#1 New York rangers vs. #7 Washington Capitals
Nearly everyone made it seem like the New York Rangers were going to streamline through the Ottawa Senators. They made it seem like the series was going to be over in a quick four or five games, but I had a feeling it was going to go a bit further than that. Did I think that it would go to seven? No. I thought it would probably end around game six, but when Ottawa took the 3-2 lead in the series, I won’t lie. I was hopeful for an upset. But it didn’t happen.
There weren’t very many times in the Ottawa series where New York looked like a dominant team. Don’t get me wrong. I would say that they played well, but I don’t think that they played nearly as well as they thought they would. Their offense was essentially nonexistent. It seemed like they just couldn’t outwork the Senators and I think that’s going to be problematic in the series against the Capitals. If players like Gaborik, Richards and Dubinsky don’t elevate their game to the next level, they may find themselves in a heap of trouble, especially if Washington’s stars keep playing the way that they are.
For New York to be successful, they need to be less reliant on Lundqvist. By that, I mean they shouldn’t be focusing on winning 1-0 games. They shouldn’t be hoping that Lundqvist keeps them in there. They need to get out there and they need to produce offense. They need their stars and their forward depth to put the puck in the back of the net and from what I have seen, I don’t know if they have it in them. I haven’t noticed much of Gaborik at all so far in the playoffs. The first round seemed like it was the Callahan and Boyle show (until he got hurt). I mean, looking at game 7 alone, the Rangers had to rely on their defense to not only hold off the Senators, but also to step their game up and put the puck in the net. I know that this isn’t the Capitals of two years ago that were running, gunning and putting up six goals a game, but I think that they have a little bit more offense in them than the Rangers will be prepared for.
The Capitals played a tough, physical series against the Bruins and the Bruins made sure that the Capitals knew that. The hits were huge and explosive. The game was kept tight to the outside. Every game was within a single goal. It could have gone either way at any time, but Washington came out victorious. It was kind of an amazing story if you think about it. I mean, the Capitals toppled the reigning Stanley Cup champions with their third string goalie and on top of that, they won the series despite big Z keeping Ovechkin at bay. I know that doesn’t sound like much. I know that a lot of people are down on Ovechkin, especially this year, but I think that big things are coming his way. Towards the end of the season it looked like the Great Eight finally got his legs under him and he was making some of the plays that he has become known for. He started becoming that prolific goal scorer that is difficult to contain. Even though he was held out of the third period in most games in the Bruins series, he still led the team with 5 points. If Girardi and McDonagh don’t shut down Ovechkin the way that Chara did, I think that they Rangers are going to be in a bit of trouble.
Ovechkin is only the beginning for Capital’s offense that is comprised of a plethora of depth and persistence that starts with Brooks Laich and works its way through characters like Chimera, Johansson, Backstrom, Ward, and Knuble. I’m not so surprised from the effort that these guys put forth. They are all hard workers and they are living up to their hype. I am however surprised by one player in particular, Alexander Semin. Semin is not exactly known for his presence in the playoffs. He’s not quite as “gutless” as Patrick Marleau, but he generally tends to be pretty invisible. This year, it is the exact opposite. I don’t know if it’s because it’s a contract year or what, but Semin has been everywhere. He is diving to making plays. He is getting in the boards. He is back checking and he is scoring goals. He is exceeding everyone’s expectations by a mile and if he keeps that up, the Rangers are going to need more than a little bit of help from Gabby and Hank.
During the regular season, the Capitals took the Rangers in their series three games to one, which says a lot. I know that regular season records mean nothing come the playoffs because it is indeed a different game entirely, but so far, I would say that works in favor of the Capitals and against the Rangers. Dale Hunter knows what he’s doing with the Capitals and it looks like he has them believing in a defense first system. He even has Ovechkin believing in it, which is pretty unbelievable. That doesn’t mean that he has him playing defense, because let’s face it, that will never happen, but he has him on the bench. He has him right where he should be and he’s okay with that. He’s okay with sitting when he needs to, but he’s also okay with playing two minutes straight on the power play. The Capitals are doing a lot of things right and I think that they showed that by beating Boston in game seven.
Prediction: Capitals in 6
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