New York Rangers - Mary Altaffer/AP Photo
Tonight is the New York Rangers game 7 in the 2023 NHL playoffs. The Rangers began the series strong, but let the Devils come back stronger. Saturday night the Rangers forced another game following a 5-2 win. Here is a look at what needs to happen for a New York Rangers game 7 win.
Rangers Game 7 Needs
The first thing the Rangers will need to do in order to get the win tonight will be to fix their shots. The Rangers had 23 shots against the Devils, in game 6, according to ESPN. The issue has been their accuracy. All credit to the Devils goalie, Akira Schmid, but throughout the series if the Rangers had more shots on goal, a Rangers game 7 may not have been needed.
There have been a number of times throughout the series where the Rangers had multiple players free to shoot. They need to be more focused to be able to get the shot. Sometimes the selfless pass is not needed and the players should just take the shot. The key will be to calm down.
New York will also need to get back on defense. The Devils’ offensive speed has been hurting them. If the Rangers can get back quickly to defend, they can cause more stress on the Devils. The Devils have not been great at keeping possession, what is helping them win is their speed. The Rangers need to get back quickly to prevent the Devils from skating around them.
The Rangers have a great goalkeeper with Igor Schesterkin, but he should not be the whole team. He can only do so much, and New York needs to clean it up so he is not the entire defense. The Rangers did much better with that in game 6, but tonight’s game is what matters the most right now.
In addition to that, the Rangers cannot slack. In games three and even four, it felt as though the Rangers were too tired. Game 6 the Rangers seemed a lot more energized, and it paid off. Luckily, there has not been a lot of traveling that is causing the lack of energy, but it will be an away game and the Rangers need to keep the energy high if they want to move on in playoffs.
The Rangers and Devils will face each other tonight at 8 PM to end this series.
