The problem is hardly a new one for the Rangers: How do they get more goals?
They enter tonight’s game in Dallas (8:30, MSG2, WABC 770 AM) losers of three straight, having scored two goals or fewer in each game. And they’ve scored the least amount of goals of any of the teams currently in playoff position in the Eastern Conference.
“It’s real frustrating,” Markus Naslund said. “I think we have to have a different mindset and come in with more confidence.”
He also pointed to a desire to gain more chemistry with his linemates. Yesterday, coach Tom Renney opted to put Aaron Voros on the same line as Naslund and Scott Gomez.
“I may want to see what that looks like,” Renney said. “[Voros] does go to the net, so that makes it simple for who he’s playing with.”
But none of the other lineup tweaks the coach has made this year have sparked an offensive outburst and there’s little reason to believe this one – if it’s even used in a game – would, either. Renney, who put his players through a punishing practice on Wednesday, doesn’t feel the need to overreact, since he believes that the team has played pretty well of late.
And while the results haven’t been there the past three games, the Rangers have typically responded this year.
“This is not our first hurdle this year,” Renney said. “And we’ve handled it pretty well.”
At some point, though, the Rangers would no doubt like to go back to actually scoring some goals, to relieve some pressure on their defense – which has been improved of late – and Henrik Lundqvist, who missed practice yesterday with the flu, but is expected to play tonight.
“We’ve been squeezing the sticks,” Naslund said. “And we don’t want to rely on those guys too much.”
“You test your resolve under these circumstances,” Renney said. “In the playoffs, you’re not going to see 6-5 games. We’ve been playing playoff hockey most of the season. I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
Perhaps not, but it isn’t easy to play that way for an entire year and Renney acknowledged that could have an impact on his team.
“It might,” Renney said. “It gets heavy.”
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Defenseman Paul Mara was out yesterday with the flu and the Rangers recalled Corey Potter from Hartford in case he is needed tonight. Dmitri Kalinin did not practice and will not make the trip.