It's been a while since a standings update. And I'm going to go traveling soon, and I don't know how much posting I'm gonna get to do, pretty much right up through the end of the regular season. I may have to miss games, which makes me SuperMegaUltraMiserable (SMUM). So I'd better get at least this one in now.
4. Philadelphia, 92 pts, 7 GR
5. Carolina, 91 pts, 5 GR
6. Pittsburgh, 90 pts, 6 GR
7. NEW YORK RANGERS, 89 pts, 5 GR
8. Montréal, 86 pts, 7 GR
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9. Florida, 85 pts, 6 GR
10. Buffalo, 82 pts, 7 GR
Wow, in all this time, the ranking still hasn't shifted. Don't get comfortable or anything. Just sayin'. It's neat.
Oh Em Gee why am I still listing Buffalo? I think maybe 'cause it's more embarrassing for them if I keep listing them and they never climb? Lindy Ruff is a dick.
Our next game is Thursday night at 7, and it's on the road against the suddenly-hot 'Canes. Do the math: if we win it, we tie them. If they win it, they're 4 points ahead of us with 4 games left in the standings. I know it's not too likely at this point that they'll find themselves in 9th or 10th at season's end, but we need the points on them to keep ourselves out of those spots. And bear in mind how much better a position like 6th or 7th is than a position like 8th. Taking these points from the 'Canes is almost as important as winning them for ourselves. They will be a very hard team to beat right now. If we play the way we have over the last 2 games, we'll be in okay shape.
Also in action before and on that night:
Blackhawks at Montréal, tonight at 7:30 - Come on 'Hawks - you want home-ice advantage, and we could use a little breathing room. The Habs have 2 games-in-hand on us - if they win them both, we're actually in 8th (which is not only precariously close to 9th, it's also a Bruins draw (and therefore likely early exit) in the first round). This counts as one of them.
Senators at Florida, tonight at 7:30 - Remember a week ago, when everyone said "OH HEY THE SENATORS WON SOME GAMES NOW THEY WILL END UP IN 4TH AND WIN THE CUP"? Yeah, that's over. Go Sens.
Sabres at Atlanta, tomorrow night at 7:00 - Go Thrashers! Keep sticking nails in this already-obviously-sealed coffin!
Flyers at Toronto, tomorrow night at 7:30 - I wouldn't normally actually consider catching the Flyers at this point, even though it's only a 3-point difference, because of their 2 games-in-hand and their playing-of-worse-teams-than-we-are-in-the-homestretch. But, our last 2 games of the season each are a home-and-home against each other, so there are big points to be gained between us. Toronto could certainly make this sound a little more plausible if they stole 2 here.
Devils at Pittsburgh, tomorrow night at 7:30 - If I weren't so busy, I would go to this game. I hesitate to say I have a good feeling about any game involving the NHL's godforsaken wunderkind, but the Devils will want one badly against another division rival after we spanked them so badly last night. Come on, Marty!
Canadiens at Long Island, Thursday night at 7:00 - I hate when bubble teams get to play the Fish Sticks, because I hate when bubble teams get free points. You can hope for the Isles in this one, because "anything can happen blah blah blah," but I wouldn't get too excited.
That's it! Let's Go Rangers!
Showing posts with label Let's Go Senators. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Let's Go Senators. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Getting this out of the way
Here's your state-of-the-conference update. It looks much the same as last night, but here it is anyway.
Last night, the Hurricanes beat the Devils 4-2. This is why I was rooting for the Blackhawks two nights ago. Not because I hate Brodeur (though I do) - as I said, he was GONNA get that record anyway. I was rooting for the 'Hawks because, had they won, the Devils would have played Brodeur and well last night. Instead, coming off of that big victory the night before, they played Weekes and badly, and let Carolina come at them. Fine. As usual, the Devils piss me off. 2 points for the 'Canes, who remain in 8th with them.
4. Philadelphia, 84 pts, 13 GR
5. Pittsburgh, 84 pts, 10 GR
6. NEW YORK RANGERS, 82 pts, 11 GR
7. Montréal, 81 pts, 12 GR
8. Carolina, 81 pts, 10 GR
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9. Florida, 78 pts, 12 GR
10. Buffalo, 76 pts, 12 GR
Tonight, at 7:30, there are two games that matter. Each features a 70-ish-point Eastern team playing an 80-ish-point Eastern team. The Senators play host to the Canadiens, and the Leafs go into Florida. Maybe Ottawa can keep doing us favors. Maybe the Cats can drop one. Maybe not. It would sure be nice. Anyway, those are the games to watch tonight.
Last night, the Hurricanes beat the Devils 4-2. This is why I was rooting for the Blackhawks two nights ago. Not because I hate Brodeur (though I do) - as I said, he was GONNA get that record anyway. I was rooting for the 'Hawks because, had they won, the Devils would have played Brodeur and well last night. Instead, coming off of that big victory the night before, they played Weekes and badly, and let Carolina come at them. Fine. As usual, the Devils piss me off. 2 points for the 'Canes, who remain in 8th with them.
4. Philadelphia, 84 pts, 13 GR
5. Pittsburgh, 84 pts, 10 GR
6. NEW YORK RANGERS, 82 pts, 11 GR
7. Montréal, 81 pts, 12 GR
8. Carolina, 81 pts, 10 GR
-------------------------
9. Florida, 78 pts, 12 GR
10. Buffalo, 76 pts, 12 GR
Tonight, at 7:30, there are two games that matter. Each features a 70-ish-point Eastern team playing an 80-ish-point Eastern team. The Senators play host to the Canadiens, and the Leafs go into Florida. Maybe Ottawa can keep doing us favors. Maybe the Cats can drop one. Maybe not. It would sure be nice. Anyway, those are the games to watch tonight.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
More defining moments
Tonight, we play in Montréal at 7:30. This, you'll recall, is the final game of the stretch my father referred to as "season-defining." So far, we're 2-1-0 in that stretch. 3-1 is a better definition of a season than 2-2 is. You've seen the standings. You know why this is big. Winning puts us at the top of the bubble, losing puts us back near that dreaded dashed line (ooooooooooh). But seriously, this is another game against an in-bubble team. The Canadiens, meanwhile, are a team a lot of us are starting to smell blood around. Since firing Carbonneau, they have gained 3 points in 6 games without winning in regulation. This is an opportunity to strike while they're faltering and gain some very important points against some very nearby competition (again, see the current standings 3 posts ago).
In "unimportant storylines people are writing about because they need to write about something" news, Lundqvist hasn't done well in Montréal lately. That's a dumb thing about which to write a story. Relatedly, I'm depressed by how much this blog seems to come down on Larry Brooks, who I really do like. And hey, I guess you have to write about bullshit sometimes, when you write to pay the rent. The point is: that's a dumb article.
More importantly, notice that tonight is our last game until the weekend. That gives the other bubble teams the rest of the week to start making up points on us. This is part of that whole "you need to get points in the games-in-hand for them to matter" thing. If we don't pick up the 2 tonight, and other bubble teams win a lot this week, our recent feel-good success will stop feeling quite so good again. As my father is so fond of saying, "Of course, I'll start to really feel good if they can do this for more than one game in a row..."
Also tonight, at 7:00, is a game the Rangers don't actually care about, but that I'll mention anyway - Blackhawks in New Jersey. Tonight, barring miracles, Martin Brodeur will pass Patrick Roy and become the winningest goalie in NHL history. I threw up a little in my mouth when I said that. I'm not watching this game, but I feel obligated to mention it for a sentence. I'm, of course, rooting for the Blackhawks, but not just on general principle (at this point, Brodeur is obviously going to get this record soon, I'd rather spend that energy blogging about why Roy was still a better goalie, which I may do at some point later in life) - if he fails, he gets another chance against Carolina tomorrow night, and I'd like to see the desire to win that record help us out there. But realistically, he's going to make some modicum of numerical history tonight, so, there you have it. Moving on.
Every game that matters tonight is at 7:30:
Sabres in Ottawa - If the Sens do us a favor here tonight, then the Sabres move on to face the Flyers Friday night. If that game goes as it ought to (not that I necessarily want it to), we could be poised, on 3 days' rest, to put the final nail in the coffin of a tired Buffalo team. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself. But still - an Ottawa win at home can't hurt.
Thrashers in Pittsburgh - Oof. This sucks. Thrashers are playing without Kovalchuk AND Lehtonen tonight, while Malkin seems to be healthy enough to suit up for the Pens. I appreciate the Thrashers' current 6-game streak, and I'd LOVE to see them pull this off for us, but...we might have to bite the bullet on this one. Even so, as you've heard me say before, stranger things have happened.
Capitals in Florida - The Caps need to get their shit together. The Panthers are 2 points behind us with a game in hand, and this game would be a great one for them to lose, against #3 in the conference, as opposed to, for example, Thursday, when they play Toronto. I'd like to get invested in this game, since it has every reason to go well for us, but the Caps keep breaking my heart. Please, guys? You have the best player in hockey!
Flyers in Detroit - I know, we're not thinking about the Flyers yet. I talked about this game before. Just keeping it on the rader.
Let's Go Rangers!
In "unimportant storylines people are writing about because they need to write about something" news, Lundqvist hasn't done well in Montréal lately. That's a dumb thing about which to write a story. Relatedly, I'm depressed by how much this blog seems to come down on Larry Brooks, who I really do like. And hey, I guess you have to write about bullshit sometimes, when you write to pay the rent. The point is: that's a dumb article.
More importantly, notice that tonight is our last game until the weekend. That gives the other bubble teams the rest of the week to start making up points on us. This is part of that whole "you need to get points in the games-in-hand for them to matter" thing. If we don't pick up the 2 tonight, and other bubble teams win a lot this week, our recent feel-good success will stop feeling quite so good again. As my father is so fond of saying, "Of course, I'll start to really feel good if they can do this for more than one game in a row..."
Also tonight, at 7:00, is a game the Rangers don't actually care about, but that I'll mention anyway - Blackhawks in New Jersey. Tonight, barring miracles, Martin Brodeur will pass Patrick Roy and become the winningest goalie in NHL history. I threw up a little in my mouth when I said that. I'm not watching this game, but I feel obligated to mention it for a sentence. I'm, of course, rooting for the Blackhawks, but not just on general principle (at this point, Brodeur is obviously going to get this record soon, I'd rather spend that energy blogging about why Roy was still a better goalie, which I may do at some point later in life) - if he fails, he gets another chance against Carolina tomorrow night, and I'd like to see the desire to win that record help us out there. But realistically, he's going to make some modicum of numerical history tonight, so, there you have it. Moving on.
Every game that matters tonight is at 7:30:
Sabres in Ottawa - If the Sens do us a favor here tonight, then the Sabres move on to face the Flyers Friday night. If that game goes as it ought to (not that I necessarily want it to), we could be poised, on 3 days' rest, to put the final nail in the coffin of a tired Buffalo team. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself. But still - an Ottawa win at home can't hurt.
Thrashers in Pittsburgh - Oof. This sucks. Thrashers are playing without Kovalchuk AND Lehtonen tonight, while Malkin seems to be healthy enough to suit up for the Pens. I appreciate the Thrashers' current 6-game streak, and I'd LOVE to see them pull this off for us, but...we might have to bite the bullet on this one. Even so, as you've heard me say before, stranger things have happened.
Capitals in Florida - The Caps need to get their shit together. The Panthers are 2 points behind us with a game in hand, and this game would be a great one for them to lose, against #3 in the conference, as opposed to, for example, Thursday, when they play Toronto. I'd like to get invested in this game, since it has every reason to go well for us, but the Caps keep breaking my heart. Please, guys? You have the best player in hockey!
Flyers in Detroit - I know, we're not thinking about the Flyers yet. I talked about this game before. Just keeping it on the rader.
Let's Go Rangers!
Friday, March 13, 2009
This weekend
Oh man I am WAY too busy at work to be posting this right now. Fine. Weekend. We play the Flyers in Philly tomorrow at 1, and then back at the Garden Sunday at 12:30. I would really like those games to make this game into some kind of streak. Then I could even reasonably call this a "surge" without being full of shit. But it's going to be hard, the Flyers have consistently been very good all season. Remember when I said the Carolina game was going to be much harder than the Boston game? And then it was? Well, these are, too. And they're getting pretty vital. If there are pre-playoff playoffs, this home-and-home is they. I can't stress this enough, so I won't try. We've been getting better and better. We need another similar growth in skill between yesterday and tomorrow. That's not impossible. But it has to happen.
Meanwhile, a million other games are happening. All 5 other bubble teams are in action tomorrow, too (none against each other), and the Pens play again Sunday. Specifically:
Saturday
RANGERS AT FLYERS, 1:00
Senators at Penguins, 3:00
Thrashers at Sabres, 7:00
Devils at Canadiens, 7:00
Hurricanes at Capitals, 7:00
Lightning at Panthers, 7:00
Sunday
FLYERS AT RANGERS, 12:30
Bruins at Penguins, 3:00
Wow, I could watch 12 hours of hockey this weekend.
Hopefully, we can at least count on the Bruins (who will use their shitty play of the weekend on the Islanders Saturday) and Devils (Marty looking to tie Roy's all-time win record), and possibly count on the Capitals (if they get their shit together - who knows with that team). Then we'll be looking for help from the East's 12 through 14 spots. But hell, we got some help from number 15 last night, and "anything can happen in the New NHL," right??
Hah. Well. As I said yesterday, stranger things have happened. All 3 of them should be way closer games than Isles-Canadiens should have been, so there's always hope.
Most importantly, of course, are our two games. Let's concentrate on those and see how the cards fall out.
Let's Go Rangers!
Meanwhile, a million other games are happening. All 5 other bubble teams are in action tomorrow, too (none against each other), and the Pens play again Sunday. Specifically:
Saturday
RANGERS AT FLYERS, 1:00
Senators at Penguins, 3:00
Thrashers at Sabres, 7:00
Devils at Canadiens, 7:00
Hurricanes at Capitals, 7:00
Lightning at Panthers, 7:00
Sunday
FLYERS AT RANGERS, 12:30
Bruins at Penguins, 3:00
Wow, I could watch 12 hours of hockey this weekend.
Hopefully, we can at least count on the Bruins (who will use their shitty play of the weekend on the Islanders Saturday) and Devils (Marty looking to tie Roy's all-time win record), and possibly count on the Capitals (if they get their shit together - who knows with that team). Then we'll be looking for help from the East's 12 through 14 spots. But hell, we got some help from number 15 last night, and "anything can happen in the New NHL," right??
Hah. Well. As I said yesterday, stranger things have happened. All 3 of them should be way closer games than Isles-Canadiens should have been, so there's always hope.
Most importantly, of course, are our two games. Let's concentrate on those and see how the cards fall out.
Let's Go Rangers!
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