Why am I not surprised that Afinigenov scores the game winner only hours after I made fun of him!!! I was only able to watch the first few minutes of Game 5. I wish I could have watched the whole game. As a Sabbath observer, however, I don't watch TV on the Sabbath which starts at about sundown on Friday evenings. As much as I love the Rangers, I love my relationship with G-d more.
In the first few minutes of the game it was pretty apparent that the Rangers were off. You had to expect the Sabres to come out hard, but the Rangers uninspired play early on was a mystery to me. Since I didn't watch the full game I'm not going to comment on it. Instead let's focus on game 6:
The Silver Lining:
Game 5 was much more important to Buffalo than it was to the Rangers. Buffalo had just lost 2 straight games. By most accounts they were outplayed in Game 2 as well and could have easily been down 3-1 in the series. Lindy Ruff was clearly nervous heading into Game 5. A Game 5 loss in their own building would not have been pretty for Buffalo. Not surprisingly, Buffalo outplayed the Rangers and came away with the win. However, they needed a last second goal and overtime to beat a Rangers team that left its game in Manhattan. If I'm the Rangers I wouldn't feel to down on my chances. Buffalo needed to set the tone with a decisive win, instead they reinforced what the Rangers and their fans have known for a long time: we can beat this team. The Sabres didn't win as much as the Rangers lost Game 5. Which brings us to the keys to Game 6:
The Keys to Game 6:
The only key to Game 6 that matters is...... The New York Rangers. If the Rangers bring their "A" game they can beat any team in the league. It's all about the Rangers desire and willingness. If the Rangers show up and play, we win. If not, well, I'll have to start focusing on the free agent pool and writing about next season (which, by the way, should be a good one!).
Don't get me wrong, I'm not disrespecting the Sabres. They're a great team. Skilled, deep and fast. On paper they're the better team. But the playoffs aren't played on paper, they're not played in the regular season either. They're played tomorrow afternoon at the Garden. The Rangers have managed to put together a team with great chemistry and excellent intangibles, they're truly greater then the sum of their parts. As long as they show up hungry and willing to do whatever it takes to win, they will.
There is one big area of concern: Jagr. Apparently he was injured in Game 5. If he can't play effectively in Game 6 we'll have a problem. Jagr and the superstar factor he brings to the team is one of the Rangers' primary intangibles. If that's taken out of the equation, well, Uh-Oh.
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