Numbers: Reeling Rangers can't capitalize
A dejected Henrik Lundqvist skates off the ice after the Rangers lost the game in overtime, 3-2. (April 14, 2012) Credit: David Pokress
The Garden might seem more like a jungle to the Rangers on Saturday.
Instead of being a comforting and familiar oasis, Madison Square Garden will host a Game 5 fraught with pitfalls as the mighty, No. 1-seeded Rangers look to cut their way through the brush and avoid falling to the No. 8 Senators in their Eastern Conference series.
Even before the Senators' second overtime win knotted the series at 2-2 on Wednesday night, many thought this matchup would be a battle. It's quickly turned into a war. And the Rangers might be lucky to be tied.
Yes, the team that had the most points in the Eastern Conference and tied for the second-most points in the NHL may be lucky to have the chance to win the series in six games. Why?
- Despite going 8-2 in overtime during the regular season, they've suddenly seemed incapable of authoring a skate-off win. They've lasted just 3:59 combined in the two overtimes. Despite allowing just six goals in 240 regulation minutes, Henrik Lundqvist has given up two goals in less than four overtime minutes.
- The Senators have outshot the Rangers 134-116 throughout the series, and they're not just starting hot or finishing on fire. Ottawa has outshot the Rangers in each regulation period so far: 47-38 in the first, 43-39 in the second and 41-36 in the third. They're tied with three shots each in overtime, but, obviously, the Senators have done more with those opportunities.
- The Rangers have certainly shown toughness through the series, but Ottawa is winning the battle of grit in the box score. They've out-hit the Rangers 147-126.
- It's difficult to get momentum when you're playing catch-up more often than not. The Senators have won 127 faceoffs, while the Rangers have been victorious 106 times.
It hasn't been an entirely gloomy narrative for the Rangers. They've done their job in certain categories:
- The Rangers only have 23 giveaways, while Ottawa has 35.
- Similarly, the Rangers have 28 takeaways to the Senators' 22.
- The Rangers have also been more effective in power plays, converting on 3-of-18 (16.6 percent). Ottawa is 2-for-15 (13.3 percent).
But in a series this hotly contested and played this close, not taking advantage of takeaways or scoring on 3-of-18 power plays isn't going to get it done.
The Rangers are averaging about one more power play per game in the playoffs than they did during the regular season, but haven't been able to capitalize. The power play problem is one that affected them all season. They scored on power plays 15.71 percent of the time during the regular season, below the 17.31 league average. They've still yet to hit the league average figure in the playoffs.
And that's part of the reason they've still yet to hit their stride.
"The Numbers Game" is a Newsday app-only exclusive.
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