As for coaching, Boucher has an edge over Boucher, but Guy can lean on Crawford. I think there is definitely an edge here in being more prepared.
If our forwards can continue what they started (Ryan+Brassard leading the way, Turris/Stone/Hoffman turning it up, Pageau/Burrows/Smith chipping in as well) then we could have an edge here. But I also think the Rangers forwards will get better.
The one thing we don't really know anything about is injuries. For example, we just found out that Bergeron had been playing with a sports hernia. I'm sure that Pacioretty has some shoulder or rib injury. What are the odds that Kreider has misteriously disappeared after 82 games? I think he may be playing hurt. and after all the hitting against Montreal there are likely others that are banged up, as well.
wprager wrote: Remember when the Rangers came out at the start of the season with guns blazing, scoring 4+ goals per game and being without question the best team in the league? Is this the same team that boasts *on* 4-point player in a 6 game series? What the heck happened?
I think that's a major factor. NY was outplayed and outchanced, but Lundqvist kept them in it. Can he do it twice? Maybe, but it's hard to imagine he'll be able to steal a series twice.
Oh, he can steal more than one series, but maybe not to the same level.
Looks like Wideman is in the dog house. Claesson-Harpur are the third pairing. Forget what I said about Phaneuf-Ceci ice time going down. We're doomed.
P.S. Slightly tongue-in-cheek. I'm a little concerned about a third pairing in the playoffs with 60 regular season games between the two of them. Afraid in that I think they will get very little ice time, meaning a lot more for Phaneuf-Ceci. That makes me afraid.
Boro will replace Claesson if he can play. Wideman is a bit inexplicable but Harpur has been great. Maybe the Sens think they need the size.
Wideman had a bad game 5, when they failed to finish Boston off on home ice. Looks like he's still in the doghouse.
Yes, Harpur has played well, hopefully it continues. Concerned a bit about the two of them playing as a pairing. Very little experience.
Claesson is probably better than Wideman at this point, although they could both use to gain some muscle, so it's pretty much a wash. Harper in for Boro is not a negative at all, although Boro is a tank.
Tons of tickets still available if anyone's thinking about going. I went to two games in the first round and they lost them both, so I think I'll hold off and see how things look for game 5 and maybe game 7.
PTFlea wrote: Claesson is probably better than Wideman at this point, although they could both use to gain some muscle, so it's pretty much a wash. Harper in for Boro is not a negative at all, although Boro is a tank.
Interestingly, for most of the year (and last year, as well) Wideman has been the Sens best possession metrics guy (Corsi). Claesson -- although the sample size is much smaller -- is pretty much at the same level if not slightly ahead in some categories. There is no secret as to why Claesson was third among our D in points-per-game (he was just slightly behind Phaneuf, who gets half his points on the PP). So 5v5 he's our second most productive defenseman. He never passes up an opportunity to shoot the puck, and wastes no time doing it.
All that said, the deployment pattern among the D is really telling. Wideman had the most offensive-zone starts as a percentage of total, at 63%. Claesson was next at nearly 58%. Everyone picks on Ceci, but he has the lowest number on the team with 46.6% offensive zone starts (even higher than Phaneuf -- that's probably because of Phaneuf's 2nd unit PP time). I have no idea why Ceci is deployed like that, you'd have to ask Crawford. But it does explain why he's so often hemmed in, fighting to get the puck out and so on. Given that Karlsson is so much better at getting out of our end, maybe they should flip this and give the bulk of the defensive zone starts to Karlsson. Sure, his offensive numbers will decrease, and Ceci's will increase, but I wonder if the overall effect on the team will positive.
tim1_2 wrote: Tons of tickets still available if anyone's thinking about going. I went to two games in the first round and they lost them both, so I think I'll hold off and see how things look for game 5 and maybe game 7.
I don't remember the last time I went to a playoff game. Probably game 6 of the Conference Finals between the Flyers and Habs. Montreal lost 4-3 but what a game. My buddy and I got standing room tickets last-second but because everyone was standing, you pretty much had to pull yourself up on the divider behind the last row. Since your hands were busy keeping yourself up in the air, you had to holler and bang your feet on the divider to make noise. I couldn't talk for a couple of days and my shins were all bruised from kicking the divider.
I think we paid either $8 or $14 per ticket, which is still under $30 today.
That's the catch 22 though, obviously.
I like Claesson, he has really sneaky offensive skills and jumps into the play really well. And a great shot. He's a keeper and it appear harper might be too.