New York Rangers: Lottery movement and prospects playoff update
The New York Rangers ended a five game losing streak, beating Toronto in overtime on the road. It was a great win for the Blueshirts, but didn’t help their lottery aspirations.
The New York Rangers, like all lottery eligible teams, face a nightly conundrum. Win or lose? No team should ever want to lose and no fan should root for a team to lose, but at this stage of the season, any points achieved only can do one thing, hurt the team’s standing in the lottery race. The Blueshirts were officially eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs last night so all they have to play for is pride and the lottery.
On a night when the Rangers fielded their youngest lineup ever, it’s worth taking a look at how some future Rangers did in their post-season contests.
WHL Playoffs
The Western Hockey League playoffs began on Friday night. The Ranger representative is newly signed Jake Elmer of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. Lethbridge has jumped out to a 2-0 lead in their series with the Calgary Hitmen. In their 3-2 overtime win on Friday night, Elmer had the primary assist on Dylan Cozen’s tying goal in the second period.
Elmer was held off the scoresheet in Saturday’s 4-1 win. He also wasn’t involved in the game ending brawl that resulted in 42 minutes in penalties including six major penalties and five misconducts.
The war continues with game three of the series on Tuesday night.
OHL Playoffs
Two Ranger prospects are in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs and both of their teams won the opening games of their series.
Joey Keane plays defense for the London Knights who defeated the Windsor Spitfires 4-3 Friday night. Keane didn’t score and was minus one on the night. The teams resume their series tonight.
Swiss defenseman Nico Gross mans the blueline for the Oshawa Generals. The Generals overwhelmed the Peterborough Petes 7-0 on Friday night. Gross was a plus two on the night. Game two is tonight in Oshawa.
ECAC Championship
Morgan Barron is one of the stars for Cornell University and has become the focus of a lot of attention after a fantastic regular season. Cornell had made it to the championship weekend in the ECAC playoffs and played Friday and Saturday.
In the Semi-FInal game on Friday night, Cornell defeated Brown University decisively 6-0. Barron scored a power play goal in the second period. He had four shots on goal and was 7-16 in the faceoff circle. With that win, Cornell is assured of a place in the NCAA tournament.
In the Championship game against Clarkson College on Saturday night, it was a nailbiter that went to overtime. Clarkson won their second consecutive ECAC title when they scored 14:36 into the first OT, minutes after Cornell’s starting goalie had to leave the game with an injury. Barron was held off the scoresheet, taking four shots and he was 7-15 on faceoffs.
Barron’s college season will continue when the NCAA tournament begins on March 29. He has scored 14 goals and notched 33 points in 34 games.
The Lottery Look
Okay, time to look at the lottery standings. With the Rangers winning in overtime, they needed some help from their lottery rivals and they didn’t get much.
Anaheim went to a shootout against the Kings, but Anze Kopitar was the only shootout scorer and the Kings won 4-3. The point for Anaheim gives them 72, one more than the Rangers. The big issue with Anaheim is that they only have five games left while the Rangers have eight. Anaheim has two tough games left with Calgary and three games against lottery teams (Vancouver, Edmonton, Los Angeles)
Buffalo is sneaking into the bottom of the lottery standings. They lost 7-4 to the Canadiens and are folding like a tent, winning only one game in their last ten. Yup, Buffalo has a very good chance of finishing below the Rangers in the standings if they keep this up. That’s the Sabres of Jack Eichel and Rasmus Dahlin. The only good news is that the Sabres have one of the easier schedules over their last eight games. They play Detroit and Ottawa twice each as well as the Devils. The only playoff-contending teams they play are the Islanders, Predators and Blue Jackets.
The Oilers lost to the Senators in overtime 4-3 and the single point keeps them three points better than the Rangers with seven games to play. They have a tough schedule with only two games versus lottery teams (Anaheim, Los Angeles) and five games against teams with something to play for (Vegas, Colorado, San Jose, Calgary, Dallas). Their last two games of the season against San Jose and Calgary may be meaningless to the standings and that would help.
Vancouver lost to the first place Flames 3-1 and are also three points better than New York, also with seven games to play. The Canucks have a tough schedule with only two “soft” opponents (Anaheim, Los Angeles) and five tough games (Columbus, Dallas, San Jose, Nashville, St. Louis).
The Blackhawks are the third team with 74 points and they also lost, 4-2 to Colorado. They have eight games left. Chicago is another team with a tough schedule, facing only one non-playoff team (Los Angeles) and seven games with playoff contending teams (Colorado, Arizona, San Jose, Winnipeg, St. Louis, Dallas, Nashville).
The Rangers schedule is not any easier as they play eight games in 13 days. The have five games against contending teams (Pittsburgh twice, Columbus, St. Louis, Boston) and three games against lottery contenders (Philadelphia, New Jersey, Ottawa).
The oddity is that with New Jersey winning yesterday afternoon, they had pulled within four points of the Rangers and their was a distinct opportunity for the Blueshirts to drop as low as fourth from the bottom. The win in Toronto sort of eliminated that possibility.
The standings (Worst is first)
Teams GR W-L-OTL PT ROW
1. Ottawa 7 26-43-6 58 26
2. Los Angeles 8 27-39-8 62 24
3. Detroit 7 27-38-10 64 24
4. New Jersey 6 28-39-9 65 25
5. Rangers 8 29-32-13 71 23
6. Buffalo 8 31-34-9 71 26
7. Anaheim 5 31-36-10 72 28
8. Edmonton 7 33-34-8 74 30
9. Vancouver 7 32-33-10 74 28
10. Chicago 8 32-32-10 74 30
11. Florida 7 33-30-12 78 30
12. Arizona 7 36-32-7 79 32
13. Minnesota 6 35-32-9 79 34
14. Philadelphia 7 36-31-8 80 34
15. Columbus 8 40-30-4 84 39
Second East Wild Card Cut Line: 87 points
Second West Wild Card Cut Line: 80 points
Who to root for
Five games in the NHL on Sunday. Two of the games are of importance to the Rangers in their race for lottery positioning.
Avalanche @ Blackhawks – You can check this game out on national television. Colorado moved back into the wild card on Saturday when they beat Chicago. The Hawks are out for revenge in this second of a home and home series. Nothing against Colorado, but they are already getting Ottawa’s first rounder and the Blackhawks are only three points ahead of the Rangers. Go Blackhawks!
Blue Jackets @ Canucks – The Blue Jackets, featuring Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel are out of the playoffs by three points. They’ve lost three in a row and their season is imploding. A Vancouver win opens a five point gap with the Rangers. Root for the Canucks.
Next. No Gritty in New York please. dark
The Rangers are back in action on Monday, hosting the Penguins. It’s one of nine games on the NHL schedule.