Winter Classic 2012: 6 Reasons Rangers Can Win the Eastern Conference

The New York Rangers currently sit atop the NHL standings with a record of 24-9-4 and 52 points. The Rangers hold the edge against the Chicago Blackhawks due to the amount of games played. It may be early to predict but the Rangers are playing really superb hockey.

With the Rangers firing on all cylinders, here are six reasons why the Rangers can win the Eastern Conference.

Defense

The New York Rangers up until today were playing with a rag tag clan of defensemen. Despite the deficiencies in personnel, the Rangers have only allowed 79 goals this season, second least in the NHL.

This is in part to the fact that Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh and Michael Del Zotto have really stepped up both aspects of their games. Girardi and McDonagh are playing 25 minutes or more every single night, and Del Zotto is logging 20 minutes or more.

Del Zotto is also currently second in the league with a plus-minus rating of plus-25

The fact that the Rangers are where they are now, despite plugging their defense with rookies and waiver pickups, is a really good sign of things to come. When the Rangers get Michael Sauer back, things could really get interesting

They, by no means, have the best defense in the league, but it has done exceptionally well given the circumstances. 

The Return of Marc Staal

Today, in what has become a Winter Classic tradition for the Staal family, Marc Staal made his season debut for the Rangers. 

This news, to quote Ilya Bryzgalov, is humongous big for the Rangers. With Staal back in the lineup, the Rangers will now have two shutdown defensive pairs. Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh and Michael Del Zotto have done a great job holding down the fort up until this point, but Staal will only help bolster the Rangers defense.

Staal is a long ways away from getting back to his usual 25-plus minutes of ice time but any and all contributions Staal can make along the way will only help the Rangers in their quest for the division title and Lord Stanley's Cup

Ability to Win on the Road

In the regular season and playoffs winning games on the road is very importance. If you can negate the opposing team's home ice advantage, you can really go places.

The Rangers have the second best road record in the NHL with a 13-6-2. The Flyers are the only team that has a more successful record. 

Since day one of the preseason, the Rangers have had to play on the road. This season the Rangers opened up overseas in Europe.  Despite all the traveling, the Rangers have been able to be successful at their homes away from home.

This will definitely play a huge factor in the playoffs.

Offense

To win a lot of hockey games, teams need to score a lot of goals. And Marian Gaborik has done exactly that.

The Rangers offense is led by superstar goal scorer Marian Gaborik.  He has 22 goals and 33 points in this season. These numbers are a lot better than what he produced last season.

The real surprises this season have come in sophomore sensation Derek Stepan and Artem Anisimov. As two-thirds of the G.A.S. line, the two have combined for 15 goals and 32 assists for 47 points. Each player is slowly but surely coming into their own in the Rangers lineup.

In addition to Gaborik, Brad Richards has really adapted well to life as a New York Ranger. He has 14 goals and 15 assists of his own as the Rangers' second line center.

His linemate and team captain Ryan Callahan has also had a great start with 13 goals and 16 assists of his own.

Even the defenders on the Rangers are putting points on the board. Michael Del Zotto has 22 points, McDonagh has 16 and Girardi has 13. When you look at the balance of the Rangers scoring, they are certainly a team that will be hard to shut down. Marc Staal in time will also really help the offense on the defensive side of the puck.

John Tortorella

Love him or hate him, John Tortorella has been the perfect coach for this team. HBO's 24/7  really did a great job of giving an inside look at how Tortorella runs his hockey team. He doesn't care that the Rangers are in first place of their division. He doesn't care that they have the best record in the East. He doesn't even care that they have the best record in the league.

In Tortorella's mind, today is only January 3rd and there is a lot of hockey left to play. Tortorella's ability to keep his team honest with itself has worked wonders. By being upfront and open with his team, everyone is forced to be accountable and pull their own weight.

The Rangers have a great coach who isn't going to let them coast despite their impressive record. To John Tortorella, the Rangers can only rest once the cup is in their grasp and even then he will have them back on the ice in preparation for next season.

Henrik Lundqvist

The Rangers arguably have the best goaltending tandem in the league. Henrik Lundqvist is widely considered to be the league's best goalie.

When you watch Lundqvist play, you can understand why he is so valuable to the Rangers. Henrik clearly has been the most valuable player for the Rangers this season. He has played a huge role in the success of this team. Lundqvist has a team first mindset at all times. He expects perfection and hates to fail. It is this mindset that puts Lundqvist in an elite class.

Lundqvist is 5-0-0 in his last five stars, and he has only allowed six goals during that span.

Lundqvist is now in the top five in goaltending statistics with a 1.92 goals against average and a .937 save percentage. but for every great goalie, there is a backup who stands behind him when he is called upon to do so.

Marty Biron is one of the league's better backups. 

Biron is the ideal backup goalie. He is a veteran player who has tons of experience in the regular season and playoffs. This experience allows bench boss John Tortorella to trust Biron whenever Lundqvist needs a night off.

In eight games this season, Biron is 7-1-0 with 1.84 goals against average. This dominance as a backup has allowed Lundqvist to remain fresh in the games he has played. The less Lundqvist plays in the regular season, the better off he will be in the playoffs.

No matter how you look at it, teams can never take a night off against the Rangers because it will be tough to beat the Rangers no matter who they have in net.

Biggest Threats to the Rangers in the Eastern Conference

1. Boston Bruins

The Bruins are the defending Stanley Cup Champions for a reason. They have a great goaltender in Tim Thomas, superb defense and very capable forwards.

The Bruins currently trail the Blueshirts by only three points in the standings.

2. Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers are still a very dangerous team. They have very dynamic forwards who can run up the scoreboard. If the Flyers can get some consistent goaltending, they have a fair chance to challenge the Rangers.

3. Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins despite their injuries so far this season have won without key players in the past. The Penguins have a great goaltender in Marc Andre Fleury, and if the Penguins can make a trade or two, they can really fight there way back into the division standings.

Tom Urtz is an NHL Featured Columnist.

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