Rick Nash and Brad Richards Absent for 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Alex Silverberg

5/17/2013

Through the first eight games of the postseason, Rick Nash and Brad Richards, two of the Rangers’ most important players, have one goal and three assists combined. If not for the stellar play of Henrik Lundqvist and the emergence of key role players, the Blueshirts would have been out of the dance weeks ago. However, if the Rangers wish to advance to the Conference Finals, Richards and Nash must improve.

Brad Richards came to New York to be the puck-moving center Marian Gaborik never had. But the two never really jelled, and Gaborik was traded to Columbus at the deadline. Fast-forward to the playoffs and Richards has played so poorly that he’s been demoted to the fourth line. Mind you, he is still getting power-play minutes, which makes sense, since the Rangers have scored less than 3 PPGs in their eight postseason games so far. Richards has lost his way completely, making his mammoth contract almost as bad as the one signed by Chris Drury, among others. The fourth line is a perfect place to prove his worth again, but he should be off of the power play until he can put in some effective 5-on-5 minutes.

And then there’s Rick Nash.  ou can’t have your top offensive player goalless going into the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Although his shifts in Game 7 of the Washington series and Game 1 last night were encouraging, I don’t think Rick Nash is 100 percent. He is playing injured
against top defensemen, which is a lot for even a player of Nash’s caliber to overcome. It’s hard to pinpoint when he was hurt, but I think the contact to the head (accidental or not) caused by Milan Lucic’s hit on February 16 resulted in a concussion.

Nash missed a few games following this incident, but came back playing inconsistently for the rest of the season. For the Rangers to go any further, they need Rick Nash to be Rick Nash. So far he has been slightly above-average, which is not good enough.

Without their two big stars playing up to snuff, the Rangers have been propelled not only by the determined play of Henrik Lundqvist, but also by the emergence of players received in the Gaborik trade. John Moore has been a revelation moving the puck and playing big minutes against skilled scorers. Derek Dorsett has brought a snarl and nastiness to the team not seen since the departure of Brandon Prust. And last, but certainly not least, Derrick Brassard has been the offensive MVP so far with two goals and eight assists.

Lundqvist and all these secondary skaters playing big is key to a long playoff run, but to be successful, you need a horse and a guy to feed him. You need a player that can give you a big goal when you need it the most. You need someone to create offensive opportunities with their passing. The Rangers have Rick Nash and Brad Richards on the payroll for just those reasons. Time for them to earn their contracts.

New York Rangers Off to Mediocre Start of Season

Alex Silverberg
2/20/2013

The New York Rangers are 8-6-1 in their first 15 games for 17 points, third in the Atlantic Conference and tied for eighth in the Eastern Conference with the Tampa Bay Lightning. While the Rangers are notorious for slow starts, this is unacceptable play for a team that many predicted to win the Stanley Cup.

Power(less) Play

For years, the Rangers have established an identity that bespeaks a tenacious forecheck, careful defensive play and outstanding goaltending. Unfortunately, that identity also includes a horrendous power play. This year, the Rangers continue the tradition with a pathetic 10.9 percent conversation rate that ranks dead last in the league.

To have a successful power play, there must be constant movement, a big body screening the goaltender and someone with a hard slap shot hovering around the point. Watching the Rangers, the forwards are stagnant, only moving when they have the puck and there is a defensive player in the way, the big body in front of the net is 5’11’’ Ryan Callahan and defensemen with weak shots like Anton Stralman  are at the point. Simply put, there must be a new plan of action. Players must shoot and crash the net. The biggest bodies on the roster, goons or not, must be planted in front of the goal and a player with a good slap shot has to be acquired to improve the special teams.

Many fans were hopeful that the addition of Rick Nash would jumpstart the power play and while Nash has been great with 12 points in 14 games played, he only has one power play point in an assist.

Where In the World Is Brad Richards?

Although Brad Richards is tied for second on the team in points and made some nice passes for Rick Nash to finish, he has been largely absent this season.

Just last night against the Canadiens, for example, he played over 19 minutes, took a bad penalty and was a negative two for the game. I didn’t notice him on the ice more than recent call-up Brandon Mashinter. That is a problem when one of those players is making millions and the other barely has any NHL experience under his belt.

Richards is not an Assistant Captain for nothing. As he goes, the Rangers go. They need him to play better.

Chemistry?

There is no question that the losses of Ruslan Fedotenko, Brandon Prust, John Mitchell, Brandon Dubinsky and Artem Anisimov represented a big blow to the penalty-killing and grinding skills of the team. Their departures also took a chunk of the team’s heart. Replacements Arron Asham and Jeff Halpern have been unremarkable and rookies Chris Kreider and J.T. Miller have shown typical rookie inconsistency. Darrel Powe was a nice retrieval for the expendable Mike Rupp but has since been put on IR with a concussion.

With all the new parts, the team has yet to put on back-to-back solid 60-minute performances. Even in the blowout wins there were times where the opposition would be allowed multiple breakaways that were denied by Henrik Lundqvist. A successful Rangers team is one that limits scoring chances while grinding out opportunities for themselves. There have been few games this season where they has happened.

This team has yet to gel and play the same hockey that got them to a couple of wins away from the Stanley Cup Final last year. The question is, with the addition of Nash, is this the same team? Could a defensively sound club all of a sudden turn to that of a run-and-gun squad with just one more offensive star?

With almost a third of the 48-game season out of the way, the Rangers don’t have much more time to find out.

NHL, NHLPA Agree on New CBA

Alex Silverberg

1/8/2013

The NHL and NHLPA agreed on a new ten-year collective bargaining agreement this past Sunday, putting an end to the 133-day lockout. Although the CBA still needs to be ratified, the NHL is eyeing a 48 game season starting January 19^th.

If anything was made clear during this long, hard-fought labor dispute, it is that neither side has learned anything from the last lockout and what truly matters in the sport. Comments from both sides were venomous and petty and now they must work together to build the league again. This is a task that revolves heavily on the fan and it is to the fan who they owe the most.  

My suggestion would be to offer free or highly reduced NHL Center Ice or GameCenter Live packages in addition to discounted tickets. However, don’t expect more than an on-ice logo saying “Thank You Fans” – an image that appeared following the last lockout.