Rangers Punch Their Second Round Ticket With A Clean Sweep Of The Capitals

Scott Taetsch. Getty Images.

Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky. Caps tried to rope-a-dope the Rangers and lull them into laziness and complacency. Almost worked. After Nick Jensen handed Kaapo Kakko a free pizza in the slot less than a minute into the game, the Blueshirts basically shut it down for the next 40 minutes. Guess they assumed Washington was waving the white flag after forking over the lead so easily. But the Rangers lax effort came to a head on this inexcusable finish by Lapierre to tie the game in the second:

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I mean…THIS GUY SCORED. On a REBOUND.

I don't care that it was a long shift or there was an opportunity earlier to get the puck deep in the o-zone. And I'll give the kid all the credit in the world for getting off the initial shot. To allow him a second chance is the epitome of lazy and, like most of this game, is exactly how I didn't want to see the Rangers play like against an inferior opponent when the Carolina Hurricanes are likely waiting on the other side.

But I'm not gonna get picky or look ahead. Not tonight. Tonight the Rangers finished off the lowly Caps in four straight - exactly what any team trying to hoist the Cup should do in such a lopsided matchup. They made quick & easy work, losing just 2 of 12 periods played. 10 different goal scorers spread out among the 15 they buried. Shesterkin was outstanding when he had to be. The powerplay clicked at a 37.5% rate while the PK shut down 15 of 17 along with a pair of shorties.

Ovechkin was a non-factor, finishing off his 23-24 season with his second goose egg in the shot column & a mere 15:26 of ice time. For as much as I hate him, Tom Wilson was their only positive in the series. He was around the net a ton, got his shots off, threw the body like usual - but the Rangers never fell for the bait whenever he tried to change the tone. They stood up for themselves but remained disciplined enough to stay away from anything that might fire up an opponent desperately looking for any shred of an edge. When you're the far better team, you don't need to.

I can't believe I actually gave the Caps a game.

The Caps stink. STINK.

VIVA LA BLUESHIRTS!!!!