Monday, January 2, 2012

1/2/12 Rangers vs. Philadelphia Flyers

Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

Rangers against the Philadelphia Flyers... in the 2012 NHL Bridgestone Winter Classic.

This game has had a wave of months of anticipation leading up to it, and now, the day is finally here. Once the rumors during the summer started circulating that these were going to be the two teams playing in this years installment of the Winter Classic, Rangers and Flyers fans have been giddy ever since. The addition of the second installment of the 24/7 series helped ignite the excitement even more, as fans got to go behind the scenes and got to see what it was like in a day-in-the-life of an NHLer in the middle of this rivalry between these two teams. Parties have been planned, jerseys have been bought, and the teams are ready to go.



The Rangers received some very good news from coach John Tortorella this morning, that for the first time this season, the defensive captain of the Rangers, Marc Staal, will be making his first appearance of the season in tonight's game. Much like his brother Jordan, who sat every game leading up to the Winter Classic last January, Staal has sat every game so far this season with sustained concussion symptoms that resulted from a hit from his other brother Eric last season. This is big, big news for the Rangers, as for the past few weeks, they have been depleted on the defensive front as Michael Sauer went down with a concussion, and Steve Eminger went down with a separated shoulder. Coach Tortorella said he was going to watch his ice time, and that he was not going to play on the top four line, but having Marc Staal in the lineup for the Rangers is going to be a massive boost for this team. As far as other positions go, Henrik Lundqvist is going to get the start, and there is a possibility of the return of Wojtek Wolski, who has sat with injuries lately. It was hinted to that Wolski might make his return today because of the waiving of Sean Avery, but it is not determined whether or not he will be there today.

As far as how the Rangers need to approach this game, the Rangers have won the past two game against the Flayers, first by the score of 2-0, and the second 4-2. In both of those meetings, and many wins so far this season, they have shown massive amounts of drive, and determination, and chippyness that has lead them to victories over these teams. The Rangers need that amp three-fold today if they want to beat the Flyers in Citizens Bank Park. The Rangers know what a big stage this is, and they know how well their team is performing at this time. In order to win today, they need to be the more excited team. They need to play every possession like this is the playoffs, and every defensive strategy like the Flyers took what does not belong to them. Marian Gaborik has been playing very well lately, Brad Richards has broken out of his point slump recently, and overall, moods are high in the Rangers locker-room. If the Rangers can stick to the game of hard-fought hockey, they can win in Philadelphia tonight.

The Diagnosis


The Rangers are adding Marc Staal, and the Flyers are putting Sergei Bobrovsky, backup for Universe Master, Ilya Bryzgalov. The Rangers have been able to get inside the Philly desense so far this year, and have performed at a much higher level on the defensive side against the Flyers. As far as conditions go, it will probably be a very low-scoring game from what I have gathered about playing outside. It is not easy when the elements are a factor of a game, and I think that is why it will be that much harder for these teams to execute than normal. It is going to be a fun game for all to watch, no matter which team you like.

The Prediction


Rangers win 3-1

Marian Gaborik will score the initial goal for the Rangers in the 2nd.
Derek Stepan will score the second goal for the Rangers also in the 2nd.
Claude Giroux will score the lone Flyers goal half way through the 3rd.
And finally, Brad Richards will score the empty-netter to seal a victory for the Rangers tonight in Philadelphia.

The Winter Classic is a celebration of hockey's origins, and I hope everyone enjoys the game today, and appreciates how lucky we are to watch suck an awesome spectacle of this great sport. Enjoy the game!

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