In New York, you can don’t need to imagine very vividly the end of the Rangers’ season. It happened on Tuesday night in a one-sided 4-0 loss to the Washington Capitals.
“Let’s face it, one team showed up ready to win, wanted to win a hockey game, and the other team didn’t,” New York coach Gerard Gallant said. “We just didn’t play well. We looked sloppy everywhere. Even the power play, missing shots, missing the net a lot. We just had a bad game.
Gallant added, “We were garbage tonight. We didn’t deserve to win.”
That just about sums up the effort. And it makes one wonder when the changes are coming.
Darcy Kuemper made 32 saves in the Caps win.
“I think coming off the break and being on the run we were before the break we just wanted to hit the ground running again and pick up where we left off,” Kuemper said. “When there is a little bit of rust after a few days I think you rely a little bit more on the team game. We just had a mature effort, no one was trying to do anything too much and we just played as a five-man unit at all times.”
Marcus Johansson scored all the offense the Caps needed in the first period for a 1-0 lead. The strike came off the power play.
“It’s just been good to kind of grow our game and I feel like get that swagger back into the room,” Johansson said. “When this group is playing like we are now we’re not real easy to play against and we can beat anyone on any given night.”
Lars Eller and Erik Gustafsson put the game away in the middle frame with a p[air of goals for a 3-0 lead headed to the third period.
“Those are big goals,” New York’s Jacob Trouba said. “I thought we could come out in the third and respond a little better. Did not. That was kind of the name of the game for us today, a little bit too sloppy. I think we all know in here that wasn’t us tonight, how we want to play.”
The Caps have won five straight.
“I thought ‘Kuemps’ saw them [the shots] and had a chance to read them,” Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. “That was the scout on it too, that they would bring it from the flanks, and they did. I thought the scout was really good just watching it this morning on what they’re doing.”
Igor Shesterkin made 26 saves in the Rangers dismal effort.
“Disappointing,” Gallant said. “Really disappointed in our group tonight. Played soft. We didn’t finish checks. We were reaching with sticks all the night all over the ice.”
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