THERE’S ALWAYS A FIRST TIME

It seems the Rangers have something to prove.

No team in the NHL has survived 2 seven game playoff series and survived to win the cup. If the NY Rangers beat the Devils from New Jersey, they come a bit closer to realizing the dream.

BRODEUR

If this series isn’t exciting enough, the last time the Rangers won the cup, they beat a young 22 year-old goalie named Martin Brodeur. That was a 7 game fight to the finish, and 17 years later after guaranteeing Mark Messier’s guarantee, they hope for a repeat.

Tonight is game 2 at Madison Square Garden, the Devils who are well rested, face a razor sharp Rangers team, having no real turnaround time for the Rangers. Are they tired, are they playing on adrenalin, is it emotion that has them skating? Tonight could tell a lot.

Hendrik Lundqvist was once again proving why he is considered one of if not the best in the business, turning away all 22 attempts on goal, and his fifth career playoff shutout! Rookie Chris Kreider, defenseman Dan Girardi, and Artem Anisimov all had a goal and an assist in the third period as the Rangers turned on the heat in the third period and seal things for themselves.

BOSTON CELTICS

The division winning Boston Celtics are showing their age. Losing Monday night to the Philadelphia 76er’s, after squeaking by the game prior, the series is tied at 1 apiece. This is not the scenario the Celtics wanted, nor is it the psychological edge they had in mind.

The 76er’s are a young team, and let’s face it, Doc Rivers’ bunch is limping, bandaged and braced, crawling onto the parquet floor to play. The momentum has shifted, as has the venue, and after a great season by Boston, it looks like things maybe in jeopardy. Hang on, this will only get better!

Both teams are defensive teams, both are not playing as well as they would like, shooting 42% for the series and the Celtics only 27% of their 3-pointers, and the 76er’s showed they can match up well with the division leaders, especially after almost pulling out the opening game of this series.

Welcome to the wonderful world of playoffs!

That’s all I wrote, folks!