Thinking About The Power Play

Ever since Jaromir Jagr left, and even a bit before, the power play has sucked. The Rangers have offensive stars like Marian Gaborik, but they just can’t put the biscuit in the hole. This is extremely frustrating.

The one thing that the Rangers don’t do well is setting up. From the rush to setting up in the zone, the Rangers can never get settled. Any good power play has to be set up in the zone. You can’t have one shot and have to set up again.

Once they get set up, they have trouble hitting the net, or after a few attempts, the puck will be cleared. There’s no consistent attack.

You want a power play that, as a fan, makes you jump out you seat because they get so many good chances, and then, after a while, they capitalize on it. That’s a good power play. Rangers don’t have that.

So how can we fix this? Let’s dive right in.

The first problem is getting set up. Usually, MDZ will start with the puck behind the net. He’ll skate up the middle of the ice, and right past his own blueline, he’s fire a pass to a streaking Gaborik or Callahan. This works some of the time. When it does, it’s great. But it can’t be used every single time. It becomes predictable. Defenses can pick off the pass. And you’re not setting up.

The Rangers don’t do well with dump and chase, either. Here’s what they need to do. Have a defenseman bring it up. Have his partner next to him. Let’s get a center leading two wings in the pursuit. D drops it in, center and wings chase after it, not just a wing. Get the puck, walk it out, and get it to the point.

Now that it’s on the point, what next? Well, let’s talk spacing and layout. I love the drawing feature on Google Docs, and since you can share it and embed it, all the more fun. Here’s how the Rangers PP should look like:

That’s just some sample players. But let’s break it down. We’ll start with MDZ

MDZ should move either to his right, or in a bit. Moving in to his right brings the defense over. He can the rifle a pass off to Frolov, who’s streaking to the net. If he moves in a bit, defense collapses, pass it back out to Rosy, and he takes a bomb from the point. Rosy follows the same pattern.

Drury stays in front of the net. The Rangers never have this. Pluck his ass right in front of the goalie. Take a defender away from the box. Give Gabby and Frolov more room to operate. And gobble up loose pucks.

I want Frolov and Gaborik mirroring each other. Moving without the puck a lot. Let’s say Frolov has it. He’s by the boards, holding. Now, Gaborik shouldn’t stay still. He should break for the net. Frolov can pass it. He can shoot it. Or, as the defense collapses, pass it back out to MDZ. Gaborik can do the same. These two can fish for rebounds as well.

Moving a lot, with and without the puck, is key. The spacing here allows them to do this. Penalty killers usually stay in a box, or a square. The box moves with the puck. But, with movement, especially without the pick, the box has to collapse. The Rangers spent too much time standing still. No more. Move around. Make the defense move. Fire shots off. Get bodies in front of the net. And shoot the puck, dammit!