After four days off, the Rangers will resume their playoff run tonight in Ottawa, taking on a Senators team that ousted the Bruins in a very close six game series. The Senators are a quicker and more skilled team than the Habs, so they will present a different challenge for the Rangers. Craig Anderson is a bit of a wild card too, as his hot streaks can make him unbeatable.
For the Rangers to be successful, they will need to ensure they stick to their game. They played their game in the final three wins against Montreal, and their collective team speed wore down the Habs. Ottawa is certainly quicker, but their defensive depth can be exploited by fast teams. Getting in on the forecheck, sustaining pressure, and making Anderson move are going to be critical aspects of this series.
Series Breakdown
We wrote a whole bunch of posts breaking down this matchup. Be sure to check them out:
Systems Breakdown
Forwards Breakdown
Defense Breakdown
Goaltender Breakdown
Senators Lines
Ryan Dzingel-Kyle Turris-Alex Burrows
Clarke MacCarthur-Derick Brassard-Bobby Ryan
Mike Hoffman-Jean-Gabriel Pageau-Mark Stone
Viktor Stalberg-Zack Smith-Tommy Wingels
Marc Methot-Erik Karlsson
Dion Phaneuf-Cody Cedi
Ben Harpur-Frederik Claesson
PP1: Stone-Turris-Burrows-Karlsson-Phaneuf
PP2: MacCarthur-Brassard-Ryan-Hoffman-Claesson
Craig Anderson gets the start
Rangers Lines
Chris Kreider–Mika Zibanejad–Pavel Buchnevich
Jimmy Vesey–Derek Stepan–Rick Nash
JT Miller–Kevin Hayes–Mats Zuccarello
Michael Grabner–Oscar Lindberg–Jesper Fast
Ryan McDonagh–Dan Girardi
Marc Staal–Nick Holden
Brady Skjei–Brendan Smith
PP1: Zibanejad-Buchnevich-Kreider-Zuccarello-McDonagh
PP2: Stepan-Hayes-Nash-Miller-Skjei
Henrik Lundvist gets the start.
Crazy Prediction: A Hank shutout to kick things off.
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