Henrik Lundqvist deserves better
This isn’t going to be a long drawn out post, because it speaks for itself. As the Rangers and their fans prepare for game 2 in Ottawa, all I can do is sit here and look at his numbers and think…”how many Cups would Hank have if he were on a better offensive team?”
The Truth In Numbers
We all know what a winner Henrik Lundqvist has been in the regular season. The King sits 10th in all time wins by an NHL goaltender with a record of 405-249-76. However, in the playoffs it’s a whole different ball of wax.
In 123 games played, Lundqvist is under .500 with a record of 59-62. So what gives? Is he not a playoff performer? Hogwash!
Hank’s career GAA and SV% in the regular season are 2.32 and .920 respectively. You would think with his playoff record those numbers would be higher but they’re not at 2.25 and .923. The issue…the Rangers for what ever reason don’t score in the playoffs.
Your Goalie Can’t Always Be Perfect
To win the Stanley Cup you need hot goaltending. That’s something I’ve heard since I was a kid. I mistakenly took that for, you need an elite goaltender…but I’m learning that isn’t true.
For what it’s worth, Matt Murray (Pit), Cam Ward (Car), JS Giguere (Ana), Corey Crawford and Antti Niemi (Chi) are just a few goalies who are far from elite that have won Cups. What did their teams have that the Rangers didn’t? Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Eric Staal (when he was good), and Corey Perry.
The Rangers just don’t score enough to win in the playoffs. For as long as Lundqvist has been with the Rangers he has never really had a Go-To offensive stud to help him. Sadly, when Jaromir Jagr was here, the Rangers as a team weren’t very good.
The bottom line is this and we saw it in game 1 versus Ottawa, the Rangers have far too many games where they need Hank to be perfect in order to win. Unfortunately, the Rangers lost on a fluke no angle goal that deflected off Derek Stepan.
Lundqvist stopped 41 shots in that game…he didn’t deserve to lose.
Hank Deserves Better
In a postseason where Lundqvist has a 1.74 GAA with a .948 sv%, he deserves better than a 4-3 record in these playoffs.
The Rangers need to fight to score. Stop with the fifty passes on the PP. Stop with gaining the zone, peeling back to the blue-line, and still watch not a single player get in front. STOP! JUST STOP!
Fight for your damn goals. Go to the damn net! Don’t be fancy and play hard-nosed hockey. I’m not saying don’t try for your odd man rushes and breakaways…I’m saying once you do gain the zone…keep it simple and get it done.
Hank deserves better! If not here, then maybe somewhere else…but Hank deserves better.
More About:New York Rangers Analysis