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Top Rangers Play Bracket: (1) Hank windmill save vs. (16) Kreider vs Caps in 2012
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With the first round of the left side completed, it’s time to start the first round of the right side. First up is Henrik Lundqvist’s windmill save against Montreal in 2014 going up against Chris Kreider bursting on the scene with his goal against the Caps in 2012.
(1) Lundqvist’s windmill save
Looking at PTO options for camp
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We are halfway through August, which means hockey is about one month away. This is around the time when guys who haven’t signed yet are looking for any chance they can get. That means professional tryouts (PTOs) are going to start hitting the news pretty soon. The Rangers have a lot of question marks at camp, and should one or a few of the kids not be ready for prime time, the Blueshirts will need bodies to fill roster holes.
Troy Brouwer (RW)
Brouwer is the first name that jumps out on the list, not because of effectiveness, but because he has name pedigree –for better or for worse– and players that get bought out usually wind up finding a home pretty quickly. Brouwer’s contract paid his $4.5 million per year before he was bought out, and it’s safe to say he wasn’t worth that contract.
We have the last matchup in the first round of the left half of the bracket, and it might be a runaway. We have the #2 seed, which is Ryan McDonagh’s OT winner in Game 5 in 2015 against Washington taking on Mike Rupp scoring twice in the 2012 Winter Classic. Rupp is a forgotten hero of that 2012 Winter Classic, giving a Jaromir Jagr salute after one of his goals as well. As for the McDonagh goal, it’s self explanatory.
(2) Ryan McDonagh wins it in overtime in Game 5 against Washington
Checking in on the free agent class of 2019
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Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Like most Rangers fans, we here are not really expecting the Rangers to be legitimate contenders in the 2018-2019 season. They won’t be tanking, and in fact their forward group –and Henrik Lundqvist– has the ability to carry them to a surprise playoff appearance. That said, it’s not expected, so there’s already an eye on next year, the trades that can be made, and the free agents available.
Unlike this past offseason, where the prize free agents weren’t really prizes at all, next year’s crop of free agents is a big budget team’s dream. Artemi Panarin, at just 27 is just one of the many headliners of a class poised to make boatloads of money. The Rangers have been directly connected to Panarin already, or at least we want to think that. But any team looking to add elite talent will have the ability to do so without surrendering assets.
Top Rangers Play Bracket: (7) Zibanejad OT winner vs. (10) Undefeated Outside
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So far, no upsets in the top play bracket, but we may get one here. Next up is the first of the 7/10 match ups, as we have the Mika Zibanejad OT winner against the Habs taking on the Rangers going undefeated outside.
Zibanejad’s OT winner set the stage for the Rangers to upset the Habs in the first round of the 2017. It was the last hurrah of this Rangers era, as they dispatched the Habs before their weaknesses got the best of them against the Senators.
The Rangers won a pair of Winter Classics in exciting fashion, with Henrik Lundqvist stopping Danny Briere in the final minute of the 2012 game to win it, followed by JT Miller winning the 2018 game in overtime. The Rangers also won a pair of Stadium Series games against the Isles and the Devils in 2014.
(7) Mika Zibanejad wins it in overtime
Another round in the books, as Henrik Lundqvist’s back-to-back shutouts in 2013 topped the Chris Kreider/Carey Price incident. That play joins Martin St. Louis on Mother’s Day and Marian Gaborik’s 3OT winner in the next round. Today it’s a bit of a lopsided matchup, as Brad Richards’ tying goal with 6.6 seconds left takes on the Rangers clinching the President’s Trophy in 2015. Neither of these need much of an introduction.
(3) Brad Richards’ tying goal with 6.6 seconds remaining
Top Rangers Play Bracket: (6) Hank’s back-to-back shutouts vs. (11) Kreider/Price
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With Marian Gaborik eeking out a win two days ago and MSL dominating yesterday, we move on to the 6/11 matchup. Henrik Lundqvist willed the Rangers to the second round of the playoffs in 2013, posting back-to-back shutouts against the Caps after the Rangers were down 3-2 in the series. It’s one of the iconic performances for the goaltender, who has one of the best performance records in elimination games we’ve seen.
As for the Chris Kreider/Carey Price incident, that set the tone in the 2014 Eastern Conference Final that sent the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup Final appearance in 20 years. It’s a play defined by Kreider’s speed and hard work, but also a trip and an unfortunate injury to one of the best goalies in the game.
(6) Hank’s back-to-back shutouts
As of the writing of this post, yesterday’s 5-12 matchup was too close to call. So while the results are made final with the publishing of this post, we move on to the 4-13 matchup. Martin St. Louis on Mother’s Day vs. Ryan Callahan sending the Rangers to the playoffs in 2013. Both of these are self explanatory.
(4) Marty on Mother’s Day
Top Rangers Play Bracket: (5) Gaborik 3OT Winner vs. (12) Hank stops Briere
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The next matchup in our top play bracket has the chance to be the first upset. Marian Gaborik’s triple OT winner against Washington was the first real OT winner we remember from the 2011-2017 era. It’s only a #5 seed because it wasn’t done at MSG, and it just doesn’t have that goosebumps feel.
Henrik Lundqvist stopping Danny Briere’s penalty shot didn’t have any real value in the grand scheme of things, but it was the Winter Classic. It was the Flyers. It was when the Winter Classic and outdoor hockey wasn’t watered down. It solidified the first of many outdoor wins.
(5) Marian Gaborik 3OT winner vs. Washington
Mailbag: Brendan Smith, Kevin Hayes, Lindy Ruff
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It’s a slow summer in hockey. There aren’t many questions coming into the mailbag, so I held on to a few to have enough for a post. As always, use the widget on the right to send us questions.
Scott asks: What do you make of Brendan Smith this year?
This is a very loaded question. Smith is reportedly in tremendous shape this summer, knowing he needs this year to revive his NHL career. He also knows that he has stiff competition from the youngsters trying to crack the roster. He also knows that the Rangers have no qualms sending him to the AHL. That’s the trifecta right there. I expect him to have a bounce back year. But I also don’t expect him to finish that contract in New York.