Rangers Return to Normal

After winning four straight games, it is safe to say that the New York Rangers have come back down to earth.

The team has lost three straight games to the Los Angeles Kings, New Jersey Devils, and Columbus Blue Jackets, respectively, and they lost in convincing fashion. In the three losses, the team was outscored by a 16-7 margin, and they did not look like a competitive team in any of those games.

For starters, the team's offense was lacking. Yes, they managed to score a combined seven goals in three games, but overall the team did not generate a lot of offense.

Against the Kings, the Rangers had just 22 shots. Then, against the Devils and Blue Jackets, they had 18 and 25 shots, respectively, which obviously is not enough to win hockey games consistently at this level.

Another problem the Rangers had in each of the three losses had to do with their defensive play. In addition to giving up 16 goals, the team hung both Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick out to dry, as they faced 26 (Shesterkin), 39 (Quick), and 37 (Shesterkin) shots in the games that they started in this week.

Effort was also an issue this week. The team did not battle for pucks, go hard to the net, forecheck, or backcheck like they were doing when they came out of the Olympic break and as a result, they dropped their last three games.

With all of this in mind, one has to wonder what changed going into this week. Prior to losing to the Kings, the Blueshirts came into it riding high after beating the Philadelphia Flyers (6-2), Calgary Flames (4-0), Winnipeg Jets (6-3), and the Minnesota Wild (4-2) thanks to timely offense and great goaltending from both Shesterkin and Quick.

One thing that changed is that two of the three teams they played are fighting for a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. During their winning streak, they beat a few teams who are not currently in contention including the Flyers, Flames, and Jets.

As of this week, both the Kings and Blue Jackets are in the thick of the playoff race. As such, the Rangers should have known that they would be in for tough games against them.

The Rangers also went out and played well during their winning streak because there is no pressure on them. They can play free and loose, since they are not making the playoffs this season.

When you play that way against good teams like the Kings and Blue Jackets, you are going to get burned. That is exactly what happened as the Rangers got outscored 10-4.

The Rangers are who we thought they were - a team that struggles to win consistently, does not play sound defensively, and loses hockey games. That is who the Rangers have been this season, so their four-game winning streak should be looked at as a tiny blip on the radar screen.