So its now 11am and within the last 10 minutes off the twitter wire I just saw that we will not have Ryan Callahan nor MDZ int he lineup tonight. Also noted there will be no lineup changes from the Carolina game, and torts has yet to declare who will start in goal for the Rangers. So with that said, does this now become a game where we have to fight to not make it embarrassing or do we still have a shot at winning? All eyes in the hockey world will be on the worlds most famous arena because of the return of the kid, but I think the return of Letang is bigger then that of the Kid.. Granted they have been winning without both in the lineup, but that's because Geno is not human, when he feels like playing to his ability, not so sure anyone is better int he league, he is a freak. The problem for the Pens is that when Sid is around and the focal point of the offense, Geno tends to lose interest a bit and become truly second fiddle and not produce as well. I don't have the stats to back it up because I am not tied into all those statistical companies, but I can assure you that his numbers without Sid are ten fold better then with.. With all that stated, here are my keys to the game...
1. Control Center Ice and Sid and Geno getting the puck there. If you stop Geno and Sid from getting the puck and slithering up the ice with it, then you have a better chance of containing them all night long. Go after Sid, hit him hard and often and get under his skin. The same goes for Geno who really doesn't like contact even though he is a big guy. He tends to take retaliation penalties when he gets beat up in a game often.. So control neutral zone play and control the amount of time Sid and Geno have on the puck in the neutral zone.
2. Continued production from the BLING line, and some additional production from the others. The BLING line coming off a 9 point +11 outing against Carolina should look to improve on that with their skating, passing and finishing skills of late. BR and Gabby need to keep on the streaks they are on and Hags needs to keep skating and creating... We definitely need more production from the 2nd and 3rd lines and a good steady game from the 4th line. If and when we get PP chances, execute and score goals, it will be crucial..
3. DO NOT take to many penalties. With the return of Sid and Letang to add to Malkin, Neal, Stall, etc, that equals scary in PP scenarios.. So to keep this one short and sweet, stay out of the box..
Here is to a great game tonight, its to bad we won't have a full squad, but I still think we can put a scare into the Pens. Even if we lose, make them aware of where they came to play, make them understand that come playoff time, we are ready to make their lives miserable, and make them aware that the greatest arena in sports belongs to the NYR... GO NYR....
E-No Out....
No comments:
Post a Comment