The New York Rangers lost to the Washington Capitals by the score of 2-1 in overtime tonight to go down 1-0 in their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal matchup. For a recap and box score go to Yahoo! Sports and newyorkrangers.com.

...while the score may have said otherwise I thought the Rangers were completely outplayed tonight. Except for the third period, the Rangers had absolutely zero forecheck and if it wasn't for a few Caps crossbars that game would have been over in regulation. Having said that, despite the Capitals taking the play to the Rangers the Blueshirts were able to stay in the game all night with what worked for them all year blocked shots and shear determination which has me confident that this series is far from being over.

...hate to kill Staal who had a great game chasing Ovechkin around but that giveaway was brutal. No pressure on him and two wide open Rangers on the other side of the ice.

...it took Gaborik a little while to get going but I thought he had a very active game which should give him confidence going into the rest of the series.

...was it me or was Boyle & Prust on the ice the entire game.

...as I've been saying Lundqvist can stand on his head all he wants but if the Rangers can't score they're not going to win.

...are we sure McD has never played in the playoffs before? He looked like a seasoned vet out there.

...man Ovechkin is a dirty player. His elbows are up on every hit. And of course nothing is ever called.

...and for anyone complaining about Ovechkin's goal. The puck was loose and the refs did the right thing not blowing the whistle.

...there's more traffic on my street at 1am than the Rangers had in front of Neuvirth tonight. Way to put pressure on a kid playing in his first NHL playoff game.

...Dubinsky needs to step up his game as he's been invisible since scoring the game tying goal against the Bruins last week.

...as always, big opportunity on the power play at the end of the game wasted. I think there's still some Perry Pearn residue effecting the power play.

...great goal by Gilroy should have him back in the lineup Friday night.

...surprised with the early ice time MZA & EC got but come the third period they might as well have stayed in the locker room. Which is why I don't think there is a need to argue MZA vs. Avery because neither one is going to get the minutes to make a difference.

...series are not won or lost in Game 1, so shake it off Rangers fans there's still plenty of hockey to be played.

...next game back at the Verizon Center oin Friday night.

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The New York Rangers visit the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series at the Verizon Center starting at 7:30 p.m. For a preview go to Yahoo! Sports.

Rangers Game Notes

TV: MSG Plus; Radio: 1050AM ESPN Radio, XM 205

Probable Lines:
Prospal-Anisimov-Gaborik
Dubinsky-Stepan-Fedotenko
Wolski-Boyle-Prust
Zuccarello-Christensen-Drury

Staal-Girardi
McDonagh-Sauer
McCabe-Gilroy

Goaltenders:
Henrik Lundqvist - 36-27-5, 2.28 gaa, .923 sv%, 11 so.

Michal Neuvirth - 27-12-4, 2.45 gaa, .914 sv%, 4 so.

Opponent Notes:
- Washington won 16 of its last 20 regular season games (16-3-1).

- Alex Ovechkin finished the season with 32 goals, down from 50 last year. Nicklas Backstrom dipped from 33 to 18. Alexander Semin from 40 to 28. Brooks Laich from 25 to 16.

- The Capitals' penalty kill improved from 25th in the league last season to No. 2 in 2010-11.

- Mike Green (concussion) expects to play tonight for the first time since Feb. 25th.

- Jason Arnott has 4g, 3a in 11 games since being acquired from the Devils at the trade deadline.

- Michael Neuvirth was 1-1-0 with a 4.50 gaa and .839 sv% against the Rangers this season.

2010-11 Season Series:
Nov. 9 Rangers 3, Capitals 5 at MSG
Dec. 12 Rangers 7, Capitals 0 at MSG
Jan. 24 Rangers 2, Capitals 1 (SO) at Washington
Feb. 25 Rangers 6, Capitals 0 at Washington

Opponent Blog:
Rock the Red

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Andrew Gross at Ranger Rants reports that Martin Biron (collarbone), who is with the team in Washington, is starting to regain full motion in his shoulder and will be re-examined once the series shifts back to New York...

"They might say, 'It's going good, take another week,' they might say, 'Go skate,'" Biron said.

...i'm hoping that Biron can get back soon. The playoffs are a long grind and we can't expect Hank to have his 'A' game every night so Biron could play a kep role at some point in the playoffs.

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Katie Carrera at the Capitals Insider reports that Bruce Boudreau says Mike Green is still a game time decision.

Boudreau estimates D Dennis Wideman (leg) may be able to return in three weeks.

Carrera gives this line-up for tonight assuming Green plays:

Ovechkin-Backstrom-Knuble
Sturm-Arnott-Semin
Laich-Johansson-Chimera
Hendricks-Gordon-Bradley

Alzner-Carlson
Schultz-Hannan
Erskine-Green

Neuvirth

...like I said the other day expect Green in the line-up. Not sure how much of an impact he will have, but Rangers still need to respect his offense from the blueline.

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...love Boomer. Without him there'd be no hockey talk on the FAN.

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"We respect this hockey club. By no means do we fear them."
                                                                     John Tortorella on Capitals
                                                                     via Andrew Gross

...love it Torts!!! Get this team fired up!!! I know I am.

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Update, 12:20 p.m.:
Gilroy paired with Bryan McCabe on defense, while Zuccarello will skate on a line with Eric Christensen and Chris Drury.

Update, 12:05 p.m.:
Gross confirms Zuccarello and Gilroy in, while Avery and Eminger are out.

...while I'm upset to see Avery out of the lineup, I don't think he would have seen more than five minutes anyway, so not a big deal in my opinion.

Update, 11:58 a.m.:
Andrew Gross tweets that Mats Zuccarello and Matt Gilroy came off the ice before Sean Avery and Steve Eminger.

...you would think this means Avery and Eminger are out. If that's the case I've got to say I'm a bit surprised.

Original Post:
Steve Zipay at Blue Notes tweets that Marian Gaborik, Brandon Dubinsky, Marc Staal, Wojtek Wolski and Henrik Lundqvist skippred this morning's optional practice.

...this really doesn't give much of an indication as to who might be the healthy scratches tonight. Assuming Torts will speak after practice but not sure if he'll divulge the line-up. I'm going with MZA and Eminger as healthy scratches.

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Blueshirts United has some great quotes from Mark Messier about playing in the playoffs...

"You are not being paid during the playoffs, so really what you are playing for is your team and your teammates and the chance to fulfill a dream of winning the Stanley Cup. It's easy to talk about, but so hard to do. Everyone needs to be an overachiever to accomplish that goal of winning the Stanley Cup. That's what our game is all about."

For more quotes from Messier on chemistry and the importance of the head coach click here.

...no better person to explain what the playoffs are all about than Messier. Hope some of the younger players have been able to get some words of wisdom over the last few days from "The Captain."

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TheNYRBlog reader Todd, who lives smack dab in the middle of Caps nation, decided to rile up the neighbors with this outdoor set-up...


As always please continue to e-mail ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) your Rangers related pictures to me so I can post them.

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Yesterday, I did a round table with Joe over at Rock the Red. Here are his anwers to my questions about the Capitals...

The Capitals decided to change their style of play to more of a grinding game to better compete against teams like the Rangers in the playoffs, do you feel this will work?

Yes, changing the style of play will help in the playoffs. Not that the Capitals' style was a huge issue in the past, the problems they've had in the playoffs were twofold- the inability to adjust when things weren't going their way and (2) not being mature enough to put opponents away. They don't have those problems now, and they definitely still have the firepower to cream an opponent, they are much more difficult to play against. Jason Arnott is the piece the Caps needed last year and didn't have, it was the lack of a #2 center that cost them the series against the Canadiens, nothing else.

Tell us why the Capitals goaltending will not be a problem?

The Capitals goaltending has been a strong suit for much of this season, why would it be a problem now? The goalies are young- but they haven't been overworked. While Varly's health is always a question, he never seems to be "ailing" in the Spring. His first (and only) career NHL playoff series victory came against the Rangers – and I believe there's a certain level of comfort and confidence for him with the idea of returning to that same situation. If Varly's unavailable, Michal Neuvirth is more than ready to take the reigns, and statistically, he's always played better in the postseason than in the regular season. He's one of those guys that seems to have no problem getting "up" for a big game or a new challenge - so my confidence in his abilities to perform well under the pressure of the situation is well founded. Oh, and there's that Holtby guy in case something goes horribly wrong.

Alex Ovechkin's goal total was down significantly this year why was this and do you think he'll revert back to form in the playoffs?

Ovechkin isn't playing in the same system in which he scored 65 goals in 2008, but he'll have a decent playoffs anyway. He doesn't have to carry all of the scoring any more, either, which is another reason he's not scoring as much, and he's not playing 25 minutes a night any more. Although he's been on fire as of late (scoring 23 points in the 17 games since the Rangers shut the Caps out on February 25th), I don't expect him to blow the Rangers away in this series as he traditionally doesn't score as much against Lundqvist.

Who's an under the radar player that might have a big impact in this series?

Matt Hendricks was a force throughout the regular season series against the Rangers, and there's no reason to think he won't do it again. He had a big year and his confidence is as high as ever. While this is Hendy's first year as a Capital, Bruce coached him in Hershey and knows how high Hendricks can elevate his game in pressure situations. Going back to that year in Hershey (2006-2007). Hendricks scored 18 goals and added 26 assists in 65 games played. Come playoff time, he scored 8 goals and 4 assists in just 19 games. Good hands, huge heart, tough as nails. Those are the guys that help win series when the stars are shut down by top rated defense.

Are Capitals fans nervous given the results against the Rangers this year?

I think many of the fans are nervous, especially after the two drubbings the Caps received. The two other games were close, competitive games, though, a 5-3 win for the Caps that included an empty net goal and basically a 1-1 game that went to extra shots in the shootout that the Caps lost. The other important thing to mention is all 4 games were before the trade deadline when the Caps plugged their biggest hole on the roster: #2 center.

For my answers to Joe's questions click here.

I was also lucky enough to put together a Rangers playoff preview for Nick over at Case and Point which you can check out here.

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