Here’s the thing. If the Rangers want to be held to a higher standard, then their competitiveness over the final 40 minutes against the Devils in Thursday’s showdown at the Rock shouldn’t be enough to satisfy a soul.
Because, and for the third consecutive road game, the Blueshirts were overwhelmed in the first period. It was Carolina on March 23 and Florida on March 25 and it was Newark in this one in which our heroes trailed 2-0 after the opening 20 minutes. In the first period, the Devils had a 17-4 advantage in scoring chances and a 7-1 edge in high-danger opportunities.
It was as if the Rangers were caught by surprise by New Jersey’s speed, tenacious forecheck and 200-foot puck pressure. That, of course, would have been impossible. The entire league recognizes New Jersey’s high-octane offense which thrives both on the rush and off the forecheck.
Nevertheless, the Blueshirts were pinned for shifts at a time in their own end and turned back consistently when trying to navigate through the neutral zone. Time and space were minimal.
“We know that’s the strongest part of their game, so I think the first period was more about us not doing the things that are necessary,” Chris Kreider, who scored his team’s lone goal, told The Post after the Blueshirts’ 2-1 defeat. “We needed to have more puck support for our D, we needed to communicate more, and that includes me.
“I don’t necessarily think this is a pattern with us, but if it is, we need to be more aware in order to prevent it.”
Of course, the tilted first-period ice might be a reflection of the way in which these clubs perceived this matchup. The Devils embraced its importance and came out of the gate with urgency. They accepted the challenge head-on. The Rangers, well, they appeared unconcerned with the ramifications of this one.
One team played the opening 20 minutes like their lives depended on it. The other, not really and not at all.
The Rangers came in 9-1-1 in their previous 11, having cut the Devils’ second-place lead to two points from the 10 it had been on March 12 with New Jersey having gone 2-4-2 in their previous eight. A regulation victory would have propelled the Blueshirts into a tie for first-round home ice with each team having seven games to go.
Now, though, the Devils are looking up instead of over their collective shoulder in having moved within one point of the division-leading ’Canes, who have one game in hand. Of course, New Jersey is aiming at the top, but taking the division could mean a first-round matchup with the Islanders rather than the Rangers. That might not be in the Devils’ best interests.
But this is a team that is both talented and hungry. This is a team that hasn’t been here before. Honestly, this group of Devils hasn’t been anywhere before. An organization that has made the playoffs once since 2012 isn’t going to be picky over its first-round opponent.
The Blueshirts did buckle down over the final two periods. The second was pretty much a saw-off, though New Jersey continued to create more scoring chances. It took until the third period for the Rangers to get on a roll and press the matter against goaltender Vitek Vanecek, who made a couple of notable stops on Vincent Trocheck around the net and then got help from defenseman Ryan Graves to sweep the puck out of the crease and out of danger before Vlad Tarasenko could get his stick on it with 58.4 seconds remaining in regulation.
The Rangers did have their chances in the third after withstanding the first-period barrage. It was another example of a group that can be identified as an opportunistic quick-strike operation that is able to withstand body blows. Just one chance can often be enough for this team that boasts an array of marquee finishing talent.
It is unintended Rope-A-Dope.
“We know we can counter and get it done but that’s not the approach that leads to winning consistently,” Kreider said before the contest. “We want to be a volume shooting team. That happens off O-zone time possession.
“You can see how much more often we change in the offensive zone. When we’re able to do that, it creates momentum from one line to the next. The idea is to maintain possession. You’re not going to win on talent alone.”
You’re not going to win with 40 minutes, either, certainly not against a club as potent as the Devils. And certainly not in the playoffs.
