Rangers Defense and goaltending will be tough to beat in playoffs

[RonJeremy]

Im beginning to worry about the Rangers, if we face them in the playoffs, we are gonna have problems. They have a strong physical defense, and a money goaltender and Brandon Prust has beaten up our guys two games in a row. They were missing 3 regular dmen and they still limited our chancers, we had no second shots, no room in front, and Lundquist gave up no rebounds. We dont have much size at center ,and we need a stud dman

[aziz]

at their best, the rangers can be a scarey team. they aren't always at their best, though. they had their A game running last night, but it is far from a given that's what they'll bring on any given night.

same with the flyers, really. i can see them switching places on the 2nd, and i think a playoff series would be up for grabs.

[RonJeremy]

Right now the Rangers are #2 in team defense and we are #16, we have given up about 30 more goals than the Rangers. I hear people talking about how we have best defense,and we dont need to trade for any help on defense. Goaltending and defense always beats offense,obviously we cant match up with Lundquist,so the only alternative is to improve the defense.The Rangers have big ,young physical shutdown dmen like Staal,Girardi, Sauer, McDonougha and that one kid who laid out Reade, that was one of the best hits I have seen in years, a classic hip check. That defense really limits second chances in front

[aziz]

Right now the Rangers are #2 in team defense and we are #16, we have given up about 30 more goals than the Rangers

not the best stat to look at to measure the defensemen themselves. the rangers have allowed 21 more shots against than the flyers (994 vs 973). the "team defense" difference between the two is 100% goaltending. the flyers have done a better job of limiting shots on net, it's the rangers' goalies that have done a better job of stopping what shots get through.

shot totals don't say anything about quality of the shots, but......

[doom88]

not the best stat to look at to measure the defensemen themselves. the rangers have allowed 21 more shots against than the flyers (994 vs 973). the "team defense" difference between the two is 100% goaltending. the flyers have done a better job of limiting shots on net, it's the rangers' goalies that have done a better job of stopping what shots get through.

shot totals don't say anything about quality of the shots, but......

Good work with the statistical analysis. I was going to type essentially the same thing.

[terp]

the "team defense" difference between the two is 100% goaltending.

I was going to make the same point. Lundqvist is better, but as importantly, the Rags know what they are going to get on 9 out of 10 nights. This helps a lot.

[aziz]

the Rags know what they are going to get on 9 out of 10 nights. This helps a lot

true. i'd like to emphasize just how rare that is, though. lundqvist is in a class only occupied by a couple other guys.

[RonJeremy]

OK, its hard to gauge the quality of shots and all that , so I guess we will have to go bythe usual standards, team GAA and Save percentage for our goalies. I do think our defense is prone to lapses where we play flawlessley and then give up a total breakaway, a little too often. Of course we can also factor in all the penalties we take. Overall, I guess its safe to say that Lundquist is alot better than our goalies. So the only way we can offset that, is to get a top quality shutdown dman, to help limit the chances against our goalies. If we get a shot blocking slot clearing dman maybe that can help limit rebound goals and chances in front, so Bryz will only have to worry about the first shot

[Bakanekimiwa]

at their best, the rangers can be a scarey team. they aren't always at their best, though. they had their A game running last night, but it is far from a given that's what they'll bring on any given night.

same with the flyers, really. i can see them switching places on the 2nd, and i think a playoff series would be up for grabs.

This is how I look at it. But, if stall comes back and gets back into form, I think they've got an edge on us. Especially since they've got a consistent fancy lad in net.

[jammer2]

@RonJeremy I've been saying this all year. Rags are a dangerous team....built for the playoffs. Defense is solid, they can roll 4 solid lines that all have elements of size and grit. Most importantly, they have the best goalie. The defense is more experienced and their youngsters play a mature game....yep, def dangerous. Edit...like Bak wisely pointed out, the real X factor here is Marc Stall, they look great without him, could be cup material with him.

Edited December 26, 2011 by jammer2

[terp]

true. i'd like to emphasize just how rare that is, though. lundqvist is in a class only occupied by a couple other guys.

Sure, but there are degrees and Bryzgalov should be way better in this department. Even for $51MM, I don't expect him to be as consistent at a high level as Lundqvist. I do however expect him to be in the same zip code consistency wise and not at the bottom of the league in this regard.

Edited December 26, 2011 by terp

[Bakanekimiwa]

Sure, but there are degrees and Bryzgalov should be way better in this department. Even for $51MM, I don't expect him to be as consistent at a high level as Lundqvist. I do however expect him to be in the same zip code consistency wise and not at the bottom of the league in this regard.

I think you meant $73M.

[Vanflyer]

Right now the Rangers are #2 in team defense and we are #16, we have given up about 30 more goals than the Rangers. I hear people talking about how we have best defense,and we dont need to trade for any help on defense. Goaltending and defense always beats offense,obviously we cant match up with Lundquist,so the only alternative is to improve the defense.

Everything is subjective. For example for the month of december:

Flyers 11 games played, 8-2-1, 2.72 gaa. If you throw out the Boston turd they are 8-1-1 with 2.18 gaa.

Rangers 12 games played, 8-3-1 2.33 gaa. If you throw out their worse loss, they are 8-2-1 with a 2.18 gaa.

That to me looks pretty much the same and that is inspite of us not having a marquee goalie like Henri.

[flyercanuck]

@Vanflyer

If Bryz keeps playing the way he is, and Lundquist the way he is, I guarantee we don't get out of the first round of the playoffs, and the Rangers do. No matter who we play...unless it's Washington.

[terp]

I think you meant $73M.

$51/9= $5.67MM. Pretty sure I'm talking about $51 but please let me know.

[Vincent05]

@Vanflyer

If Bryz keeps playing the way he is, and Lundquist the way he is, I guarantee we don't make the playoffs, and the Rangers do.

Fixed it for you.

[hf101]

A few facts that need to be changed in order for the Flyers to be succesful in the Classic.....

Giroux has 0 points in the first two meetings with the Rangers.

The Rangers have gone 2 or 5 on the PP.

Since 2/20/11the Flyers have lost by a combined score of 16-4 including two shutouts.

....meaning all areas of the Flyers game plan need to improve.