Rangers vs Sabres.?

Question

do you think the rangers have a shot this year? they won against thrashers 4-0. but do you think they can keep it up?

Answer 1

I think it's going to be a great, close series. I'm a Ranger fan but I have to give the edge to Buffalo. I hope i'm wrong.

That being said, these posts are ridiculous. Anyone that says Atlanta was worse than the Islanders is just lying to themselves. Just because the Rangers beat a decent (not good) team, and the Sabres had a tougher time beating an also decent (but worse) team, doesn't mean the Rangers got a 'bye'.

Secondly, as other people have said, the season series doesn't mean much. And Avery doesn't belong in the NHL? He's actually producing significantly offensively. He's averaging almost a point a game since we got him, and more than that in the playoffs.

Also, the Rangers have a better record that Buffalo since Jan 1st. Just thought I'd throw that out there. Anyone who thinks this series will be four games (in either direction) is blindly following their team and knows nothing about hockey, or their opposition.

(And if Miller was in position when he should be, he wouldn't have had to make those insane saves in the waning seconds of game five. Miller is overrated. If the Sabres are going to win this series, he's going to have to stop giving up softies.)

I live in Rochester, I watch the sabres a lot. I'm a huge ranger fan, I watch the Rangers even more. I'm really excited about this series. I think it'll be exciting. I give the edge to buffalo, but maybe by like a 55-45 margin... it's damn close.

Answer 2

No, Atlanta was attrocious. Their goaltending was terrible, and their offense was almost non-existent. The Series win is deceiving, as the Rangers beat a team that had totally imploded.

And Clay - this isn't the Jim Rome Show, and you're not in the Smack-Off. Avery is a piece of garbage who doesn't deserve a place in the NHL. The Sabres have more speed than the Thrashers, and the big man (Gaustad) should be returning to the Sbares for Game 3. The Sabres 4th line (Connoly, Mair and Gaustad/Kotalik) is better than most teams second lines. Miller will be fine, as most of the goals he gave up were screen shots or defensive lapses in front, not his own doing. SO, when the Sabres beat the Rangers in NYC, where the fans have shown to lack class, you'll be seeing that your win against Atlanta and "Lettin-one-in" was nothing more than a dress rehersal for a series against a real team. And who would you rank second? Ottawa? With their boxer turned goalie who choked on a Pominville shorty last year? With a team who thinks that the way to win is bating the Rochester Amerks? Out.

Edit: Clay, the fact they gave a standing ovation to a team that just got swept may have had as much to do with the appreciation that the NHL, and their team, was back for the season. And I said NYC, not MSG, so this is a chance for Rangers fans to prove me wrong.

And Slim - I'm a former goalie, so I'm pretty qualified to make statements on goaltending. You can't really expect to stop what you can't see, even if you're positioned well. Besides, Avery is going to be a non-factor, because the Sabres won't buy into his BS. And considering the Rangers need that in their game plan to beat the Sabres, it's not really a likely thing to happen. The Rangers are getting too hyped and will fall like Ottawa did last season.

Answer 3

Lol, the disillusioned dreams of Buffalo fans are rather amusing.

The ONLY edge Buffalo has over the Rangers is speed. That's it. Rangers have the experience, great youth, more talent, and way better goaltending...sorry, but did you see Miller against the Isles? There were times he looked like a statue in net...either that or his reaction time was 2 seconds too late.

In three of the four regular season matches between the two, it took Buffalo OT to win, and that was when the Rangers sucked (not to mention Weekes were in net for 3 of the 4 games as well). Those 4 games took place before December. The Rangers have been the hottest team since the trade deadline. Period. Anyone who wants to think differently is just being foolishly naive (or stupid, take your pick). Furthermore, Lundqvist had the best GAA and Save % of the second half. So Avery had a huge part in the Rangers success, but he wasn't the sole reason. Even if Avery can't do what he does best (which I'm sure he can), the rest of the team hasn't exactly been slouching. In fact, there hasn't been one player playing badly. They're clicking on all levels right now, and that's what you want come playoff time.

Buffalo fans, you may be gloating and acting foolish on these boards, but I hope in real life you're preparing yourself for the inevitable disappointment. You're not the best team in the playoffs...you're not even the best team in the East. In fact, out of the 4 remaining teams, I'd put you tied for third with the Devils (and if Brodeur becomes the Brodeur of old, then you're fourth).

So Buffalo fans, you can keep living in la-la land for the next few days, but we all know how it's going to end...

Rangers in 6.

EDIT: RE: "SO, when the Sabres beat the Rangers in NYC, where the fans have shown to lack class"

Kaotik, don't mistake Islander fans for being representative of Ranger fans. You clearly know nothing about the Garden faithful if you say a silly, naive comment like that. Anyone who was at Game 4 last year, knows the true class of Ranger fans. How many other fans give a standing ovation to their team after a sweep? The only things we throw on the ice are hats....not our drinks.

Answer 4

The New York Rangers will give the Buffalo Sabres some trouble in the next round, but I do highly doubt that they will be able to win a seven game series against them. The Sabres were able to hold off the upstart New York Islanders, so they should be able to beat the Rangers. The Rangers ended up breezing past an Atlanta Thrashers team that had never been in the playoffs in their team history until this year. The only playoff experience they had was their coach, Bob Hartley, Johan Hedberg (their backup goaltender), Keith Tkachuk, Scott Melanby, Alexei Zhitnik and Greg DeVries, and maybe a couple of other players. Not too much playoff experience there, while the Rangers had Jaromir Jagr, with plenty of playoff experience (not to mention 2 Cups), Brendan Shanahan, with 3 Cups from his days in Detroit, plus many other players who were apart of that dreadful 4 game ousting at the hands of the New Jersey Devils last year. Also, Sean Avery was able to get under the skin of every Atlanta Thrasher enough to throw them completely off their game. Expect him to do similar things in this series. The only thing is, it might not be as easy for him to succeed, with so many players being offensive juggernauts on the Sabres, meaning that there will be too many players for Sean Avery to intimidate all by himself in this series. Plus, Buffalo has a mentality of beating teams with their offensive play, not entirely with physical dominance. Also, the goaltending of the Sabres is just slightly better than that of the Rangers, with Ryan Miller having more experience in big game situations in the playoffs than Henrik Lunqdvist, having gone all the way to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals last year. And, this is a Buffalo Sabres team that has played all season with the objective of winning the Stanley Cup and doing whatever it takes to win it, so they will not be a team to mess with in these playoffs. It will be hard for any team in the Eastern Conference to beat these Sabres, not just the New York Rangers, though it will be much harder for the Rangers than any other team that's left in the playoffs in the East. Buffalo will win this series, but the Rangers will give them a good fight. Sabres in 5 or 6.

Answer 5

Rangers

Answer 6

this is to the idiot who said that Holmquist will get lit up...he already did, by the Devils. Lunkquvist maybe? But still, no. He will be solid but the Sabres are still going to find a way to win.

If the Rangers are relying on Avery to spook Drury and Briere youve got to be joking. If youre going to rely on anyone, rely on the goalie that saved your sorry asses every game, rely on the scorers to get past an overrated Ryan Miller, rely on the defense to help Henrik, rely on special teams to cover you mistakes and exploit theirs. Wow, i can picture this now: "All right men here's the play. Jagr, skate and shoot and try to score. Lunkquvist, dont suck, and Avery...you have the most important job...Go up to Briere and tell him his mom is a fat hore. Ready break!" The Rangers would have gotten killed by any other team in the East. The Pens couldve beaten them in 4 or 5. If the Devils played the Thrashers, Atlanta would have sucked so bad, Bettman would have called the series after 2 games and pretty much say the Thrashers were screwed right there. Anything can happen, excpet NYR beatting Buffalo.

Answer 7

Winning against the Thrashers is not a very good measuring stick. The Thrashers sucked more than the Rangers were good. So it is hard to tell. If Lundqvist continues to play like the next Eddie Giacomin, anything can happen. Buffalo will be their first real test. That's a really good team. If you can beat them, you might be able to beat anyone.

Answer 8

Its going to be a good series, but like the other NY team, the Rangers will fall. They don't have the scoring depth that Buffalo has. I saw on VS. last night during the Redwings game that Buffalo's top 3 lines (forwards alone) had over 70 goals each line. The Rangers don't have anything that can compair. I'm hoping for a good series, with my Sabres winning it in 5 or 7. They will save it for a home ice win, they love to put on a show for us fans!

Answer 9

Buffalo's got a deep team from offense to goalie no question. they took the season series against the Rangers in a sweep..BUT that was the Rangers of old..the new revamped Rangers are extremely dangerous. Every player from Jagr to Colton Orr are playin smart physical hockey and are playin with heart. The Rangers defense is hustling non-stop not giving up on any play despite having an inexperienced Defense. You gotta give credit to the rangers, they have a REAL legitimate shot

Edit: i love reading all these responses sayin that atlanta was an easy team and we won by fluke and have yet to face a real team. Think about who it was you faced in the first round. The sabres have yet to face the hottest team. They can gloat about their ryan miller all they want blaming a "defensive lapse" or a screenshot being the reason he let any in. Yea your right but thats when the GOALIE has to step up and stop it not rely on a straight forward open ice shot. Give me a break.

Answer 10

I think the Rangers are playing their best hockey of the year... good timing! I don't think they'll beat the Sabres though. Seriously... if you're relying on Sean Avery to irritate the Sabres into submission, you're barking up the wrong tree. These guys don't get rattled that easily, and they have ultimately too much talent for the Rangers to overcome. I still think this goes 7 though... should be a fun series to watch!