Br4d

How do you adjust to your best players taking the series off? Do you really think that suddenly making changes to the Rangers plays and play pattern would have done anything when the same guys who starred during the regular season for the Rangers went missing? I think you can make an argument that the Rangers weren't playing all that well despite their record. They lost the season series to the Devils and then they lost a playoff series to the Devils and they did this based on the talent on the team and how they showed during those games.

Do you really think that was coaching, given how the Rangers had played during the regular season? I think it was 4 or 5 key players not playing well and the Rangers having no chance to win as a result.

Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad both had career years under GG. Igor had one of the best years a goalie has had recently also. Not to push on the point, because I don't think it's going to happen, but if the Rangers are out early this season that would make Laviolette just as bad a coach as GG and we all know Laviolette is not a bad coach.

I totally get that. I bring it up in the current context only because last year we didn't get the production at 5v5 against the Devils and we went home as a result.

If either of the Bread Line or the Bros Line is off we're going home early. They both need to be bringing their top game to get around the Caps. Why? Because the Caps are a clog it up defensive team and if the top two lines aren't bringing it every game is going to be a struggle to score against them.

Greenwich, CT. No place like it in Florida. Also, Manhattan and Brooklyn have some of the best Russian restaurants in the USA. Not going to find those in Tampa.

Ain't no rookie getting to carry the puck on Zib's line. We've been through this at least once before.

If Panarin is still scoring goals at an accelerated pace he's going to get re-signed.

The problem with putting Chytil on Zib's line is that Kreider will be opposite him. Who's going to do the dirty work of digging the pucks off the boards?

Fresh legs. Hopefully everything else is ok at this point also.

One of the weaker markets in the NHL should try the Green Bay formula. Have the fans crowd-source a buyout and anchor the team there while a merit-based management team figures out how to put it all together.

Looking forward to 2026. Perreault on RW with Laf on LW playing the Panarin role for him. Panarin on line 2 with Zib with Kreider in front of the net playing the same flexible wing thing that Panarin and Laf have going on now.

Also, Panarin. I mean seriously this is probably the #1 guy in the NHL that you want to put a young offensive star in waiting with.

Going back to BC for another shot at a championship. That whole line is going to be together for season. Looking forward to watching Perreault work with Smith and Leonard again.

Kreider is really unusual. He stepped up and had a career year at 30 and then followed it up with better years at 31 and 32 than he had in his prime.

You could argue that Kreider made the jump because of GG.

"The players just need to do what they're supposed to do. They know what it is." Left unsaid, "but they're not doing it." This didn't make a lot of sense to me at the time, since it sounded like he wanted more physicality, fore and back checking. However if what he wanted was Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox to take more shots and cycle less, well that makes all the sense in the world.

Do you think the Caps are scared of facing the Rangers right now? Just curious, because I'm betting the Rangers were who they wanted.

Maybe Panarin should have been more north/south straight ahead the last couple of seasons. If he was east/west like he was the prior two seasons there is zero chance we're the President's Trophy winner.

This series is very unlikely to be a walk in the park. We split 2-2 with the Caps in the regular season and goals were 9-9 in 4 games. If the Rangers show up and play hard we have a good chance in the series. If we look past the Caps we're going to get beat.

The only issue that I see in the series is the Caps were very good defensively, they have a hot goalie and the Rangers seemingly can't score until they're down. I'm worried.

Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and WWE. One and the same.

If he finds another half step this off-season he could go to 40+/80+ pretty quickly.

Early lead!

They should move Carolina back to Hartford so they can suck again.