last night. From bringing a reliable presence in the Rangers defensive zone to jumping into the offense, Mikkola has certainly been a great addition to this team, really making that Tarasenko/Mikkola trade look amazing.
Luckily or perhaps unluckily, the Rangers don’t have much time to think too much on this one as they are right back at it tonight against the Sabres. Of all the teams fighting for playoff spots in the east, the Sabres have the most games in hand at the moment and could very well make a final push to claw their way into a Wildcard spot. That being said, they’re going to come out hungry against the Rangers tonight and will have the home ice advantage. One of the top prospect goalies around the league in Devon Levi will be making his NHL debut in net for Buffalo tonight which will also be a pressing issue for the Rangers, who have the tendency to allow for debuting rookies to have a big night.
They’ll need to come out strong and get on the Sabres quickly if they want to bounce back from that loss in Newark last night. Buffalo’s coming off a three game stretch of no games played as they’ll set off on a back to back of their own tonight. In their last ten, they’ve gone 3-3-4 in their last ten, most recently losing in a shootout to the Canadians that helped the Rangers clinch playoffs. It’s been a big year for the Sabres who have had one of the most promising seasons they’ve had in over a decade and with nine games remaining, will look to gain as much traction in the standings to break the league's longest playoff drought.
For the Rangers, expect them to roll the same group that they have been with veteran goaltender Jaro Halak tasked with shutting down the Sabres young, skillful offense. Hopefully the Rangers can come back strong as they kick off their final seven regular season games. They’ll see Buffalo one last time in their second to last game of the season so expect Buffalo to look to set the tone tonight.
Chris Feldman
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