The New York Rangers are losing their own playoff narrative

The New York Rangers need to rewrite their playoff narrative. Prior to meeting the Pittsburgh Penguins in their first round matchup, it was bring on the Pens. Now, down two games to one in this best of seven series, it has become a blame game. New York Rangers fans and media personalities have been quick to point a finger at the officiating. That it is the Rangers versus the Penguins and the officials. But is this really a fair assessment?

Are the New York Rangers the NHL’s stepchild?

The officiating was under a lot of scrutiny following Game One of the series. That there is the appearance of favoritism, proven with the disparity of penalties called heavily favoring the Penguins. Add to this the disallowing of Filip Chytil’s go ahead goal in the waning minutes of that game and the conspiracy theories grow. Though it seems many are quick to forget that the Rangers squandered leads of 2-0 and 3-2. Or that they were grossly outplayed in the second period and in two plus overtime periods. These factors are within the Rangers control and weigh more heavily into why game one was lost than the officials.

Much has been said about the soft, weak or missed calls. So long as the officials keep their calls even it is on the players to adjust to what will and won’t be called. Through games two and three, the calls have been even.  In fact, the Rangers had three consecutive powerplays in Game Three with the score tied at four and failed to capitalize.

Third string is a charm

Another narrative trap that the New York Rangers have fallen into has been their goaltending advantage. Do they Rangers have the advantage, absolutely. But does that mean they can play a wide open game and simply score at will? Absolutely not. Louis Domingue may be the Penguins third option in net, but he has won two games.

The Rangers have scored nine goals on Domingue in just under seven periods of play. His 4.03 Goals Against Average and .903% save percentage are pedestrian numbers at best, especially by playoff standards. But the Penguins netminder has proven to be just as effective as he needs to be. Simply put, making some big saves when called upon, Domingue has given the Penguins a chance to win.

Blueshirts need a new narrative

The New York Rangers need to focus on what they can control. Parts of Game One, most of Game Two and the comeback in Game Three prove what they can accomplish when focused on playing their game. They know the Penguins will push, but when on their game, the Rangers can weather those storms.

However, if they continue to surrender 42 shots against every 60 minutes (11 more than in the regular season), the odds they advance to the Second Round are not worth betting on. The New York Rangers need to clamp down and focus more on hockey and less on the narratives surrounding the last three games. They can even this series tomorrow, the can take control, regain home ice advantage and begin to write a new playoff narrative.