Rangers need stars to step up and close out Hurricanes, not panicky lineup changes

Opinions are running wild about what the Rangers should do in the aftermath of Monday's punchless 4-1 Game 5 loss to the Hurricanes, with has both the Blueshirts and their fans sweating for the first time in these playoffs.

They'll head to Carolina for Game 6 on Thursday at 7 p.m. with a 3-2 lead in this second-round series, but as losers of two straight with momentum slipping through their fingers.

Game 5 was easily the most lopsided result so far, leaving the Rangers to try and right the ship at PNC Arena, where the Canes are 16-5 in the last three postseasons combined. Should they fail, they'll be staring down a do-or-die Game 7 while trying to avoid becoming the fifth team in NHL history to blow a 3-0 series lead.

"Desperation is a funny thing. You can't give it to somebody. You actually have to feel it, and you have to be in it," New York coach Peter Laviolette said on a conference call with reporters Tuesday. "As we move into the next game and you realize now that the window’s a little smaller, that desperation level rises."

Game 5 takeaways: Third-period implosion dooms Rangers

It would certainly help to have Filip Chytil and his scoring upside back after he missed the previous two games due to illness. He's considered a real option after skating with the team Monday morning, with a person close to the situation telling lohud.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, that the illness is not related to the suspected concussion that kept him out for over six months already this season.

If Chytil can't go, the debate will rage among the fan base over trusted-but-limited veteran Jonny Brodzinski vs. energetic-but-raw rookie Matt Rempe for the final spot on the fourth line.

"When (Rempe) has been in the lineup, our team has found ways to win, and he's had a good impact," Laviolette said. "I think Jonny the same thing when he comes in. They’re totally different players. They bring different elements, and they're both options for us when we're in the series here. I thought they both have done a good job, and we make decisions as we move game to game."

The guess here is that it would be Brodzinski to guard against Canes coach Rod Brind'Amour exposing Rempe with the benefit of last change on home ice, but neither forward is likely to log over 10 minutes or play a significant role.

And, no, I don't foresee Laviolette turning to 23-year-old defenseman Zac Jones at this stage. Based on his strong finish to the regular season, you could have made a case for him to begin the postseason on the bottom pair over veteran Erik Gustafsson, who's had some ups and downs this season. But asking the 5-foot-10, 176-pounder to make his playoff debut in this setting after more than a month of inaction would be a very tall order.

It's also hard to argue that changing the 12th forward or sixth defenseman will make a tangible difference series. Sure, the Rangers could use more secondary scoring to take some of the burden off their top players. But those decisions are far less consequential than what those aforementioned stars do in the next game (or two).

As has been the case since this run of three consecutive postseason appearances began, the Blueshirts will only go as far as their talented core takes them. That's been painfully obvious in the last two losses, during which five of their top-six forwards and each of top-four defensemen failed to record a goal.

It was a much different story when things were rolling and they were winning seven in a row to open the playoffs. Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad were each red hot and garnering early Conn Smythe love, Chris Kreider was doing his thing with four timely goals and a high motor, and while Artemi Panarin wasn't lighting it up at five-on-five the way he did during an award-worthy regular season, each of his four playoff goals have registered as game-winners.

Now they've gone cold, particularly Panarin. He was held without a point in each of the two losses while posting an unsightly minus-five rating. That's largely because of some very noticeable defensive-coverage lapses from No. 10, with the Canes finding those holes and exploiting them.

On the other end, Carolina has been smothering the 32-year-old winger. He registered a combined two shots on goal in Games 4 and 5, with an additional six attempts blocked. This comes after a regular season in which he set a new career high by averaging 3.68 SOG per game.

As a result, with Panarin on the ice at 5v5 in this series, the Rangers are being outscored, 7-4, and outshot, 47-34, according to Natural Stat Trick.

"I don't have a lot to gripe about that other than we could have been a little bit tighter defensively in the first period (of Game 4)," Laviolette said when asked about Panarin's play. "And then (Game 5), it's just tough to get a real evaluation, I don't think, for anybody."

Panarin needs to get back to his dynamic offensive ways without sacrificing defense, but at least he's had some clutch moments in these playoffs.

The star who seems to be struggling the most is Adam Fox, fueling belief that the Rangers' No. 1 defenseman is playing through an injury that dates back to a leg-on-leg collision with Washington Capitals defenseman Nick Jensen in the previous series.

The former Norris Trophy winner has only posted four assists through nine playoff games, with none coming in the last three games. He's got a minus-four rating for the series, with New York losing the high-danger scoring chance battle, 14-7, while he's on the ice at 5v5.

"I do think there's a lot of things that happen that aren't always reflected on the scoresheet, and I do think that he's contributed in a lot of different ways," Laviolette said in defense of Fox. "Again, (Game 5) was tough for everybody, so move past that one. ... Everybody can be a little better coming off the performance (Monday) night – not talking about Adam, but just in general."

Fox continues to lead Rangers' skaters with an average of 23:27 time on ice per game, but he's been noticeably hunched over − either in pain, or just gassed − on a handful of occasions at the end of his shifts.

Credit No. 23 for playing through whatever is ailing him, but it will be harder for the Blueshirts to go on a deep run if he's not the playmaking force we've known him to be since arriving in New York as an unfazed rookie in 2019.

The list goes on, with all six defensemen combining for just 14 points through nine playoff games and none generating an xGF higher than K'Andre Miller's 48.83%. But if you re-watch many of the recent defensive breakdowns, it usually starts with a mistake from a forward or two.

The silver lining is that the Rangers tended to self correct whenever these dips happened during the regular season, which was brought up several times following Game 5's dud performance. They don't have a lot of time to get it done, but it falls on the core of go-to players − who are now on their third coach in the last four years − to lead the way through the postseason's first patch of adversity.

"There's been games this year where we haven't played well, and the guys responded with a much better effort the next game," Laviolette said. "So, there's some history there. We’ll look to take the day (Tuesday) to reset, get in good work (Wednesday), and then be ready."

Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Rangers need stars to step up and close out Hurricanes