These are the moments of truth for the Rangers as they attempt to nail down a playoff spot, and these will be moments of truth for the Ranger named Brian Boyle, whose game is made for times like these when the games get tight and who is facing free agency when the season is done.
“First and foremost, it’s about winning; when you set your goal at the start of the season, the only one you have is to be on a team that wins, be a part of it and get the opportunity to make a difference,” Boyle told The Post following Monday’s morning skate at the Garden, hours before the Blueshirts’ match at the Garden. “So whatever I can do at this point to make sure we get in [the playoffs], that’s what matters.
“But I’m also using my contract situation as motivation,” said the 29-year-old, who is working on the final year of a three-year, $5.1 million deal. “I tried to see what was up [regarding an extension], and they wanted to push it back, so being a free agent at the end of the season, I want to play well.
“It’s a huge incentive from a personal standpoint. There’s a lot on the line.”
The Rangers are currently in a playoff spot, but their hold is a tenuous one, even after sweeping their three-game trip to Ottawa, Columbus and New Jersey. Three points clear, the Blueshirts are once again on the bubble with the season growing short, just as they have been in seven of the last eight seasons.
It’s not the most comfortable perch in the league, but there are worse places to be with 10 games to go. Places like Vancouver and Long Island, for instance.
“We’d like to be in a better spot, but it’s counterproductive and a waste of energy to worry about that now,” said Boyle. “We didn’t get off to the start we wanted, and our record at home [16-16-4] isn’t at all where it should be, but the only thing we can do to rectify that is to take care of the final 10 games.
“A playoff spot is ours to lose. There’s no time and no reason to be discouraged. We’ve been playing pretty well for a pretty long stretch,” he said. “We want to try to keep climbing. Everybody needs to make a difference any way they can.
“You can’t worry about anything that’s come before this.”
Boyle has had a disappointing season, his role having been minimized in the transition behind the bench from John Tortorella to Alain Vigneault. The incoming coach places higher emphasis on skill, speed and offensive hockey than trench combat and circle-the-wagons play in the defensive zone.
Three years ago, Boyle had an apparent breakout 2010-11 season in which he scored 21 goals as a third-line center (and sometime second-line) while averaging 13:10 of ice time at even-strength and 16:44 overall. Those numbers have declined steadily, with Boyle this year averaging just 10:23 at even-strength and 13:41 overall as a fourth-line left wing. He has played fewer than 10 minutes in eight games.
“I’m not accepting of that at all, because I want more, but that’s the way it should be, isn’t it?” said Boyle, who has recorded five goals and 10 assists. “There are some nights where I played nine minutes and felt good about what I contributed and other nights where I got 10:30 and was pissed off. It’s been hard.”
Boyle, who has played on a line with Dominic Moore and either Derek Dorsett or Daniel Carcillo since the third week of December, has been a key member of the penalty-kill unit that is seventh in the NHL at 84.6 percent and has allowed only one power-play goal in 27 shorthanded situations over the last 10 games.
And he was very effective at even-strength in the weekend sweep of Columbus and New Jersey, strong on the puck and in the one-on-one battles that decided both of those contests. He looked like the Boyle who has elevated his game in each of the last three postseasons.
“I feel that this is my time of year. I like when the games get tighter and more physical instead of more wide-open,” the 6-foot-7, 245-pound Boyle said. “That kind of a heavy game is easier for me.
“I’m going to do whatever I can to increase my role. I just want to contribute. And win.”