I really hope the Bruins lose. They deserve all the accolades they have gotten for an amazing season, but listening to some talk you would think this is the 80's Isles or Oilers. They are unbeatable and cannot lose. I don't buy it, and will say right now the Bruins don't win the SC. I'll take the Leafs and the winner of the Rangers/Devs series in the ECF.
I think most teams need their goalie to be their best player, or close to it. Unless you have a super team of stars, you need your goalie to play very well. No doubt he needs to be at the top of his game, but I think the Devs series gets decided by our play. I'll stick to that. We don't make dumb mistakes and set it up on a tee for them and we'll win the series. With that said the Devs scare me. They are really good, and love to beat the Rangers. I think it is a toss-up 6 or 7 game series. I also think the winner of that series goes to the ECF at least. Either team beats the Canes or Isles.
He brings absolutely nothing except other coaches have to worry about him because he used to be great and another big name on the rangers.
He seems very comfortable playing a cursory role and that is not what the Rangers were expecting to get from him. He'll need to turn it up quickly.
I think it is this. At the end of the day results are all that matters, but I am very annoyed with Kane because I think it's mental. The guy had 92 points last year, the guy was rolling this year before we traded for him, then he comes here and just tries to fit in and be a guy. I think he needs to get some balls and understand he is Patrick F'ing Kane, and we jumped through all these hoops to get him here not to be just another guy and blend in. He needs to man up IMO.
For starters he needs to stop being a pussy in his own zone along the boards and get the fucking puck out.
I could care less where they rank in goals against. That's more a tribute to their goalies bailing them out. Almost every game they let up odd man rushes, breakaways, guys are standing in front wide open. Then the usual let goals up early. Let goals up late. Late goals happen right after they score. I'm not very confident in this team. If Kane had actually showed something it would have been a confidence booster. I would have much preferred Boone Jenner to Kane. Unfortunately, the Jackets are a terribly run organization that seems intent on pissing away that guys entire career.
We watch the Rangers too much. All teams have lapses. I am not saying at the same level, but every team does. We don't value the puck enough IMO, and get sloppy. Man for man talent wise we have the ability. We could certainly use a bit more grit and sandpaper, but we have the players to make a long run, but they need to be held accountable, and play the right playoff way. Sloppy, fancy, East-West will not get it done. We play a straight forward, get pucks on net game and we'll beat NJ IMO. I am also curious to see what Panarin does. He was terrible last year in the playoffs. He kept trying to force a round peg into a square hole with style of play. He has been shooting more recently, and going straight, which I like. Hopefully that carries over. He has a great shot, if he used it more he'd score 40 every season. And again on Kane - MAN UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What exactly are you expecting from Kane? Man up? he played what 19 games with this team? 12 points in 19 games? An no other team relies on their goaltender to bail our their defense, yet the rangers who gave up the third most goals are strictly just the goalie... our PP finished 7th in the league at 24.1% compared to 4th last year at 25.2% horrible i tell you! BTW... i guess the titanic didnt sink as this team made the playoffs and was 3 points off last seasons total giving up 8 more goals than last years total and scoring 23 more than last year....do other teams fans get down on their team as much as some fans on here does with this team? Rangers in 5!
He is invisible for long stretches, and he really hasn't made his presence felt or known. With that said, everything starts new on Tuesday. So if he comes out ready to play and be a difference maker, all is good in my book. That is funny, I thought the Pens, who missed the playoffs, were going to finish ahead of us. And we were doomed. For a long time now we were locked into 3rd place and away we go. I'll say NYR in 6 over NJ, but it will be a tough series that can go either way, and if we don't play right the Devs will score a lot and take us down. I hope we are mentally ready to go.
guess not really sure what exactly you want more of... his shooting % is higher in the 19 games he has played with us than it was last year when he had over 90points... he is playing 4 minutes less per game ...he had 1.3 more shots per game last year for the Hawks playing 4 more minutes..
For the first 5-6 games you could see he was trying to acclimate himself and not step on any toes, which is kind of normal when trades happen. The final month i thought he played fairly well and blended his creativity in with what we already have. He's not the 27 year old Kane anymore either.
I think overall he's looked good. Don't forget, it was widely reported going back months that the guy is one leg. He is likely headed for hip surgery this offseason. Watching him closely he is still a threat with the puck on his stick. He is as creative as ever. But that extra gear, quick first step, and stopping power he was still showing last year (to go along with his 92 points) has been a level behind. And it has been all season. I don't expect it to just appear on Tuesday. The standard should be whether he leaves it all on the ice, doesn't shy away from battles, creates chances for his linemates while finishing his own, and provides the cup winning leadership both by example and in the room that we all expect. That's why we traded for him. At this stage in his career he's a perfect compliment to Zib and Kreider, not the other way around.
You are the last person to say shit about watching games...you had this team missing the fucking playoffs. end of story
The Rangers goaltending was so good they were 6th in the NHL in shots allowed per game, imagine if the defense pulled their heads out of their keisters! There isn't a team in the league that wouldn't take one of the Rangers top 4 to upgrade their defensive unit. After two seasons of reading negative posts from guys with one leg in the lifeboat of a ship that isn't sinking you would think there would be pause for confirmation but still the doubters persist. If the Rangers take the body and play physically like I expect them to, this will be an easy win. Kane is a ridiculously great passer, huge postseason upgrade.
Interesting that both the Rangers and Devils are towards the bottom of the league in shots attempted per game but both teams obviously score goals.
I love the fact the Devs are favored in the series. They are getting talked about as a pick to go far. I think it is awesome. I also think it is laughable they are favored. They are good, but you look from A to Z overall at each team, and the Rangers should be favored. Big edge in goal, big edge in experience, I think a better D 1-6, better coach, both have a lot of talent upfront. With that said, happy to be the underdog. The Rangers should use that to their advantage in the series. Hey, we're just trying to pull off the upset against the mighty Devils.
