Game 66: Minny is good, please don't come out flat again

I felt like finding the most dated picture I could (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images North America).

The Rangers came out flat in Carolina, and they were just dominated in every facet of the game. They didn’t deserve to win that game, but they can’t repeat that kind of effort tonight against a dangerous Minnesota team. I use the term dangerous loosely, as they can’t score, but they are still a team bound for the playoffs (likely). The goaltending situation in Minnesota is pretty dire, as Josh Harding and Niklas Backstrom are sidelined. Ilya Bryzgalov is the guy backstopping the Wild now.

Under Mike Yeo, the Wild run a 1-2-2 forecheck which they use aggressively or conservatively depending on game situation. In the defensive zone they use a low zone collapse pretty much exclusively. The Wild prefer to attack the opposition’s blueline with speed so the Rangers are going to have to be good defending the rush tonight and not leaving Talbot on an island. On special teams, the Wild run an umbrella power play and a diamond force penalty kill.

Rangers Lineup:

Chris Kreider–Derek Stepan–Rick Nash
Carl Hagelin–Brad Richards–Martin St. Louis
Benoit Pouliot–Derick Brassard–Mats Zuccarello
Brian Boyle–Dominic Moore-Dan Carcillo