Rangers-Senators Postgame Notes & Quotes

James G had a family emergency last night. Everyone is OK, but there’s not going to be a review. I’ll update this with some of the quotes from after the game, but my general impression after watching this game was that our team still has a long way to go this season. We are still very one-dimensional as an offense and need to be able to play more than one kind of game in order to have more consistent success. We are also in a bit of a slump; 2-3-1 in our last six.

The Postgame notes and quotes are from the Rangers, via my anonymous source  the quotes I don’t usually get, but I’m glad I got them for today when I don’t have a review.

Postgame Team Notes
– TWO GOOD – The Rangers have allowed two goals or fewer in regulation/overtime in 15 of their last 20 games, dating back to Oct. 19 vs. Detroit.
– SHOOTING GALLERY – The Rangers registered 33 shots on goal in tonight’s contest. New York has recorded at least 30 shots on goal in three of the last five games and in 10 of 23 contests in 2016-17.
– HOT AT THE DOT – New York won 30 of 55 faceoffs in tonight’s contest (54.5%).
– FULL HOUSE – Tonight’s game was the Rangers’ 198th consecutive regular season sellout and the Blueshirts’ 239th consecutive sellout (regular season and playoffs combined). The Rangers’ sellout streak dates back to Nov. 3, 2011.
– Antti Raanta stopped 18 of 20 shots he faced in the contest. Raanta has posted a 4-1-0 record, along with a 1.71 GAA and a .945 SV% in his last six starts. In addition, he has posted a 2.05 GAA and a .934 SV% over his seven starts in 2016-17.
– Derek Stepan led all skaters with 16 faceoff wins and won 76.2% of faceoffs he took (16-for-21) while logging 20:46 of ice time. Stepan’s 16 faceoff wins in tonight’s contest were tied for the third-most he has registered in one game in his NHL career. He has won 62.7% of faceoffs he has taken over the last four games (47-for-75).
– Ryan McDonagh was credited with four blocked shots and registered two takeaways while skating in a team-high 26:00 of ice time. McDonagh has led the Rangers in ice time in 22 of the team’s 23 games this season.
– Alain Vigneault coached his 269th career game with the Rangers in tonight’s contest, tying Colin Campbell for ninth place on the franchise’s all-time games coached list.

Postgame Quotes:

Alain Vigneault, New York Rangers head coach

On tonight’s game:

This is the type of game we expected. (Ottawa) is a real tight-checking hockey team, clogging up the neutral zone, clogging up the front of their net. We knew there weren’t going to be a lot of grade-A opportunities. They were able to get their first goal on a mistake in front of our net and they were able to score one that hit the referee, so then they had a 2-0 lead. They were making it very difficult for us to build any type of speed or transition through the neutral zone. So give them credit, they played a strong checking game and made it very hard on us tonight to get anything as far as grade-A opportunities.

On the power play:

The first two power plays I liked some of the looks we got. Our execution the last two wasn’t what it needed to be. Power plays are about execution and quick releases and getting pucks to the net. Five-on-five I think you have to give them credit. They did a real solid job.

On J.T. Miller:

I thought tonight he worked hard. He took a shot from Zuke off the front of his leg where he missed a 7-8 minute period there where he had to get stitched up, but I thought for the most part he tried hard.

Guy Boucher, Ottawa Senators head coach

On playing back to backs:

We had a real terrific buy-in for a while now and I think tonight was a back to back for us, we came in late last night but even more difficult I find is the three in four nights. Sometimes you get a back to back and you’re home and you’ve been home for a while, you had a break for 2,3 days before and then you get a back to back it’s one thing. But to have to play here back to back on the road and get a team that’s been firing from all cylinders and one of the best offensive teams in the league and to get a shutout you can’t ask for better.

On switching back-ups:

You always consider your back-ups for back-to-back games, whether it’s the first or the second. We played really well defensively yesterday and the previous days. Anderson felt he had the energy and he wanted it and we know he’s going to be missing some games pretty soon, so he wants to play all the games while he can. He wanted this one and you can see what happens when your number one wants to play, you can’t say no.

Ryan McDonagh, New York Rangers defenseman

On tonight’s game:

We are a team that likes to create on the rush and they didn’t give us many opportunities to do that. They didn’t turn pucks over; they made sure they got pucks in deep. They made us go the full length of the ice for the majority of the game and they had numbers back. But in the end we have to find a way – some in-zone plays, running our cycles, getting pucks up top, and getting shots down at the net. There are other ways to create offense and that was a test for us tonight that we didn’t accomplish.

More on tonight’s game:

We certainly worked hard. I think one miscue in our own zone there where we were caught away from the net, and obviously a tough bounce on the penalty kill hit the ref and created an odd-man look for them. Certainly we want to be a little bit sharper in our special teams. I think that would have helped give us some momentum and backed them off with some early power plays there. In the end we have to continue to find ways to create offense in different fashions for us.

On the lack of offense recently:

Obviously teams have seen a lot of us now. You might be seeing teams for a second time now at this point in the season. They understand our speed game is a big strength of ours. It is up to us defensively in units of five creating those turnovers and not spending a lot of time in our zone and us moving the puck up to our forwards quick, catching them when they are not in their structure. That was something we probably could have tried to do a little bit more tonight but they had numbers back. But at the same time [we could] try and spark a long pass, create a turnover before they can get in their setup. But credit them, they played a well-structured road game.

Antti Raanta, New York Rangers goaltender

On tonight’s game:

I think nothing today really surprised us. They were five guys doing a really good job in their own end, blocking lots of shots. In the second period they got their early goal there and after that it was a battle to get the pucks through and try to get the scoring chances. Their goalie played a great game and he has been one of the best goalies early in this year. He was good, but when you’re in the other end you also want to do those game savers and I just couldn’t do them tonight. So 2-0 was the score when the game ended.

On the puck going off the official on Stone’s goal:

That’s hockey, sometimes it can bounce from the glass or like that. It was just a broken play and they got a quick shot there. Some of those shots you want to make the save from the short side. It was a bad bounce there. I think we tried to come back and we got lots of shots in the third period, but I think they did a good job in their own end. They were blocking lots of shots. You just have to give them a little bit of credit also.

On Ottawa’s defensive play tonight:

You could see whenever we got the puck in our own end and tried to go to their end, there were four or five guys all the time underneath the puck. They did a great job there. Some days you try to get everything out of your system, but the other team is just playing defensively so good that you don’t get too many great scoring chances. But their goalie played a great game also, so you have to give him a little bit of credit also.

Derek Stepan, New York Rangers forward

On tonight’s game:

We had a couple power plays with some open nets and when a team is playing that good defensively – they didn’t make a single mistake – you have to execute perfectly all the way to your dumps. We just were a little off and they defended extremely well and that’s the story tonight.

On Ottawa’s defensive play tonight:

Zero mistakes. They didn’t make one all night and the two that they did make we had our chances and it didn’t end up in the back of the net. They get a goal in the second and they get one off kind of a bad bounce, but at the end of the day you don’t win any hockey games with zero goals.

On the power play tonight:

We had the puck the whole time and it’s really difficult when they’re in the lanes. It’s hard to generate what you’re trying to accomplish. Give them credit tonight. They were perfect defensively, and when they are perfect defensively, you have to execute perfectly.

Derick Brassard, Ottawa Senators forward

On returning to Madison Square Garden:

That was a nice ovation. I’m really thankful for the fans here and for appreciating my work here the last four years. For us as a team, we played really strong. We didn’t try to open up too much. We know they have a really good offense. We play to stretch our game and we played that way for sixty minutes.

On playing a complete game:

That was our game plan this morning. I think they’re the best offensive team in the league. For us we couldn’t change anything. That’s how we’ve been playing all season long. We played really well defensively. We didn’t give anything to the other team. I know this building pretty well. After one or two periods, the crowd was pretty frustrated. It was a really good effort on both ends.

Craig Anderson, Ottawa Senators goaltender

On getting a shutout:

It’s just one of those things where you try to stay in the moment as best you can and focus on the next shot. It’s all about the mental game at that point. Staying focused and giving yourself the right messages.

On playing a complete game:

It’s one of those buildings where you know there’s a lot of history. They have a great team over there. It’s one of those things you get up for. Historic buildings, who knows how long they’ll be around for. You’re fortunate enough to be a part of it. That’s the way I address that mentally.