It is that time of year, where either your team is in the playoffs and the excitement is not there, your team is not in and you’re playing spoiler, or perhaps the most fun of them all, your team is desperately fighting for a playoff spot. The New York Rangers are the last; desperately fighting for the playoffs.
The Rangers faced off against the Atlanta Thrashers last night in hopes of putting a little breathing room between them and 9th place Carolina Hurricanes. Unfortunately though their hopes were just that, hopes, and the Thrashers are trying to play spoiler with a 3-0 victory.
The loss has now put Carolina in the driver’s seat as Carolina is currently 2 points back with a game in hand. If it plays out that both teams win all of their remaining games (Rangers 1 and Carolina 2), they will be tied at 93 points a piece. At that point the Carolina Hurricanes have the tiebreaker and will advance to the payoffs.
If you recall last year, the Rangers finished in 9th spot, just one point out of the playoffs. As close as that may sound, it was even closer as their final game of the season was against the Philadelphia Flyers. Both teams were going into the game with 86 points a piece, both fighting for the last spot. The game ended in an excellent fashion, going into overtime and finally being decided by a shootout.
You know the ending, the Rangers lost last year in a shootout and this year they could lose to a tiebreaker. A question of debate has come up over overtime receiving a point. Rangers head coach John Tortorella has been outspoken against the extra point. Would his opinion change if his team made it last year? Who knows. Will he curse the NHL if his team loses to a tiebreaker? Most likely. Regardless, these last few games will be pretty fun to watch. My vote is with the Carolina Hurricanes.
