The New York Rangers finished off their four game road trip with a big victory over the Dallas Stars. Kevin Klein came up in the clutch once again.
By Chris Wengert
The New York Rangers defeated the Western Conference’s best team, the Dallas Stars, by a score of 3-2 Saturday afternoon.
Kevin Klein does it again folks.
Derek Stepan, Jesper Fast, and Dominic Moore should all take lessons from the defenseman who keeps his game simple, yet effective. Klein had some space, saw a shooting opportunity, and capitalized.
If Moore or Fast would have shot the puck like Klein did, the Rangers probably win this game by a score of 5-2. But for some unknown reason the Rangers always start the cutesy moves and passes when they have the lead.
The first Ranger’s power play was a perfect example of keeping the play simple, but effective.
Brassard won the puck back to Keith Yandle who moved side-to-side to open a shooting lane, took the shot, and Kreider deflected the puck in.
Simple.
The final two power play opportunities were the exact opposite though, as bad passes in the neutral zone made it difficult for the Rangers to set up in the offensive zone.
When they were able to gain the zone the Rangers tried to pass through traffic rather than putting the puck on net and going for another possible screen or rebound. That made defending easy for Dallas.
Try that crap in the playoffs and it will be a quick exit.
The beginning of this game was sloppy at best for both teams. It seemed like neither the Rangers or Stars could enter their respective offensive zones without being offside.
The Rangers were horrible in their own end to start the game as it seemed like Dallas had watched some video and learned how to properly disrupt the Rangers breakout. But like I always say, you can’t judge a game by the first 10 minutes.
The Rangers eventually stabilized, made some adjustments to their play and improved.
And the biggest change came in the second period. Alain Vigneault and his staff made a change to the Ranger’s fore check, as they attacked with two players instead on one.
The pressure was too much for Dallas’ defense to handle and caused turnovers that created scoring opportunities for the Rangers. That’s a good adjustment by AV and company.
After a couple weeks of controversial calls that have not been in the Rangers favor, the good guys finally caught a break with a no-goal call.
The camera angles worked in the Rangers favor because you can’t see the puck actually cross the line.
Did the puck probably completely cross the line at some point? Yes, but there wasn’t sufficient evidence to overturn the original call of no goal. The Rangers deserve a break when it comes to the Toronto situation room.
Dallas Stars head coach Lindy Ruff was not pleased with the call. In an effort to call attention to the refs, Ruff grabbed a players stick and started slapping it against the boards.
Welcome to our world Mr. Ruff.
Dan Girardi did his best “Captain Jack Sparrow” impression in the third period.
Savvy?
Henrik Lundqvist made some strong saves in this game, and looks like he is ready for an important March. The Rangers will need him too, especially if Rick Nash is not able to return.
Speaking of Nash, is anyone else worried that he may not return?
There is plenty of speculation out there, but if Nash isn’t able to make his way back into the lineup, the whole playoff picture changes. The Rangers miss Nash on all facets of the game, especially his defense.
Everyone loves goals, but Nash was highly effective in both penalty kill and end of games situations when the opposition has their goalie pulled. Nash’s quickness and big reach are invaluable, and the Rangers will need him in playoffs.
Ryan McDonagh had a much better game against Dallas and demonstrated why just shooting the puck on net is never a bad thing.
McDonagh took full advantage of some suspect Dallas goal tending.
As far as the trade deadline goes, who knows what Jeff Gorton has planned, but either way he has his hands full.
RELATED: Jeff Gorton Has His Work Cut Out For Him
I’m not going to pretend to know the Chicago Blackhawks cap situation but they seem to have a bottomless pocket. How they are able to make the moves they do in this cap era is mind boggling.
