From the Press Box: Rangers in Control

Here's a progress report on the typical excitement that hockey fans have come to enjoy with hockey on TV every night of the week.

Eastern Conference

vs.
The Canadiens have rolled to a quick 3-0 series lead on the strength of a formula that they rode to the conference final last season. Carey Price has continued to be the backbone of this team, turning away 92 of 98 shots that he has faced and establishing himself as the better netminder against the much-hype rookie Andrew Hammond and veteran Craig Anderson. The other part of the recipe for success is the secondary scoring that the Habs have received once again from Dale Weise, who tallied both goals in the pivotal Game 3 matchup when the scene shifted to Ottawa. That came on after a Game 1 effort that was led by fourth liners Torrey Mitchell and Brian Flynn (with the eventual game winner) each scoring a goal. Obviously, teams cannot count on that kind of production from a typical fourth line, but when it happens it has to be demoralizing for the victimized team just as it is a tremendous boost for the winning side. No fewer than 15 different Canadiens have already registered at least one point in the first three games. The stage is now set for a short series. This quick advantage could position the Habs well as the other Atlantic division set looks like it could be a long one.

vs.
The Wings began the series with a somewhat surprising choice to start rookie Petr Mrazek in goal for Game 1 ahead of veteran Jimmy Howard. That move paid an immediate dividend as he turned aside 44 of 46 shots. As the Wings made the most of only 14 shots at the other end, it's easy to see why Mrazek was the star of the game, making head coach Mike Babcock look good for his choice. Credit the Bolts for not being demoralized as they roared back with a convincing 5-1 Game 2 win. With the move to Motown for Game 3, Mrazek was the hero of a 3-0 win, in a very evenly played affair. As anticipated at the outset, Pavel Datsyuk has been an offensive leader with a team-high three points, but young Wings forwards Luke Glendenning, Tomas Tatar, Riley Sheahan and Tomas Jurco have found the back of the net. For the Lightning, Nikita Nesterov has chipped in with three points (two on the PP), while their leadership core of Steven Stamkos, Ryan Callahan and Tyler Johnson have all been very effective and productive as expected. The skill of the lightning has been readily apparent in this series, but the intangibles of the Red Wings, a team mystique for playoff success is equally apparent. This series has a few more twists in store.

vs.

The Rangers have proven all year long that they have great team depth and can find a different hero on most nights. That combination of factors has proven to be very productive for them in their three wins (against one loss) to open this series. Derek Brassard and Ryan McDonagh were the heroes of Game 1 with a goal apiece, while Chris Kreider and Carl Hagelin each counted one goal in Game 3. As both games ended in 2-1 victories, it is also clear that Henrik Lundqvist is on top of his game and that's the worst news of all for the Penguins. For their part, the Penguins did get a great game out of the their captain, Sidney Crosby, who scored twice during the 4-3 win in game 2. The most glaring observation is the ineffectiveness of Evgeni Malkin, who is not only scoreless in this series but has not even counted a point in his last nine games, dating back to March 28. He is clearly nursing some sort of injury and does not appear to be going at full speed. That's a big problem for a top-heavy team that relies on their best players.

vs.
This series already has the ebb and flow of a heavyweight boxing match, as both clubs have split games in each other's home rinks. The series looked like it had taken an early turn in favor of the Isles, who faced Caps backup goalie Philip Grubauer in Game 2 after winning Game 1 quite handily. The Caps' No. 1 goalie was unavailable due to illness for that critical assignment. However, Washington rallied from an early deficit, leaning on offensive pressure, which was underscored by a 30-14 shot advantage in the final two periods. Braden Holtby has since returned to health and brings more confidence back to the Caps' game plan. Washington has been buoyed by the fact that their big guns are leading the way. Nicklas Backstrom (six points) and Alex Ovechkin (three) pace the attack, while veteran blueliners Mike Green, John Carlson and Matt Niskanen have each chipped in with two assists. That's a vivid reminder that this mobile defense corps is central to the offense. The Isles can say much the same thing after the first four games. John Tavares, Ryan Strome and Kyle Okposo have all delivered in this set and have been ably supported by Nick Leddy, Johnny Boychuk and veteran blueliner Lubomir Visnovsky. Jaroslav Halak has been solid in goal, turning aside 93 percent of the shots from Washington. This series has been high on skill and intensity and has gone a long way to solidifying this rivalry, a great byproduct of the new playoff structure.

Western Conference

vs.
This series was billed as a matchup between two of the biggest, most physical teams in the NHL and it certainly has lived up to that hype so far. You have to feel a bit sorry for the Jets though, as they have carved out a lead after two periods in each game and have nothing to show for it. Anaheim has made a habit of this all season, with the best record for third-period comebacks. So it has to be very demoralizing for Winnipeg to be down 3-0 at this early stage. Even though Anaheim split goaltending duties between Frederik Andersen and John Gibson in the latter part of the regular season, you had to think that Andersen would get the nod to start the playoffs because he was there all season, while Gibson nursed injuries in the first half of the schedule. The fact that they have won all three games certainly looks good on the Danish goalie, who has allowed only seven goals along the way. Once again, the top players have delivered, as Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf have combined for nine points. The big difference with Anaheim's offense is the contribution of the second line of Jakob Silfverberg, Andrew Cogliano and Ryan Kesler, who have added 10 points in the three games. Winnipeg has kept it close in each game, but has to lament the fact that Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien have yet to hit the scoresheet. Frustration has crept into big Buff's game and he, particularly, has lost a bit of focus. That is the undercurrent of a series that began with a lot of excitement because Winnipeg was back in the playoffs after a long absence. Even if they bow out quickly, this experience is a building block for the organization. The Ducks, on the other hand, may be setting themselves up for a nice playoff run after this good early start.

vs.
This series has lived up to the anticipation of a meeting between bitter rivals, albeit, with a surprising turn. Both teams were without key pieces, as Ryan Miller would not start in goal for Vancouver and team captain Mark Giordano is out for the year due to injury. The Canucks earned home ice advantage, thanks largely to the play of the Sedins during a torrid push that began in March. They have been cooled off by the relentless physicality of the younger Flames, who have limited them to two goals over the first four games, and the rest of the Canucks have only added six more goals. That lack of secondary scoring has put them down 3-1 in the series and raised questions about the makeup of the team once again. The fact that Eddie Lack has not been at the top of his game (3.03 goals-against average and an .886 save percentage) may provide an excuse for the current results, but starter Ryan Miller, who will play in Game 5, would have needed to be a lot better to offset the energized Flames attack. There is no doubt that Calgary anticipated an advantage in the body contact aspect, but the fact that their penalty kill unit has allowed only two goals has been a big factor as well. The trio of Dennis Wideman, T.J. Brodie and Kris Russell has combined for 10 points to continue the season-long trend, which saw much of the Calgary offense flow from the high-scoring defense corps. Young Flames forwards Johnny Gaudreau, Joe Colborne and Sam Bennett has also made important offensive contributions during their first exposure to the NHL playoff stage.

vs.
As was anticipated by me, the Blues have discovered that Minnesota just might have been the worst possible first-round opponent for them. The Wild stacked up as a mirror image, a four-line offense with a deep defensive corps behind them. The other factor that may have been an unknown at the outset has turned out to be a big advantage for Minnesota. Devan Dubnyk has continued his brilliant effort from the regular season and has been a difference-maker in goal, limiting the potent Blues offense to only five goals against on a total of 64 shots on goal. That shot total is a telling statistic that highlights the way that the Wild have won the territorial game in the first three games. Minnesota has fired 78 shots on goal at Jake Allen. The fact that he has started all three games for St. Louis has been a bit of a surprise because he and Brian Elliott posted almost identical numbers during the regular season, except for the fact that Elliott appeared in nine more games. Sure, Elliott struggled a bit in March, but a playoff failure will ultimately take this decision into account. The Blues can also lament the fact that Vladimir Tarasenko has half of their playoff goals through three games. That is a very unusual development for one of the league's most balanced attacks. David Backes and T.J. Oshie have been completely nullified so far. Meanwhile, Zach Parise and James Pominville, two of Minnesota's front-liners, have paced the Wild's offense with four points each. Limiting the potent Blues power play to only one goal is another key development here.

vs.
The Hawks entered this fray with a huge edge in experience over the Predators and the absence of Nashville's team captain, Shea Weber, and veteran forward Mike Fisher due to injury, have painted the Predators into a small corner, particularly after a pair of gut-wrenching overtime losses, including a triple-OT saga Tuesday night. Despite a number of roster upgrades in the past year, it's holdover Predators Craig Smith and Colin Wilson who have led Nashville's offense with a combined nine points in the series. They need much more from Filip Forsberg (two points) and James Neal (one goal) so far. Few would have expected one of the sidebars to the current result, a 3-1 Chicago series lead, with Hawks backup goalie Scott Darling actually out-dueling Preds starter Pekka Rinne, but that is the fact as Darling is 3-0, while allowing only four goals on 135 shots in almost 228 minutes. Despite the fact that Corey Crawford has a recent Stanley Cup-winning role on his resume, he has clearly given way to Darling for the time being. Offensively, all the familiar names who have been synonymous with their recent playoff success are atop their playoff scoring list: Toews, Kane, Hossa, Keith, Seabrook and Sharp. They all know this might be their last playoff ride together and are playing like it.

Come back for the first-round summaries and the tee-up of the second round next week!