Top Of The Hill

The New York Rangers sit atop the Metropolitan Conference and blue shirt fans are thinking big things. Everything the Rangers have done so far this season says they should have these high expectations and the question is can they maintain their outstanding start.

As we know the NHL season is a long season with many ups and downs. The Rangers have had lofty expectations in the past few years and have come up short, so the hesitancy of fans is understandable, but for many, this year feels different. They are sitting at 11 to 1 to win the Stanley Cup, having recently leapfrogged over their tri state area rival the Devils. In the East they are only looking up at Carolina, Boston and Toronto.

Skeptics were weary of the Rangers taking a fall this season because of the age of their team and some pretty alarming holes. Those holes have proven to be almost non existent and a team full of veterans have been playing with fresh legs and a spirit usually reserved for younger teams. Defense has been the name of the game and the one thing that consistently plays all season long is defense. Offenses can usually get hot and cold, but defense is about scheme and effort, this Rangers team has both down pat.

File Photo

Consider this: the Rangers rank in the bottom dozen teams in the league for assists and in points. But, they rank 2nd overall in saves and top 5 in save percentage. That shows that teams can't seem to even get shots off against this outstanding defense, and when they do they meet a stone wall in goal. Anything can happen in a long season, but the blue shirts look for real and while defense plays over the course of the year, it especially stands out in the postseason. So, yes Rangers fans, it's time to get excited.