New York Rangers: Playoff Picture/Lottery Look for Saturday, January 5
A bad loss to Colorado and playoff hopes are dimming for the New York Rangers. They are now closer to the bottom than they are to a playoff spot.
The gap is widening between the New York Rangers and their playoff rivals. That gap is not just points, but an ever-growing difference in talent. Losing the Avalanche was not unexpected, but it was how they lost that is disheartening. Now, they’ve given up 13 goals in two games and have a must win game on Sunday in Arizona.
WJC Update
Team USA with K’Andre Miller defeated Russia in a very close match in the WJC Tournament semi-finals. That means Miller will be contending for a gold medal on Saturday. They will be facing FInland who trounced Switzerland 6-1. Miller was scoreless and played 13:30.
Switzerland was clearly spent after their win over Sweden on Wednesday and didn’t put up much of a fight against the Finns. Ranger draftee Nico Gross didn’t make the scoresheet.
Vitali Kravtsov had a very active game and had several glorious scoring chances. The Ranger first round pick was in tears at the end of the game. He also took a very tough cross check from Dylan Samberg that left him doubled over. Worst for Kravtsov was that he took a tripping penalty that led the the power play game winning goal.
Kravtsov had an excellent series and displayed talent as a center. His vision and passing are sublime and it looks like he will have a great future on Broadway.
The Playoff Picture
With the loss in Colorado the Rangers continued to lose ground to the Penguins, who shut out the Jets, 4-0. The Pens are now tied with Washington for first place, both teams with 52 points. The good news is that Carolina beat the Blue Jackets 4-2 and they remain eight points ahead of the Rangers, still in third place in the Metropolitan Division.
The standings
Atlantic Div. GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
Tampa 41 32-7-2 66 29
Toronto 40 26-12-2 54 26
Boston 41 23-14-4 50 22
Met Div. GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
Washington 40 24-12-4 52 21
Pittsburgh 41 23-12-6 52 22
Columbus 40 23-14-3 49 23
Wild Card GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
Buffalo 41 22-13-6 50 19
Montreal 41 22-14-5 49 20
Contenders GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
Islanders 39 22-13-4 48 20
Carolina 40 18-17-5 41 17
Rangers 40 17-16-7 41 12
Florida 38 17-16-6 40 15
New Jersey 39 16-17-7 39 15
Detroit 43 16-20-7 39 14
Philadelphia 40 15-20-5 35 13
Ottawa 41 15-21-5 35 15
Who to root for
Sabres @ Bruins – Depnding on who you think will end up finishing third in the Atlantic determines who you should root for. Other than that, it’s a toss up. Please no overtime.
Predators @ Canadiens- Montreal is still one of those clubs within reach of the Rangers so root hard for Nashville to win.
Blue Jackets @ Panthers – Root for the Panthers. Columbus in a playoff spot, but could falter. Plus, if Florida wins, it helps the Rangers’ lottery positioning.
Islanders @ Blues – Ditto for this game. The Isles are streaking and the Blues are below the Rangers. A St. Louis win helps the Rangers two ways.
Giving up 13 goals in two games doesn’t do much for playoff contention. If the Rangers position in the NHL Entry Draft lottery interests you, keep reading.
The Lottery Look
If the Rangers keep getting blown out, the Lottery Look will take over the primary position on this post.
There were only four games with lottery implications and the results were mostly good for the Rangers in their quest for a better lottery position. They moved from 13th worst to 10th worst after all of tonight’s games were concluded.
The Hurricanes upset the Blue Jackets and Blue Jackets and moved into a tie with the Rangers, though they have a better record through tiebreakers. They are 11th worst in the league now.
It took overtime, but the Red Wings upset the Pedators, Detroit now has only two fewer points than the Rangers, but they have played 43 games to the Rangers’ 40.
Just like the Wings, the Devils moved within two points of the Rangers with their shootout win over the Coyotes. Both team getting points helps New York as Arizona is within four points of the Blueshirts.
In the last game that matters, the Dallas Stars upset the Capitals. It gives the Stars 48 points and they are opening up a decent cushion between them and the Rangers.
The standings (worst is first)
Teams GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
1. Los Angeles 42 16-23-3 35 15
2. Ottawa 41 15-21-5 35 15
3. Philadelphia 39 15-20-5 35 13
4. St Louis 38 16-18-4 36 16
5. Chicago 43 15-21-7 37 15
6. Arizona 41 17-21-3 37 15
7. Detroit 43 16-20-7 39 14
8. New Jersey 39 16-17-7 39 15
9. Florida 38 17-16-6 40 15
10. Rangers 40 17-16-7 41 12
11. Carolina 40 18-17-5 41 17
12. Edmonton 40 19-18-3 41 18
13. Minnesota 39 19-17-3 41 19
14. Vancouver 44 20-20-4 44 19
15. Dallas 42 23-16-3 48 22
Who to root for:
Flames @ Flyers, Canucks @ Maple Leafs – The Rangers need two upsets for teams below the them in the standings.
Wild @ Senators – The Rangers need Ottawa to win more than Minnesota, but overtime would be nice.
Oilers @ Kings – Ditto on this game, the Rangers need the Kings to lose more than Edmonton, but either team losing doesn’t hurt. At least they can get to overtime.
Blue Jackets @ Panthers – Florida will pass the Rangers if they win…so root for the Panthers.
Islanders @ Blues – We hate the Islanders and want St. Louis to pass the Rangers so root for St. Louis to win at home.
dark. Next. Time to raise the white flag
It was status quo in the playoff race after Friday’s action, but there was some movement in the lottery competition. The Rangers remain only six points better than the worst team in the league.