Alex Meyers at The Journal News has these quotes from Ranger players on the long break..."We've all gone through this before. It is what it is," forward Scott Gomez said. "Obviously, with the momentum, you'd want to get out and play right away, but that's not the case, so be it. Other teams are sitting around, too, so it's out of your hands and that's just the focus you have to have."
"There's good and bad to both," alternate captain Brendan Shanahan said. "I think it's nice to get right back at it, but also certainly there are some guys who enjoy the days off and a little bit of time to heal."
"I'm watching, but not so much about certain teams I'm going to face, but more that I like the game and it's really good hockey," goalie Henrik Lundqvist said (of the other playoff series).
"I don't think it's tough," Shanahan said of the break between games. "It gives us a chance to work on some things, to get some time off and add to our fitness. Regardless of who you're playing, we're working on our game and doing the things we need to do to be our best."
"What we want to do is make sure we're better in the type of game we play and pay attention to those details," Renney said. "I don't want to re-invent the wheel or do anything that's so extraordinary that it confuses people."
...I think the long break will do the Rangers good. Especially if we have to play an even more rested Penguins team in the next round.
...Towards the end of the regular season, the Rangers had a few long breaks in which they came out of them looking fresher than the other teams fighting for the last few playoff spots. This could ring true again if the Rangers play either the Canadiens, Capitals or Flyers, who all would be coming out of long grueling series.
...with a lot of key veterans on this team (Jagr, Shanahan, Straka), I think the extra rest will really help those guys if the next series goes 6 or 7 games.
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