Former New York Rangers Center shares shocking take on how to find success during a Game-Seven
Photo credit: New York Daily News
Former Rangers center Brian Boyle's take on Game 7 puts the Maple Leafs' loss into an interesting context. Boyle believes you have to have the right mindset as a road team when you head into an elimination matchup.
While Boyle's take doesn't exactly sound right, it's becase the statistics aren't on his side, as only 83 of 201 NHL teams have won game 7's on the road.
Road teams have won 83 of 201 all-time Game 7s in NHL history (41.3 percent).
The Florida Panthers' win isn't exactly surprising, as they won their last game seven on home ice against the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup finals.
Boyle's experience extends back to 2015, when he was a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa defeated the Rangers on MSG, but would get blown out of the water in Game 6 by the Presidents' Trophy winners that year.
«We get back on home ice and try to put on a show and it was just a gauntlet, [Derick] Brassard had like nine points in the game (he had five; three goals, two assists). It's like, what are we doing here?,» Boyle said on the Morning Cuppa Hockey podcast Monday. «Everybody in New York was feeling great about themselves. That's sort of where I started realizing maybe Game 7 on the road isn't so bad.»
Game 7 on the Road at MSG would seal the deal for Jon Cooper's Lightning, where they'd leave it all out on the ice for a decisive victory.
The Lightning would win 2-0 and advance to the Stanley Cup finals that year against the Chicago Blackhawks.
«We were surgical. I don't think we had a ton of shots, but we scored a fluky goal by [Alex] Killorn a really lucky goal and then the second goal from [Ondrej] Palat and it was like we're done. Lock it down,» Boyle explained. «It was no-one's getting one by us.»
Boyle had learned his lessons a year prior with the Rangers. In 2014, he helped the team come from behind in the series and took it to game 7 in the second round. Boyle would score a goal and help clinch a victory over the Penguins 2-1 that year.
As Cooper told the Lightning a year later, just «give them one goal.»
There are many variables involved, but buy-in from the road team, along with pressure are two which can help shift the momentum in a series.
| POLL | ||
MAI 19 | 892 ANSWERS Former New York Rangers Center shares shocking take on how to find success during a Game-Seven Do you think center Brian Boyle, a former New York Ranger, has the right mindset about Game 7's? | ||
| Yes | 711 | 79.7 % |
| No | 181 | 20.3 % |
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