The Rangers and Devils are back at it for Game 4 tonight at the Garden as the Rangers look to get back on track following their first loss of the postseason. We saw a much closer game between the Hudson River Rivals Saturday Night and as a result of failing to convert on numerous power play chances, the Rangers were forced to overtime by the Devils and a goal from Dougie Hamilton put an end to the evening. With that, the Devils are right back in this series as they are within one of tying it back up. The Rangers need to stay the course and find a way to win tonight as they cannot allow the Devils to tie the series up going back to New Jersey.
There were a couple of key difference makers for game three and as mentioned earlier, failing to convert on the power play was a big one. The Rangers had five chances with the man advantage and despite some good looks, they could not find a way to capitalize and spent much more time then they should have playing fetch and regrouping. Some credit has to be given to the Devils as they played an all-around better game but again, the Rangers struggled with faceoffs which directly led to the Devils clearing the zone, forcing them to regroup. The Devils have been the better face-off team most of the series but the Rangers really need to buckle down on them in the offensive zone, especially on power plays. While the Devils played a better game and earned some credit there, a new face in their lineup was the main difference maker in Akira Schmid.
It’s a tale as old as time, the Rangers versus a rookie goaltender no one has ever heard of. Going into enemy territory down two games to none, Lindy Ruff made the decision to change up his starting goaltender, going with 22 year old rookie, Akira Schmid. Had the Devils lost, this would have been labeled a panic move but given how the game played out, Ruff now looks like a genius. Schmid stopped all but one shot in a 36 save night which absolutely helped his team come out with the win. Size isn’t always an important aspect of goaltending but given how the Rangers have been scoring a lot of their goals in this series, those extra three inches Schmid has on Vanecek came in handy. It wasn’t just that however. Schmid did have a strong game and seemed to always be in position, playing his angles well. The Rangers need to be more aggressive with their scoring chances and really pepper him in game four.
Aside from the face-offs and power play shortcomings, there wasn’t too much to be up in arms about regarding the Rangers performance. They had plenty of shots and are still moving the puck well. They have had an increase in turnovers and are seeing the Devils get more comfortable which is leading to them finding ways to play their normal style of game which is something to refocus attention on. The Rangers can not afford to give them too many opportunities to show signs of life because the longer they stick around and the more they find their game, the stronger they’re going to be. Nevertheless, Game 4 will be an extremely important outing for both sides as this can be a make or break moment in the series.
You can assume the same lineup for the Rangers:
Kreider - Zibanejad - Kane
Panarin - Trocheck - Tarasenko
Lafreniere - Chytil - Kakko
Vesey - Goodrow - Motte
Lindgren - Fox
Miller - Trouba
Mikkola - Schneider
Going into this one, the Rangers really need some of their stars to step up, specifically Zibanejad and Panarin. While the Rangers play has been strong for the most part, they have only gotten goals from six different players with half of them coming from Kreider. (11 total goals in the series, 5 from Kreider) Zibanejad, Panarin, Trocheck, even the Kid Line need to an extent really need to pick up their offense. It’s too early and as long as they have the lead in the series, there’s no need to really scrutinize anyone individually. However, as we all know, emotions can turn at the drop of a hat tonight and the Rangers have to come out on top. It’s going to take contributions from their top players, (Zibanejad, Panarin) to come out on the right side of the standings tonight.
At the end of the day, it’s playoff hockey at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Rangers should have absolutely no excuse to not get fired up for this one and after dropping Game 3, should have a bit of a chip on their shoulder to right the ship and get a win back. They need to play hard, with passion but ensure they don’t get into penalty trouble because if there’s one thing we’ve learned from the playoffs so far, it’s that refs will call anything and everything. Akira Schmid played a strong game in his playoff debut but the Rangers can’t allow him to break out. Any chance you get at flustering him you need to take advantage (assuming it doesn’t result in a penalty) Any and all pucks need to get on net and if all else fails, find a way to keep generating traffic in front with low shots from far out. As long as the Rangers step up their intensity and bring more of an aggressive presence, they should be very capable of clogging up the Devils neutral zone transitions, hopefully leading to a more dominant showing reminiscent of Games 1 and 2.
Chris Feldman
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