The Washington Capitals have pulled the New York Rangers for their opponent in the second round of the playoffs (check the schedule here). This will be the sixth time in history that the Caps and Rangers will square off in a best-of-seven series. But unlike recent years, the Rangers are no underdogs. They finished in first place in the Eastern Conference, just barely missing the President’s Trophy after a loss to some no-name team in the final game of the regular season. Meanwhile the Caps are the scrappy team that no one expected to slay the dragon in round one. It’s going to be a big series between two old Patrick Division rivals.

In preparation, we peaked back at last year’s quarterfinal series between the Caps and Rangers in hopes that it might give us a glimpse at the future. No matter their predictive value, these five games were a freaking blast. Join me for some good memories behind the jump.

Game One: Capitals 2, Rangers 1 (OT)

The first game of the series was a tense one. Going nearly 80 minutes, the Rangers and Caps played tight hockey until Marc Staal made a mistake and Jason Arnott made him pay. Arnott set up special friend Alex Semin for an emotional game winner. Glimpsing a ye olde stat sheet, the Caps dominated possession (plus-19 Fenwick), firing 33 shots on Lundqvist. The Caps cap’n alone had 6 shots, 6 hits, and a goal. It was just brilliant playoff hockey and a rousing start to the postseason.

* ESS% = goalie save percentage while teams are at even strength. Fenwick sums up one team’s shots and misses at even-strenth, subtracted by the other team’s sum of the same. 

Game Two: Capitals 2, Rangers 0

Michal Neuvirth was the star of game two, shutting the door on the Rangers and their 22 shots. Jason Arnott and Jason Chimera recorded goals for the Caps, and John Tortorella dressed Sean Avery, who is unemployed now. The Caps completely suffocated the Rangers, keeping them without a scoring chance for the entirety of the second period. This was the most conservative game of the series, with most of the action going on at neutral and on the perimeters. The Caps left for Manhattan with a two-game lead.

Game Three: Rangers 3, Capitals 2

The Rangers stole the first game at their home rink, but they had to get pretty luck to do it. Although it’s inelegant to whine about penalties a year later, the Rags got all the good whistles this game– putting the Caps shorthanded 7 times and converting on one of those. But the truly bad luck was Brandon Dubinsky‘s freak bounce off Karl Alzner’s shoulder and into Mikey Neuvirth’s net with less than 100 seconds left. This was the Caps’ first regulation loss with Jason Arnott in the lineup; that’s how good this team was last spring.

After the game coach Bruce Boudreau commented on how quiet Madison Square Garden was. New York fans kept that comment in mind.

Game Four: Capitals 4, Rangers 3 (2OT)

This one belongs in the pantheon of classic Caps games. The Capitals played garbage hockey for two periods, earning a three-goal deficit and a potential shutout for Henrik Lundqvist. And then, in the third, the Capitals played what might have been the best period of hockey in the history of the franchise. Alex Semin stole a loose puck to score, and then Marcus Johansson scored two goals to force overtime. And then, in the fifth period, Jason Chimera crashed the net and corralled a rambunctious puck for the game-winner.

Meanwhile, Mike Knuble missed action while getting pins installed in his broken hand. And the fans at Madison Square Garden gave the Caps hell all game long, although something about Chimera’s 2OTGWG seemed to hush them at the very end.

Game Five: Capitals 3, Rangers 1

The Capitals ended the series at home in a rout. The Rangers’ orderly facade slipped into psychosis as the team was whistled for four roughing penalties, two misconducts, and one “abuse of officials” (i.e. Torts getting torty with the refs). Michal Neuvirth maintained a shutout until the game’s final minute. Alex Ovechkin, Semin, and Green each solved Lundqvist and put this one safely out of reach. The Caps cruised to the second round of the playoffs, which we will never discuss again.

And Verizon Center erupted into “we are louder” cheers.

Conclusions

This year’s model of the Washington Capitals doesn’t come with the automatic puck-possession advantage that meant so much in the last series. The Rangers will have the puck more this year (although they’re only slightly better on the Fenwick scale), so the Caps will have compensate in another area.

Plus, the Rangers ranked fourth in the league in blocked shots this season– both a capable mitigation of their problems owning the puck and an affirmation of their team unity. Blueshirts will be diving in front of Washington pucks like it’s going out of style, so a little creativity on offense will be needed.

Whatever criticisms you may have for Michal Neuvirth, he acquitted himself excellently in the 2011 NYR series. Braden Holtby will have to be similarly perfect to outduel Henrik Lundqvist, who is probably in his Vezina year. Here’s hoping Holtby can keep his .940 save percentage alive.

The Caps are going to need star power in net to eke out wins, but they’re also gonna need star power on offense. The last series saw most of its goals come from the big names: Alex Ovechkin, Alex Semin, and Mike Green. With even less scoring depth than last year, the 2012 Caps will rely on their big players to produce.

No Sean Avery. Haha. As if that were ever a factor. But the Rangers have improved their offense with the addition of Brad Richards, who has been a force multiplier for Marian Gaborik. The Caps defense will have a greater challenge this time around.

But who are we kidding? This series– like the last one— will come down to one question: Who is more willing to crash the net?

Tonight, I was watching the Sabres/Flyers game on Versus when the above commercial popped up on the screen. Talk about furious. I’d rather have Gary Bettman come to my house, dip his hand in a bucket of ice water and backhand me across the face than involuntarily have to watch this goal again. But there Dubinsky was on my TV. In all his mustached-glory. Raising his arms triumphantly, while Neuvy hangs his head in utter defeat. What a great juxtaposition.

I have two questions for the NHL after being forced to watch this. First, if they don’t want to risk showing favoritism to certain teams, why show goals from this playoff year? The point of the promotion is to show the NHL’s rich history. Have they already run out of moments from the past? Don’t they think that fans’ feelings might be just a little raw one day after a loss? Second, how is this goal any better than the marker Alex Semin scored in overtime in Game 1? So Dubi can get a commercial, but Sasha Minor can’t? Sure, maybe I’m being a little sensitive here, but this just rubbed me the wrong way. I get what you’re trying to do NHL marketing team, but please go back to the drawing board.

Actor Michael Douglas takes in the game with his daughter Carys (Photo credit: Bruce Bennett)

Sigh. (Photo credit: Kathy Willens)

This could be the pivotal game in the series. Up 2-0 Washington had the chance to all but put the Rangers away. But all it took to derail those plans, however, was one bad bounce off Karl Alzner’s shoulder.

The first period was scoreless and fairly even with Caps holding a 5-4 advantage in scoring chances. Despite not having a lead after 20 minutes of play the frame had to be considered a positive for Washington after killing off New York’s one and a half minute five-on-three power play late.

The Rangers opened the scoring at 5:30 in the second period when Erik Christensen threaded the needle, firing a sharp-angle wrister from the corner over Michal Neuvirth’s shoulder on the man-advantage. The Capitals remained down by one until Bruce Boudreau juggled the lines, putting Alex Ovechkin, Jason Arnott and Mike Knuble together. It would pay dividends just minutes later when Arnott fired a shot from the corner before Ovechkin potted it home to tie the game.

Eight minutes into the third, Vinny Prospal gave New York a 2-1 advantage, putting the rebound from Eric Marc Staal’s blast from the point into the back of the net. But when in comes to scoring gritty goals in front of the net, no one can outdo Knuuuuuuuble, as he whacked home the loose puck after Nicklas Backstrom’s one-time rocket on the power play. You might want to stop reading now.

With just 1:39 remaining in the game Brandon Dubinsky fired shot on Neuvirth, hitting Alzner. Before Neuvirth could react, six ounces of vulcanized rubber were in the back of the net. The Czech netminder hung his head in dejection and Ovechkin lay face down on the ice. Rangers shock Caps, 3-2.

• The biggest key of the game was obviously all of the penalties called against the Capitals. The Rangers were awarded seven power plays — the Capitals would only receive three — and went to a two-man advantage twice. When Bruce Boudreau was interviewed during a break of play in the second period by NBC’s Darren Pang, the frustrated coach told the former NHL goalie, “We have to stay out of the penalty box. Though those are some pretty ticky-tack calls for a playoff game.” And he was right. While New York was getting away with some rather unsportsmanlike plays, Washington was getting called for some questionable infractions. The normally reserved Nicklas Backstrom told the media after the game that, “it wasn’t me, it was the ref” regarding his third period penalty. The calls kept the Capitals best players off the ice and it kept them from finding their offensive mojo.
• The Rangers game plan Friday was to finish every check and rub out any Caps player that they could, including targeting Mike Green’s up high. That didn’t work, so today they tried to do anything and everything they could to get into Michal Neuvirth’s head. The lowlights were Brandon Prust’s bump of Neuvirth as he skated to the other side of the ice during a stoppage in play, Sean Avery’s punch in the head after a save in the second and Avery getting in the rookie’s face after a whistle in the third. There were at least five more instances of dirty play after the whistle between these two players and Neuvirth, yet the officials refused to make a call. Boudreau even revealed after the game that “[the officials] kept on warning [the Rangers] at the bench not to do it. And then they didn’t call it. So they continued to do it.” The officials did an absolute abysmal job of calling this game. But I suppose that’s hockey sometimes.
• This is a joke.
• Maybe I’m being a bit nit-picky, but when Eddie Olczyk brought out the telestrator to diagram how NHL Official Chris Rooney hurt himself, I found it to be both classless and unnecessary. All you have to do is say, “he tripped over the net” and show the replay. You don’t have to humiliate him by circling him with your pen and then using graphic arrows to show where he fell down. Rooney, who bravely tried to skate the injury off, was later diagnosed with a broken fibula and declared done for the season. Yes, even officials are gamers in the playoffs. We here at RMNB wish Chris a speedy recovery.
• Alex Ovechkin is the captain and the team’s leader for a reason. He has either scored or assisted on four of the Capitals seven goals during the playoffs. Today, he chipped in the game-tying goal (at the time) by rushing the net like a bull and he also doled out five hits. The Russian Machine even took the blame for his blown coverage in front of the net on the Rangers game-winning goal. I would be hard-pressed to blame only him on the play — ::shakes fist at hockey gods:: — but nonetheless, it shows leadership to put the loss square on his own shoulders considering everything that he contributed offensively.
• 

  The Rangers were .2 seconds away from scoring a back-breaking tally at the end of the second period.

  Overall, the Capitals held a 16 to 14 advantage in scoring chances but doubled the Rangers up, 14 to seven, at even-strength. They also limited New York to only one even strength chance in both the first and second periods. In the third, however, the Rangers looked like they wanted the game more and out-chanced the Capitals five to three. Sure Dubinsky’s goal was flukey, but crazy things happen like that when you crash the net hard.
• Mike Knuble echoed that sentiment after the game. After answering the Rangers second tally with a goal from his office, the right winger told the media that, “we can do a lot more around the net. It seems like that’s going to be the only way people are going to score.”
• An interesting factoid: the Capitals lost in regulation for the first time with Jason Arnott in the line-up (12-1-1) since acquiring him at the trade deadline.
• Speaking of Arnott, after being used primarily as a defensive cog by Bruce Boudreau during the regular season, he only took three of his twenty face-offs in the defensive zone today. Nicklas Backstrom took five. Clearly Boudreau was doing all he could to generate some more offense today.
• Alex Semin had a tremendous game. Despite the Capitals being whistled for eight penalties, Sasha Minor stayed out of the box and kept his stick to himself. Bravo! He was also on the ice for eight scoring chances for and one against. Semin also led the team with six shots on goal.
• After Brandon Dubinsky scored on what would eventually reveal itself as the game-winning goal, Michal Neuvirth dropped his head to the ice in frustration. But Neuvy has nothing to be frustrated about. The rookie netminder kept his team in the game all day long, didn’t retaliate when he was unfairly targeted by the Rangers and made 32 big stops. Sure, the sharp-angled shot Erik Christensen scored over his shoulder probably should have been stopped somehow someway, but those goals are going to happen sometimes. Neuvy needs to rebound from the defeat and continue his strong play. The Caps were slow out of the corners and at times had terrible coverage in front of the net. There was nothing he could have done more.

It may only be one game, but the Rangers are now back in this series. The Caps better come out hungry on Wednesday or risk making this just like four of five best of sevens in the Boudreau era — a 2-0 lead before a total collapse.

One down. Three to go. But feel free to avoid doing that, Caps.

Additional reporting by Chris Gordon and Neil Greenberg.

MG52 unleashes the fury! (Photo credit: Frank Franklin II)

Brooks Laich with the book-end goals. (Photo credit: Frank Franklin II)

Well, that was an ugly one. The Washington Capitals’ first appointment with the New York Rangers, hosted in the majestically gloomy Madison Square Garden, had all of the poetry of an alleyway brawl. 28 penalty minutes were distributed in the first period alone. Mike Green dropped gloves for crying out loud!

The Rangers got up to an early lead when Brian Boyle beat Jeff Schultz at the circle. All night the Capitals defense was spotty, and it seemed the Superfriends could not make up for it. Every time the Caps tied the score, the Rangers pulled ahead again. But the Caps found strength where we faithful knew it would be: depth. Brooks Laich recorded a pair, Mike Knuble finished the funk, Matt Hendricks provided the GWG, and even lovable John Erskine got on the board. Henrik Lundqvist lay defeated. Caps beat Rangers 5-3.

Las balas en los rojos pantoalones en la biblioteca con pollo.

• Whatever Craig Laughlin did to get exiled from Manhattan, we need to undo it. Eddie Olczyk weirds me out, talking all quiet and that hair.
• Any game in which Big John Erskine scores is worthy of regard. Let us revisit this in the spring.
• For the first time since opening night, Mike Knuble scores! And in a Knubley way no less: within spitting distance of the crease off an Ovechkin pass. That’ll do, sacrificed goat. That’ll do.
• Did Michal Neuvirth look tired to anyone else?
• Tyler Sloan had a rough one. Despite getting a primary assist on Erskine’s unlikely goal, Sloan balanced the scales with a timid whiff in the offensive zone that led to an easy breakaway and goal for Derek Boogard. Sloan should consult the team tailor; something about him in that Caps jersey looks wrong.
• Brooks Laich didn’t play the last period on Sunday night, so we were a pleasantly surprised he dressed tonight. Brooks provided the book-end goals for the Caps: a five-holer during a 4-on-3 and an empty netter in the last ten seconds.
• Props to 22-year old Brian Boyle of the Rangers, who emerged from relative obscurity to become one of NYR’s biggest producers this year. He scored two tonight.
• Boyle’s second one– to be fair– was a gift from Karl Alzner. A shame that this goal came at the end of power play, as Alzer deserved the minus rating and the other PK unit was terrific. Alzner and D-buddy John Carlson recorded -9 and -5 Corsi ratings respectively.
• Eric Fehr hit a wall.  He had a -4 scoring chance differential and a -2 Corsi.
• Let’s mark up the game-winner to an expert pass from Matt Bradley, giving Matt Hendricks a great opportunity to drop the puck off on the top shelf. Yeah, they’re tough-guy grinders, but they’ve got talent and gumption in equal portions. Let D.J. King (and his sub 4 minutes of ice time) take note.
• Post script on Matt Hendricks. He had a goal, an assist, and a fighting roughing penalty. Sorry, no Gordie How, buddy. And we were soooo close to getting a funny picture out of Ian.

• Mike Green fights Brandon Dubinsky? I don’t know if I’m gobstopped or nonplussed. I just dunno, man. What do you think?

Joe B's suit-of-the-night

The Caps continue to win close games through force of will. Even with several defensive goofs and the relative absence of the 8-19-28 line, the Capitals found a way to win through grit. This is only the second game, after Calgary (-2), that the Capitals have managed to win with a negative scoring chance differential (-1). That speaks to the kind of determination and win-lust other coaches speechify about, but only few teams possess.

Good win, boys. Enjoy a day off in NYC; we’ll see you back  in D.C. on Thursday.

Written by Peter Hassett in Baltimore.
Additional reporting by Neil Greenberg in Florida.
Ian Oland added pictures from Hanover.
Rachl Cohen illustrated from Connecticut.
Fedor Fedin should be asleep in Moscow.