The playoff picture gets worse as the road trip begins
By Steve Paulus
The New York Rangers head out for a long stretch of road games. With eight of the next ten on the road, the team will soon know if the playoffs are for real.
Coach David Quinn put it best after practice on Monday. He said “It’s always nicer to play at home, but if you’re a team worth your salt…you’re embracing an opportunity to go on the road and win hockey games.” The New York Rangers first test will be in Winnipeg tonight.
The will be facing a Jets team that is in an absolute dogfight for a playoff spot. They’ve won three in a row and are sitting in the first wild card slot. It will be a tough test.
The Rangers’ inability to put together any kind of winning streak means that they have been treading water when it comes to the playoffs. They haven’t dropped a lot, but they haven’t gained.
The playoff picture
It wasn’t a good night for the Rangers’ playoff hopes with unfavorable results in three of the four games they were scoreboard watching. The Flyers leapfrogged over the Hurricanes and that means the Blueshirts are now 11 points out of the wild card again.
The only positive result was the Coyotes’ 3-2 win over Montreal. Derek Stepan helped his old team with a goal and an assist as the Rangers remain three points behind the Habs, but they have four games in hand.
The Blueshirts got a little help from Tampa as they beat the Blue Jackets, but did it in overtime, 2-1. That was the 17th time that Columbus has gone to overtime. That’s 17 additional points from one goal games that they could have lost in regulation. The Rangers’ number is seven.
The Flyers trounced the Panthers 4-1 in Philadelphia. A classic four point game, the wish was for Florida to win as Philadelphia will be tougher to catch, but it wasn’t to be.
The Islanders dealt the Capitals their second loss in a row and that didn’t help the Blueshirts at all. The Isles have now opened a 12 point lead on the Rangers and they’ve played the same number of games so they are beginning to look uncatch-able.
The standings
Atlantic Div. GP W-L-OTL PTS RW
Boston 57 34-11-12 80 30
Tampa 56 36-15-5 77 30
Toronto 56 29-19-8 66 22
Met Div. GP W-L-OTL PTS RW
Washington 56 36-15-5 77 27
Pittsburgh 54 34-15-5 73 23
Islanders 54 32-16-6 70 21
Wild Card GP W-L-OTL PTS RW
Columbus 57 30-17-10 70 23
Philadelphia 56 31-18-7 69 22
Contenders GP W-L-OTL PTS RW
Carolina 55 32-20-3 67 22
Florida 55 29-20-6 64 24
Montreal 58 27-24-7 61 17
Rangers 54 27-23-4 58 24
Buffalo 56 24-24-8 56 18
New Jersey 54 20-24-10 50 15
Ottawa 55 18-26-11 47 14
Detroit 57 14-39-4 32 11
The key games today
It’s a very busy Tuesday on the NHL schedule with 11 games.Although there are three teams sitting between the Rangers and the wildcard (Montreal, Florida and Philadelphia) the teams currently sitting in the playoffs are the ones the Rangers have to catch.
There are four games to watch for on Tuesday as the Rangers embark on their road trip. Besides the Blueshirts match with the Jets, there are five other games to keep your eyes on.
Hurricanes @ Stars – Carolina is in a precarious position. When they lose a game. they drop out of the wild card, when they win they’re back in. With the Flyers win last night, the passed the Canes. The Blueshirts remain nine points behind Carolina, but now the Hurricanes are not a playoff team. Still, a Hurricanes loss would be very helpful so root for Dallas.
Flyers @ Islanders -This is a tough one with both team ahead of the Rangers. The Isles are up 12points and the Flyers are 11 points ahead. It’s a matter of which team the Rangers have a better chance of catching and that is a tough question. Since the Isles have played 54 games, bet on the Flyers as most catch-able so root for the Fishsticks as repugnant as that may be.
Panthers @ Devils -The Devils have pulled some upsets recently so hope for them to take out Florida tonight. They are only six points up on New York.
Coyotes @ Maple Leafs -It’s hard to imagine the Leafs missing the post season with their loaded lineup, but they are wracked by injuries and are vulnerable. Root for the Yotes.
Red Wings @ Sabres – The Rangers are two points ahead of Buffalo with two games in hand. This one is more about the lottery than the playoffs. Detroit will definitely finish last overall, but for lottery purposes you want the Sabres to stay close. Root for Buffalo, a flawed team.
The lottery look
The Rangers remain 10th from the bottom of the NHL, but are only six points from the sixth worst record, where they finished last season. They are tied with Chicago and Minnesota with 58 points, but the Rangers own the regulation games won tiebreaker and have played one fewer game.
The standings (Worst is first)
Teams GR W-L-OTL PT RW
1. Detroit 56 14-39-4 32 11
2. Los Angeles 57 19-33-5 43 13
3. Ottawa 55 18-26-11 47 14
4. New Jersey 54 20-24-10 50 15
5. Anaheim 56 30-16-7 52 16
6. San Jose 56 24-28-4 52 18
7. Buffalo 56 24-24-8 56 18
8. Chicago 55 25-22-8 58 18
9. Minnesota 55 26-23-6 58 23
10. Rangers 54 27-23-4 58 24
11. Nashville 55 26-22-7 59 21
12. Montreal 58 27-24-7 61 17
13. Arizona 58 28-23-7 63 20
14. Winnipeg 57 29-23-5 63 22
15. Calgary 57 29-22-6 64 19
16. Vegas 57 28-21-8 64 22
17. Florida 55 29-20-6 64 24
18. Edmonton 55 29-20-6 64 25
19. Toronto 56 29-19-8 66 22
20. Vancouver 57 31-21-5 67 24
21. Dallas 55 31-19-5 67 21
22. Carolina 55 32-20-3 67 22
23. Philadelphia 56 31-18-7 69 22
24. Columbus 57 30-17-10 70 23
25. Islanders 54 32-16-6 70 21
26. Colorado 54 32-16-6 70 29
Second East Wild Card Cut Line: 69 points
Second West Wild Card Cut Line: 63 points
Playoff teams in italics.
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