Antics, Maybe Some Hockey
I can’t speak for others who follow the game, but over here at the 4th Star the anticipation is actually quite high for the Washington-New York series. My gut is telling me that this has upset written all over it, what with the expectations sky-high for Alex Ovechkin and his young Capitals team. The Rangers, on the other hand, hand basically nothing to play for and a best case scenario for their ownership group would be the possibility of a Game 6 gate at Madison Square Garden.
There are a few factors working for the Rangers, though.
Henrik Lundqvist can win a game by himself on occasion and say what you will about the guy, but Sean Avery won the series against the New Jersey Devils last spring. He won it, pure and simple. He got in the head of Marty Brodeur early, forcing the NHL to put in a new rule as the series went on. Here’s what I’m thinking: If Brodeur, the most accomplished goaltender in the history of the game, was rattled by Avery, what chance does Jose Theodore have?
And speaking of antics, what kind of shenanigans does Ovechkin have in store for this series? Will Avery go after him instead? And if he does, will Alex the Great fall into the trap? How Rangers coach John Tortorella uses Avery in this series will be a big factor. Maybe even the determining factor. Rangers in six games. Wait…let me think about it again. Yeah. Rangers in six.
