New York Rangers: A 1-0 loss to Dallas helps the lottery race
The less said about the New York Rangers 1-0 loss to Dallas, the better. It’s enough to acknowledge that it was another game the team could have won, but this time it was the officiating that took the game out of their hands.
The New York Rangers lost another one-goal game, a shutout to Ranger killer Ben Bishop. It was a tightly played game with opportunities for both teams, outstanding goaltending and stellar penalty killing.
The only goal came in the second period when John Klingberg beat an excellent Alexandar Georgiev with a screen shot after a missed clearing opportunity by Pavel Buchnevich.
The baby Ranger lineup was just a bit older as Boo Nieves played instead of Lias Andersson. David Quinn shook up the lineup, moving Kreider down in the rotation and playing Buchnevich on the top line with Mika Zibanejad and Jimmy Vesey. Nothing really worked as one of the better defensive teams in the NHL rode a one goal lead to victory.
The craziness all happened midway through the third period, when Mika Zibanejad was tossed from the game for throwing a hip check. He was given a five minute major for boarding Radek Faksa. Faksa had been hit by Chris Kreider and was going down. Zibanejad did one of his patented hip checks intended to keep the player away from the puck, but Faksa was already doubled over from the Krieder check and Zibanejad’s check on Faksa’s shoulder drove him into the boards. Look at the play and you decide:
#NYR fans, did Mika Zibanejad deserve a 5-minute major? pic.twitter.com/7M75QnCn7a
— MSG Networks (@MSGNetworks) March 6, 2019
To make matters worse, the penalty came when the Rangers were on the power play. The referees then compounded the problem by calling an incredibly soft slashing penalty on Brady Skjei who actually made an outstanding stick check on a play that normally ends up as a hooking or holding penalty.
So, with ten minutes left in the game and the Rangers on the power play, they found themselves without their best offensive forward, down two men and on their heels for most of the remainder of the game.
The Rangers penalty kill was outstanding, but they couldn’t convert on four power play opportunities. They are now 0-15 in their last five games. Quinn called out the power play as the key reason they lost, though he also felt that the team was flat and there was a lack of effort from some players. Much of that can be attributed to Dallas’ stifling defense, third best in the NHL.
They came close to tying the game with the goalie pulled on a Filip Chytil shot, but they were called for more penalties when Ryan Strome checked Jason Dickinson into Bishop and the game ended with a massive pile-up and scrum.
The Rangers lost another game that they could have won, but in this case, blaming the officiating is completely legitimate.
The Lottery Look
There were ten lottery teams in action Tuesday night including the Rangers and seven of them came away with at least one point. With the Rangers losing, they dropped one slot behind Edmonton and are now eighth from the bottom of the NHL standings. They are tied in points, but Edmonton has 26 ROW to the Rangers’ 21. Wins in regulation could be a key tiebreaker for the Rangers as they are tied with Detroit for the fewest in the league.
The Western Conference remains a roller coaster with four teams within five points of each other fighting for the last two wild card spots. In the East, it looks like a battle between Columbus, Pittsburgh, Carolina and Montreal for the last wild card spot.
As for lottery aspirations, while it looks like a 8th or 9th place finish for the Rangers, it is quite possible that they could drop as low as fifth from the bottom with only six points separating the Blueshirts from the Devils. “The Athletic” website projects an 8th place finish for the Rangers based on strength of schedule and injuries.
The standings (Worst is first)
Teams GP W-L-OTL PTS ROW
1. Ottawa 67 23-38-6 52 23
2. Detroit 66 23-33-10 56 21
3. Los Angeles 66 24-34-8 56 22
5. New Jersey 67 25-33-9 59 24
4. Anaheim 67 26-32-9 61 23
6. Vancouver 66 27-30-9 63 24
7. Chicago 66 27-30-9 63 26
8. Rangers 66 27-28-11 65 21
9. Edmonton 66 29-30-7 65 26
10. Florida 66 28-26-12 68 25
11. Buffalo 66 30-28-8 68 26
12. Arizona 66 32-29-5 69 28
13. Colorado 67 29-26-12 70 28
14. Philadelphia 66 32-26-8 72 30
15. Columbus 66 37-26-3 77 36
Second East Wild Card Cut Line: 79 points
Second West Wild Card Cut Line: 72 points
Who to root for
When it comes to the lottery standings, it’s an easy answer. New Jersey, Anaheim, Chicago and Vancouver are all within striking distance of the Rangers. Edmonton, Florida, Buffalo and Arizona are all dangerously close to the Rangers in the standings. The good news is that Edmonton and Arizona still harbor playoff hopes and that will keep them playing meaningful games.
Maple Leafs @ Canucks – The Rangers really need Vancouver to upset Toronto at home. That would put the Canucks in a points tie with New York, though the Rangers would have a game in hand.
Blues @ Ducks – St. Louis is in the thick of the West playoff hunt, but Anaheim has also crept within four points of the Rangers. An Anaheim win will put them only two points back, but they will have played two more games.
Capitals @ Flyers – Philadelphia is seven points ahead of the Rangers. They are also seven points out of a playoff berth and they still believe that they have a shot. Dream on. A few more wins for the Flyers will guarantee that the Rangers won’t be able to catch them.
Next. Comparing Filip Chytil's season as a 19-year old. dark
A key lottery match up looms for the Rangers as they take on the Red Wings on Thursday night. It’s a “four point” lottery game, but Detroit has been pretty awful lately, losing eight in a row. With bottom dwelling Ottawa winning some games under interim coach Marc Crawford, the Red Wings have a shot at the top slot in the lottery race. We’ll see if tanking is the course that Detroit is on when they take on the Blueshirts.