New York Rangers at New Jersey Devils (-123, 4.5)
Series tied 1-1
“The Battle on the Hudson” shifts across the river to the Jersey side, as the Devils look to build some momentum off their Game 2 comeback at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night.
This is the only game of the series that features an extra day of preparation. Both teams took Thursday off and from now on, all games will be played with just one day in between.
The cycle continues
Admittedly, the Rangers don’t make it easy on themselves. This time of year, the only thing that matters is that you’re still playing and you win more than you lose. But it’s alarming, to say the least, how consistently inconsistent New York really is.
While the base of this team is young and the legs appear to have plenty of jump in them, the volume of games has to become a concern. The Rangers head into this game having already played 16 in the postseason. While a team like Los Angeles is sitting pretty with only 12 games played, featuring 11 wins and a 3-0 lead on Phoenix in the Western Finals, the Rangers continue to plod right along.
The Rangers’ competition this postseason has been the easiest possible road the East could offer: The No. 8, 7, and 6 seeds. The first two - Ottawa and Washington - took them to seven games. And New Jersey has shown plenty of scrap and probably played well enough to win Game 1 for at least 43 minutes. All told, New York is just 9-7 against the three weakest postseason seeds in the East.
Perhaps that’s why coach John Tortorella has been so short with the media. He’s too busy trying to figure out how to get his team going and, more importantly, stay going. The Rangers still need seven more wins to snare the ultimate prize. That’s a long way to go for a team that already has seven losses.
David the Devil
No one knew quite what to expect from New Jersey forward David Clarkson in the postseason. A grinder for most of his career, and a player that truly fits the Devils' type of mold, Clarkson blossomed as a scorer in coach Peter DeBoer's system during the regular season.
A year after scoring 12 goals, Clarkson netted 30 this season and remained unafraid to mix it up and defend his team in the corners. The postseason has not seen a dropoff, either. Clarkson has made his typical impact physically and when he scores, his team wins.
In fact, all three of his postseason goals have been game winners, including the final tally in New Jersey's 3-2 win in New York Wednesday. It shouldn't come as a surprise. After all, Clarkson's game is in front of the net, altering the view of the goaltender and drawing defensemen to his perch.
He enters Game 3 with 31 shots on goal, 43 hits, five blocks and a plus-6 rating. He also leads the team with 20 minutes in penalties, so without question, his game has remained consistent throughout.
Young and the restless
If it concludes with a Stanley Cup in a few weeks, the tale of Chris Kreider will make for quite the feel-good story. The Rangers rookie forward is on a run to remember. Just last month, he was in class taking exams and busy winning a national championship at Boston College.
Now, he's in the middle of the Eastern Conference final and has developed into one of the more steady offensive players on the league's highest remaining seed. In 14 games - he was called up for Game 3 versus Ottawa in Round 1 - Kreider has four goals and six points. Two of those goals were game winners. With a regular shift in Tortorella's system, he has 21 shots on net this postseason - and he’s only 21 years old.
Few changes expected
The Rangers have made few personnel changes throughout the postseason, and it’s unlikely to change for Game 3. Tortorella, instead, chooses to shift things during games, like he did in Game 2 when he sat sniper Marian Gaborik for a decent stretch because he wasn’t pulling his weight in the Rangers’ shot-blocking gameplan.
DeBoer, on the other hand, has juggled defensemen and has rotated between 19-year-old rookie Adam Larsson - a first-round pick last June - and versatile veteran Peter Harrold, who can step in and play forward as well. The latter got the call in Game 2 and had two shots on goal in the win. He has 11 shots in his last five games and has four points in the postseason. He’ll likely play again in Game 3.
History
The Devils have won their last four home games and five of six overall. But the Rangers have won 10 of the last 13 when playing on two-days rest. The home team has won four of the last five meetings in this rivalry and in this series, an over has yet to be cashed (0-1-1).
Series tied 1-1
“The Battle on the Hudson” shifts across the river to the Jersey side, as the Devils look to build some momentum off their Game 2 comeback at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night.
This is the only game of the series that features an extra day of preparation. Both teams took Thursday off and from now on, all games will be played with just one day in between.
The cycle continues
Admittedly, the Rangers don’t make it easy on themselves. This time of year, the only thing that matters is that you’re still playing and you win more than you lose. But it’s alarming, to say the least, how consistently inconsistent New York really is.
While the base of this team is young and the legs appear to have plenty of jump in them, the volume of games has to become a concern. The Rangers head into this game having already played 16 in the postseason. While a team like Los Angeles is sitting pretty with only 12 games played, featuring 11 wins and a 3-0 lead on Phoenix in the Western Finals, the Rangers continue to plod right along.
The Rangers’ competition this postseason has been the easiest possible road the East could offer: The No. 8, 7, and 6 seeds. The first two - Ottawa and Washington - took them to seven games. And New Jersey has shown plenty of scrap and probably played well enough to win Game 1 for at least 43 minutes. All told, New York is just 9-7 against the three weakest postseason seeds in the East.
Perhaps that’s why coach John Tortorella has been so short with the media. He’s too busy trying to figure out how to get his team going and, more importantly, stay going. The Rangers still need seven more wins to snare the ultimate prize. That’s a long way to go for a team that already has seven losses.
David the Devil
No one knew quite what to expect from New Jersey forward David Clarkson in the postseason. A grinder for most of his career, and a player that truly fits the Devils' type of mold, Clarkson blossomed as a scorer in coach Peter DeBoer's system during the regular season.
A year after scoring 12 goals, Clarkson netted 30 this season and remained unafraid to mix it up and defend his team in the corners. The postseason has not seen a dropoff, either. Clarkson has made his typical impact physically and when he scores, his team wins.
In fact, all three of his postseason goals have been game winners, including the final tally in New Jersey's 3-2 win in New York Wednesday. It shouldn't come as a surprise. After all, Clarkson's game is in front of the net, altering the view of the goaltender and drawing defensemen to his perch.
He enters Game 3 with 31 shots on goal, 43 hits, five blocks and a plus-6 rating. He also leads the team with 20 minutes in penalties, so without question, his game has remained consistent throughout.
Young and the restless
If it concludes with a Stanley Cup in a few weeks, the tale of Chris Kreider will make for quite the feel-good story. The Rangers rookie forward is on a run to remember. Just last month, he was in class taking exams and busy winning a national championship at Boston College.
Now, he's in the middle of the Eastern Conference final and has developed into one of the more steady offensive players on the league's highest remaining seed. In 14 games - he was called up for Game 3 versus Ottawa in Round 1 - Kreider has four goals and six points. Two of those goals were game winners. With a regular shift in Tortorella's system, he has 21 shots on net this postseason - and he’s only 21 years old.
Few changes expected
The Rangers have made few personnel changes throughout the postseason, and it’s unlikely to change for Game 3. Tortorella, instead, chooses to shift things during games, like he did in Game 2 when he sat sniper Marian Gaborik for a decent stretch because he wasn’t pulling his weight in the Rangers’ shot-blocking gameplan.
DeBoer, on the other hand, has juggled defensemen and has rotated between 19-year-old rookie Adam Larsson - a first-round pick last June - and versatile veteran Peter Harrold, who can step in and play forward as well. The latter got the call in Game 2 and had two shots on goal in the win. He has 11 shots in his last five games and has four points in the postseason. He’ll likely play again in Game 3.
History
The Devils have won their last four home games and five of six overall. But the Rangers have won 10 of the last 13 when playing on two-days rest. The home team has won four of the last five meetings in this rivalry and in this series, an over has yet to be cashed (0-1-1).
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