Month: April 2019

Enough about the Rangers. Let’s talk about how Columbus-Tampa Bay would affect the Rangers if the Blue Jackets pull off what would become the most shocking first-round upset since 1981, when the 111-point Oilers were taken down by the 63-point Kings.

The Lightning became unhinged in Friday’s 5-1 rout by the Blue Jackets in which a shockingly selfish Nikita Kucherov played the part of Draymond Green of the 2016 Warriors, the ultimate of prematurely ordained greatest-of-all-time teams. Tampa Bay, down 2-0, outscored 8-1 over the last 72:04 and with the presumptive Hart Trophy winner serving his suspension in Sunday’s Game 3 in Columbus for his cowardly attack on Markus Nutivaara, is on the verge of ignominy.

If the Lightning do go down, the 31st-overall pick goes with them, meaning that instead of the Rangers getting that third first-round selection that might — might — be used as part of a deal to acquire Adam Fox’s rights from Carolina, they’d obtain the 58th overall as final payment for Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller.

And, perhaps not as critically but certainly of note, Columbus’ advancement would postpone the Blueshirts’ ability to talk to John Davidson about leaving the Blue Jackets’ presidency to assume the same role in New York. Though Steve Yzerman remains a person of interest in the hunt to succeed Glen Sather, Davidson is the prime candidate. The Rangers will wait for him.

But with organizational meetings in advance of a high-stakes summer just three weeks away, the sooner the better. It is possible, too, that contractual obligations might prevent Davidson from taking over before July 1 if he indeed is offered and accepts the job, but the organization would live with that.

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There are still 120 minutes or more to go. It is all but impossible to believe the Lightning won’t respond. But it might be too late. Neither game represented a fluke. Nothing about either game was random. And here we are, two losses away from another spring in which McDonagh, Miller and Dan Girardi come up short for the Rangers.

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So, Fox, 16 months away from unrestricted free agency if the defenseman returns to Harvard for his senior season. You should know that even with four first-rounders (including one hypothetical from Tampa Bay and one from Dallas in addition to Winnipeg’s and their own second-overall), the Rangers would be loathe to send one to Carolina for the righty defenseman who was a Hobey Baker finalist.

But they might have been tempted at No. 31. Now, the Blueshirts will have to consider whether to sacrifice one of what could be as many as three second-rounders (their own at No. 37, Tampa Bay’s at what would be 58, and Dallas’ at what would be 49) in order to acquire the 21-year-old.

The Rangers could wait out a Carolina team that has very little leverage. They could wait until August 2020 and sign Fox without yielding an asset in return. Just about everyone in the industry thinks it’s a done deal. But there are no sure things. Accidents happen. And the Rangers, energized by their lottery success, don’t necessarily want to wait a year.

Fifty-eight sounds about right.

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APB out for Kevin Hayes, who played merely 8:32 in the Jets’ Game 2 defeat to the Blues including 1:50 in the third period of the 4-3 match. Hayes has not taken a shot attempt in 23:51 through the opening two games of the series that St. Louis leads 2-0 heading home. If Winnipeg loses the series, the pick going to the Rangers would be 22nd overall or better.

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Yes, the matchups theoretically are now in the Penguins’ favor with their series against the Islanders resuming in Pittsburgh, and though Mike Sullivan will surely attempt to keep Sidney Crosby away from the emerging Adam Pelech-Ryan Pulock shutdown pair, Barry Trotz has done this often enough to all but negate the impact.

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The Ottawa organization has been swallowed by the dysfunction that emanates from the owner’s suite, but, surprise, surprise, it seems as if the Senators did get it right last June when they chose to keep their own fourth-overall pick and send this year’s first-rounder to Colorado instead of the other way around.

Because Brady Tkachuk at four last June is likely a superior pick to the player the Senators would have been able to grab fourth-overall this time following the slide in the lottery.

Blind squirrel, broken clock, Eugene Melnyk/Pierre Dorion.

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By the way, if Artemi Panarin cares about such things, tax implications as calculated on GavinGroup.ca seem to indicate the Rangers would have to play the impending free agent Columbus winger just above $12.374 million per to equal an $11 million per offer from Joel Quenneville’s Panthers.

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Finally, Alain Vigneault, who will be behind the Team Canada bench for the World Championships, is a good coach who certainly merits another crack at it. The Flyers, who have received permission from the Rangers to talk to Vigneault, are serious about it. But there will be no greater evidence of the evolution of our society if “Whistle to Whistle” hockey comes to Philly.

PITTSBURGH — The Islanders could have played their last playoff game this season at the Coliseum.

With a 4-1 win over the Penguins in Game 3 of their first-round series Sunday afternoon, the Islanders took a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven contest with a chance to sweep in Game 4 on Tuesday night. If they complete the sweep, then they would move on to the second round, where their home games would be played at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, as would be the case for any subsequent rounds.

This was the decision announced by the NHL on Feb. 15, as the club had split its home games between the two venues this season. The difference in revenue is drastic, as the Coliseum is the smallest building in the league and has fewer than 10 luxury suites, while Barclays has around 100. All of the money goes into hockey-related revenue, which then affects all of the league’s financials, including salary-cap settings and players’ escrow.

Despite the Coliseum’s $170 million renovation, the league said that the second-round switch was “reflecting that the Nassau Coliseum does not qualify as an NHL major-league facility.”

The team left the Coliseum, its home since the inaugural season of 1972-73, for Barclays at the start of the 2015-16 season. Yet the old barn on Hempstead Turnpike was packed to the gills with 13,917 for each of the rollicking opening two games of the series.

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Winger Jordan Eberle continued his torrid postseason start, scoring his third goal in as many games Sunday and now has five points. It was a big goal, too, tying the game 1-1 on a sharp-angle shot that banked in off goalie Matt Murray, just 28 seconds after the Penguins had taken the lead midway through the first period.

“A lot of times you just get it and try to release it as quick as you can because you know the goalie is coming across,” Eberle said. “I was lucky enough to beat him there.”

Eberle is the first Islander to open a playoff run by scoring in three straight games since Ray Ferraro in 1993 against the Capitals.

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Penguins captain Sidney Crosby remains without a point in the series, going minus-3 in this game and is now minus-6 on the series.

“The strategy is to stop everyone,” coach Barry Trotz said. “There isn’t any focus on any one particular guy. When you’re on the ice against anyone in this league, you take care of your own business. I think we’ve been doing that.”

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The Islanders have led for 85:25 during the series, while the Penguins have held a lead for just 3:17 (with the score tied for 95:55).

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The Islanders have had 12 of their 18 skaters collect at least a point Sunday, but center Valtteri Filppula was the only player with more than one, collecting two assists.

There were a handful of postseason debuts on the Islanders roster for Game 1 Wednesday night at the Coliseum, but likely the most impressive one during that 4-3 overtime victory over the Penguins came from goalie Robin Lehner.

Having split the net with Thomas Greiss all season, Lehner was tapped by coach Barry Trotz for the series opener. Lehner had previously only had two relief appearances in the postseason, totaling 49 minutes for the Senators in 2013.

Nevertheless, he was terrific against the explosive Penguins, making 41 saves, including a couple gems in the second period when the Islanders’ defensive game lapsed.

“That was a big start for him as well, just like everybody else,” Trotz said after Thursday’s practice on Long Island. “His first start, you put that on the résumé — starting hopefully a playoff résumé.”

Trotz had said he wouldn’t hesitate to use both goalies in this series, and that might still happen. But it would be jaw-dropping if Lehner didn’t get the start in Game 2 on Friday night at the Coliseum.

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Trotz didn’t want to disclose any adjustments he was going to make for Game 2, but he surely doesn’t want to allow the Penguins to have that many scoring chances again.

“No, no,” he said, shaking his head. “We have to play our game. I thought we played our game in the first and third, and even in the OT. We didn’t play our game in the second. That’ll be the key — stay to your game. The team that can stay to your game the longest, and force that on the other team, has the better chance to win.”

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Winger Anthony Beauvillier missed practice for what Trotz called “maintenance,” but his availability didn’t seem like an issue for Game 2. The 21-year-old had a steady performance in his postseason debut, including a screen on Pittsburgh goalie Matt Murray when Nick Leddy scored a go-ahead goal in the third period.

“What I liked about him, he was on the puck,” Trotz said. “And even on the Leddy goal, he was in the dirty area. That goal might not go in if Beau’s not right in front of Murray there and taking his eyes away a little bit. I liked his game.”

Michael Dal Colle took Beauvillier’s spot in practice, on the left side of a line with Valtteri Filppula and Leo Komarov. Other than that, the lines and defensive pairs stayed the same.

They’re over it.

It was a raucous scene at the Coliseum on Wednesday night, when the Islanders took Game 1 of their first-round playoff series against the Penguins with a dramatic 4-3 overtime victory.

But despite the surprising playoff berth, and despite such an emotional high from that opening salvo, the attitude was business as usual for Thursday’s practice in the lead-up to Friday night’s Game 2 on Hempstead Turnpike.

“I think it’s pretty easy,” said Josh Bailey, the Game 1 hero when he batted in a loose puck 4:39 into the extra frame. “We have a pretty veteran group. We understand that at the end of the day, it’s one game. It’s really pretty easy to turn the page. It was a tight game, playoff-type game for sure. It could have gone either way and we were happy we got the win. But it’s only going to get tougher.”

Nobody needs to tell coach Barry Trotz about how good the Penguins are at making adjustment in-series, as Trotz has faced them in each of the previous three postseasons while coaching the Capitals — winning one and losing two. Wednesday’s Game 1 was the 20th postseason game he has coached against Mike Sullivan’s squad, and Trotz made it clear to his new team that winning one game is no reason to celebrate.

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“[The Penguins] are going to be coming at you,” Trotz said. “Their top players are going to be their top players [Friday] night, they rise to those occasions. We have to rise with it.

“We can’t be comfortable. We just won one game. You pat yourself on the back when the series is done, if you can. But until then, just keep going forward, forget about yesterday, and make sure that you’re extremely focused and prepared to bring your best.”

The ability to stay even-keeled has been a staple this season under Trotz, but is in stark contrast to the Islanders teams of recent vintage. Bailey is one of the players who was there for those tumultuous times, but those are in the past along with Game 1.

“We don’t spend any time thinking about that. We’re in the now,” Bailey said. “We’ve built all training camp and all season to get to this point. We have a belief in our system and ourselves. That’s where we’re at.”

Taking a 2-0 lead going into Pittsburgh for Game 3 on Sunday afternoon would be quite a step for the Islanders to win just their second playoff series since 1993. But if the Penguins managed to split the first two at the Coliseum, they would probably feel like they had the upper hand going home to their own rowdy arena.

Neither team is getting too far in front of itself, which is the mentality that got each of them to this point in the first place.

“Don’t look back. That one is done,” Trotz said. “You better look forward.”

There was no let-up, not after goals scored, not even after the final horn had sounded.

The Islanders continued to ride this huge wave of emotion as they secured a 3-1 win over the Penguins in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series on Friday night at the Coliseum, taking a 2-0 lead in a best-of-seven series for the first time since the Stanley Cup final of 1983.

And if someone from that final year of four Cups in a row was dropped into this night, they might not have found anything out of place. As the win resonated around the rollicking old building, there was a kerfuffle behind the Islanders net — the little cross-checks, the grabbing of jerseys, the face-washes that define the passion of the postseason.

In this instance, they also defined the passion of this Islanders team, which may not be the most talented, but has predicated this surprising season on playing together and always bringing the intensity.

“They’re close-knit, they have each other’s back, and they’ve grown together,” coach Barry Trotz said. “I love the fact that this game is about emotion. It’s about having the emotion — all kinds. Win, lose, you get different emotions [with] turns in the game, each period, all that.

“It’s life. You know you’re alive out there. And they’re having fun.”

How could it not be fun when the Islanders never get flustered, not in the face of the Penguins with all of their trophies resting at home. After a dramatic 4-3 overtime win in Game 1, everyone knew the Penguins were going to come out flying.

They did, and the game was far more physical right from the get-go. But a slick goal from a Jordan Eberle backhand at 7:54 of the third period broke a 1-1 tie, and then a power-play tally from Josh Bailey at 11:38 extended the lead to 3-1. Both players have now scored twice in this series, rising to the occasion just like the rest of the club.

And when Pittsburgh pushed over the final few minutes, there was goalie Robin Lehner flashing his glove to snatch a laser shot from Phil Kessel to preserve the lead and begin yet another showering of adoration from the 13,917 in attendance, many of whom were in the parking lot before the clock struck noon.

“We’ve been in 1-1, 2-1, 2-2 situations going into the third all year, and I think that has been a great experience for us,” said Lehner, who followed his 41-save performance in Game 1 with a stellar 32-save showing. “We had no panic, we didn’t feel nervous in here or anything. We trusted that if we stuck to our game, we were going to come out with the win.”

It wasn’t so clear early on, when the Penguins took a 1-0 lead at 10:36 of the second period when a long Erik Gudbranson shot got through traffic and beat Lehner. But the lead lasted less than three minutes, as Anthony Beauvillier batted in a loose puck to tie it.

But as the goal celebration was beginning, Mathew Barzal was behind the net cross-checking defenseman Marcus Pettersson, enraged that Pettersson had ridden him into the backboards after his initial redirection was stopped by goalie Matt Murray. Beauvillier and the rest of the team raced over to defend their reigning Calder Trophy winner, with no hesitation from anyone to get their hands up.

“It’s honestly overreaction on my part,” Barzal said. “I thought I might have been a little vulnerable, but he let up and just rode me into the boards. So a bit of an overreaction on my part, but that’s hockey sometimes.”

The only real overreaction that would matter would be if the Islanders think getting the next two wins in this series is going to be anything but incredibly difficult. The atmosphere in Pittsburgh for Game 3 on Sunday afternoon will rival anything that the Coliseum has produced, and it is going to take everything the Isles have to keep the momentum.

“I said, ‘Just leave it out there, every night, every shift,’ ” Trotz said, “and things will take care of themselves.”

There were moments when it appeared as if Sidney Crosby would take control. Bewitched, bothered and perhaps even bewildered (probably not) by the swarming coverage he faced at both ends of the ice, No. 87 took command with a grinding down-low shift midway through the second period that appeared to kickstart a Penguins team that had spent more time berating the officials than playing the Islanders.

But moments, that in fact were relatively few and far between, weren’t enough in Friday’s Game 2 at a Coliseum that rocked while the Islanders rolled to a 3-1 victory and a 2-0 lead in this first round that picks up in Pittsburgh on Sunday afternoon.

You can make the argument that in winning the opening two, the Islanders have merely held serve. But these 124:34 have reinforced the notion that they are the better team, recent postseason history be damned. And if you want some not-so-recent postseason history, there is this: The Islanders had not led a series 2-0 since their 1983 sweep of the Oilers in the finals that produced the fourth straight Cup.

“We’re not relying on some mystical history from over 30 years ago,” a bemused Cal Clutterbuck said when informed of that factoid. “It’s about what we do now.”

The Islanders had the better of it in the one-on-one’s. They put the puck in well-placed areas on their dump-ins while creating a minefield through which the Penguins had to maneuver the full 200 time and again. And when the game moved from tight spaces into open areas, the Islanders were the quicker and crisper team.

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“We’re trying to stay above [Crosby] and make him go through people,” said Clutterbuck, who played his customary hard-edged game. “He’s probably the best player in the world offensively and he’s hard to contain but if we have people between him and the net and take away his time and space, it gives us our best chance.”

Crosby had the puck more than he did in Wednesday’s 4-3 overtime first game. Analytically, he had a pretty good night with a 64-percent Corsi rating (16/9) in 12:43 of five-on-five time while matched most often against Brock Nelson and Casey Cizikas up front and almost exclusively against the Adam Pelech-Ryan Pulock defense pair.

But while No. 87 did deliver a couple of nifty set-ups, he could never quite power or finesse his way into open ice around Robin Lehner’s net. He had only one shot (on one attempt). For a second straight game, Crosby was contained by an Islanders team that was relentless in its pursuit and doggedly efficient in its own end.

“The D is getting the puck to us quickly,” Cizikas said. “They’re not messing around.”

This was a nasty one. Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, two of the filthiest players around (double meaning), took as many cheap shots as they could. The lack of discipline cost the Penguins. But the Islanders were unable to take advantage, failing to score on their first five power plays including a 54-second five-on-three early in the second period. Soon after, Erik Gudbranson drove a 45-footer past Lehner and the Penguins had their first lead of the series at 10:36 of the second period.

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It didn’t last long, however, with Anthony Beauvillier slamming home a rebound at 13:25 off a two-on-one rush with Mathew Barzal. Jordan Eberle, a pending free agent, got the winner with a nifty backhand at 7:54, driving to the net from the right corner off a Barzal feed and beating Murray after making both Jack Johnson and Justin Schultz look silly. Josh Bailey’s PPG at 11:38 salted it.

“We’re trying to stick with it and play a certain way,” Clutterbuck said. “It’s been the same thing all year. It’s been our mentality for a long time.”

The Penguins will have the last match Sunday and for Tuesday’s Game 4. Their coach, Mike Sullivan, will surely try to get Crosby on against Barzal, a match Barry Trotz has avoided for all but 1:45 over the last five periods. The Islanders have won twice, but they haven’t done anything yet.

The heavy lifting is still to come. But the Islanders look like they can handle the weight.

After defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-3, in overtime Wednesday night in their NHL Eastern Conference series opener, the New York Islanders are now betting favorites to advance to the second round.

That may be short-lived. If Pittsburgh can break serve with a win Friday night in Game 2 (MSG, MSG+, 7:30 p.m.), the Penguins would become prohibitive favorites with home-ice advantage over the final five games.

Why is the math so volatile within an NHL playoff series? Many games are seen as virtual 50/50 coin flips, with matchups showing a clear favorite often only representing 60/40 for the favorite. Any victory becomes 100/0 for the team that won.

Pittsburgh must win four of the next six games to advance, looking (if necessary) at three virtual coin flips on Long Island, and three home games where they will be expected to win in the 60/40 to 67/33 range. (Note that Game 3 of this series will be nationally televised from Pittsburgh at noon Sunday on NBC.)

Some handicappers will bet Pittsburgh in a bounce-back spot Friday night, particularly after seeing that the Penguins outshot the Islanders, 37-24. VSiN hockey consultant Andy MacNeil notes that statistical website naturalstattrick.com had it a virtual dead heat in terms of high-percentage shots.

During five-on-five play, that site calculated “expected” goals at Penguins 2.98, Islanders 2.74, while estimating “high danger” scoring chances at 15-14 for the Isles.

In sum, the series opener matched what the market expected of these teams. A virtual pick’em went to overtime with even performances in the most telling descriptive stats.

While the Islanders are now in “much better shape” than they were in terms of advancing, they’re not any better as a team than expected. Still probably a long battle ahead.

There may also be a long battle ahead for recreational bettors who keep trying to get cute with “money-line” parlays using big favorites. Tampa Bay, the biggest favorite of the postseason, was stunned by Columbus on Wednesday night as a favorite of -240. That after jumping to a 3-0 lead in the first period!

“Lowering the juice” by linking the Lightning to other favorites in parlays retaught “squares” a painful lesson. As did trying to do the same by laying -1.5 goals (at a more favorable price) with Tampa Bay on the “puck line.”

This ill-advised strategy works just often enough to get recreational bettors in trouble. Sometimes favorites do sweep for parlay bettors, or win blowouts that cover the puck line. But, upsets are much more common than casual fans realize. That’s particularly true in the NHL playoffs, where relative parity gives any underdog a fighting chance.

Hockey betting is not for the faint of heart. Sharp handicappers will do their best to evaluate the skill sets that matter most in postseason action, while looking for game or series prices that offer value.

PITTSBURGH — If the Penguins want to get Sidney Crosby free from the Islanders’ shackles — specifically defensemen Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock — then it could come with Pittsburgh getting the last change at home starting with Game 3 of their first-round series Sunday afternoon.

Crosby has not registered a point in the opening two games, both of which were won by the Islanders as they hold a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. For his 29:22 of even-strength ice time, Crosby has seen Pelech for 22:13 and Pulock for 20:57, just as coach Barry Trotz had planned it.

With Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan able to dictate the matchups more on home ice, there is a better chance Crosby could find more preferential opposition — if that does exist on the deep Islanders defense.

“We’ve done matchups all year in different ways, but on the road, we’ve gone with what we’ve gone [with],” Trotz said Saturday morning on Long Island. “We’ll just go with our group of five. They understand. At home, you have little more of that advantage. We’re not going to fret over it. If you’re out there, you have to get it done.”

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Up front, Casey Cizikas’ line with Matt Martin and Cal Clutterbuck have seen the most of Crosby, and they know it’s hard to contain him for a full series.

“He’s the greatest player in the world, and he’s going to create chances, he’s going to create opportunities,” Cizikas said. “If we do a good job of being physical and playing hard, we’re going to try to limit those chances.”

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Maybe the Islanders haven’t had the prettiest power plays in the first two games, but they scored on two out of eight, and that is all Trotz was worried about.

“I’ll take [25] percent all day long,” Trotz said. “They worked on it for the last little while. They’re getting a bit of confidence with it, and they’ve made a difference every game. That’s what you want.”

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Evgeni Malkin took two penalties in Game 2 and one in Game 1, showing his frustration. But when Trotz was asked if Malkin is a player who can get agitated, he smirked and deferred to Sullivan.

“Ask Sully,” Trotz said.

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Trotz didn’t anticipate the noon start on Sunday bothering the Islanders.

“It’s just understanding to start on time. Start time isn’t 7 [p.m.], it’s noon,” he said jokingly. “We’ll be fine. We’ll get everyone to breakfast, we’ll get everyone to the rink, and we’ll be ready to go.”

There is a lot of money to be earned or lost for Jordan Eberle as the second postseason of his career is underway, his Islanders preparing for Game 2 of their first-round series against the Penguins on Friday night at the Coliseum after a dramatic 4-3 overtime win in Game 1.

Eberle will turn 29 years old on May 15, and he is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Statistically, this has been a down year for the previous 30-goal scorer, although the 19 goals and 37 points in 78 regular-season games can be seen through the lens of the club becoming far more defensive — and having far more success — under first-year head coach Barry Trotz.

But with a terrific Game 1, scoring a goal and making a great play to collect an assist on Brock Nelson’s power-play goal, Eberle could be raising his price. Eberle is aware of that, but he’s trying not to let it dominate his thoughts.

“It’s not like I’m going on the ice thinking about my contract. I don’t think about it at all, to be honest,” he said Friday morning. “You kind of just let things happen as they do. I think the biggest thing is when you’re a kid, you dream of playing in the playoffs, and that chance is here. The farther you go as a team, the better it is for the individual.”

Eberle’s first season with the Islanders was 2017-18, coming over on a steal of a trade that sent Ryan Strome to Edmonton. He had two years left on his bloated contract that carried a $6 million annual salary-cap hit, but he put up 25 goals and 59 points to justify it.

Under coach Doug Weight, he played almost all of the year next to Mat Barzal, who was en route to an 85-point campaign and winning the Calder Trophy. But when Trotz came in and tried the two of them together, they floundered early.

“They were getting chances and weren’t scoring, and then they started pressing,” Trotz said. “There was no structure, there was no detail, and it sort of fell apart.”

Yet by late in the regular season, Trotz needed a spark. So in a March 11 game against the Blue Jackets, he put Eberle back with Barzal. For the final 14 games, Eberle scored six goals — including five in the final seven. It was a big step in the Islanders establishing a top line to play in the most offensive situations.

“I think sometimes it just happens that way, you’re not feeling it and you get back together and you have the joy of playing together,” Trotz said. “You start having some success. Everything stems from success.”

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In his first go-around in the playoffs with the Oilers in 2017, Eberle didn’t score a goal in 13 games as Edmonton bowed out in the second round. That disappointment is one of the reasons that then-general manager Peter Chiarelli felt he was expendable — eventually losing the trade even more when he sent Strome to the Rangers for Ryan Spooner, who he then placed on waivers and sent to the minors.

But another reason was the contract, which is now an issue again. Islanders team president Lou Lamoriello told The Post on Thursday he wants to keep all his free agents and he’s going to try. But also coming up on deals are Nelson, captain Anders Lee, and goalie Robin Lehner. It’s clear that Lamoriello wants to keep all of them, but only under the right terms.

And the terms for Eberle are only going to rise if he follows a good Game 1 with more big performances in the spotlight — a stage not just for Lamoriello, but for the whole league.

“You can put aside your personal stats and all that to win hockey games and get a chance in the postseason,” Eberle said. “Now that it’s here, you want to take advantage of it.”

In more ways than one.