diff --git a/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.spec.ts b/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.spec.ts
index 5f10625f990a..d08dc5f8cf4c 100644
--- a/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.spec.ts
+++ b/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.spec.ts
@@ -72,6 +72,7 @@ describe('Scroll Dispatcher', () => {
 
       scroll.scrolled(0, () => {});
       dispatchFakeEvent(document, 'scroll');
+      dispatchFakeEvent(window, 'resize');
 
       expect(spy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
       subscription.unsubscribe();
diff --git a/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.ts b/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.ts
index 0e0e5b6aa1d1..177f830ac2c0 100644
--- a/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.ts
+++ b/src/cdk/scrolling/scroll-dispatcher.ts
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import {Platform} from '@angular/cdk/platform';
 import {Subject} from 'rxjs/Subject';
 import {Subscription} from 'rxjs/Subscription';
 import {fromEvent} from 'rxjs/observable/fromEvent';
+import {merge} from 'rxjs/observable/merge';
 import {auditTime} from 'rxjs/operator/auditTime';
 import {Scrollable} from './scrollable';
 
@@ -86,7 +87,10 @@ export class ScrollDispatcher {
 
     if (!this._globalSubscription) {
       this._globalSubscription = this._ngZone.runOutsideAngular(() => {
-        return fromEvent(window.document, 'scroll').subscribe(() => this._notify());
+        return merge(
+          fromEvent(window.document, 'scroll'),
+          fromEvent(window, 'resize')
+        ).subscribe(() => this._notify());
       });
     }
 
diff --git a/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.spec.ts b/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.spec.ts
index 3eab7427d48d..349b00efb186 100644
--- a/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.spec.ts
+++ b/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.spec.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
-import {TestBed, inject, fakeAsync, tick} from '@angular/core/testing';
+import {TestBed, inject} from '@angular/core/testing';
 import {ScrollDispatchModule} from './public_api';
 import {ViewportRuler, VIEWPORT_RULER_PROVIDER} from './viewport-ruler';
-import {dispatchFakeEvent} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
 
 
 // For all tests, we assume the browser window is 1024x786 (outerWidth x outerHeight).
@@ -33,10 +32,6 @@ describe('ViewportRuler', () => {
     scrollTo(0, 0);
   }));
 
-  afterEach(() => {
-    ruler.ngOnDestroy();
-  });
-
   it('should get the viewport bounds when the page is not scrolled', () => {
     let bounds = ruler.getViewportRect();
     expect(bounds.top).toBe(0);
@@ -106,37 +101,4 @@ describe('ViewportRuler', () => {
 
     document.body.removeChild(veryLargeElement);
   });
-
-  describe('changed event', () => {
-    it('should dispatch an event when the window is resized', () => {
-      const spy = jasmine.createSpy('viewport changed spy');
-      const subscription = ruler.change(0).subscribe(spy);
-
-      dispatchFakeEvent(window, 'resize');
-      expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalled();
-      subscription.unsubscribe();
-    });
-
-    it('should dispatch an event when the orientation is changed', () => {
-      const spy = jasmine.createSpy('viewport changed spy');
-      const subscription = ruler.change(0).subscribe(spy);
-
-      dispatchFakeEvent(window, 'orientationchange');
-      expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalled();
-      subscription.unsubscribe();
-    });
-
-    it('should be able to throttle the callback', fakeAsync(() => {
-      const spy = jasmine.createSpy('viewport changed spy');
-      const subscription = ruler.change(1337).subscribe(spy);
-
-      dispatchFakeEvent(window, 'resize');
-      expect(spy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
-
-      tick(1337);
-
-      expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-      subscription.unsubscribe();
-    }));
-  });
 });
diff --git a/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.ts b/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.ts
index 1643cf687da0..fbd55ad9e2d6 100644
--- a/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.ts
+++ b/src/cdk/scrolling/viewport-ruler.ts
@@ -6,49 +6,23 @@
  * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.io/license
  */
 
-import {Injectable, Optional, SkipSelf, NgZone, OnDestroy} from '@angular/core';
-import {Platform} from '@angular/cdk/platform';
+import {Injectable, Optional, SkipSelf} from '@angular/core';
 import {ScrollDispatcher} from './scroll-dispatcher';
-import {Observable} from 'rxjs/Observable';
-import {fromEvent} from 'rxjs/observable/fromEvent';
-import {merge} from 'rxjs/observable/merge';
-import {auditTime} from 'rxjs/operator/auditTime';
-import {Subscription} from 'rxjs/Subscription';
-import {of as observableOf} from 'rxjs/observable/of';
 
-/** Time in ms to throttle the resize events by default. */
-export const DEFAULT_RESIZE_TIME = 20;
 
 /**
  * Simple utility for getting the bounds of the browser viewport.
  * @docs-private
  */
 @Injectable()
-export class ViewportRuler implements OnDestroy {
+export class ViewportRuler {
 
   /** Cached document client rectangle. */
   private _documentRect?: ClientRect;
 
-  /** Stream of viewport change events. */
-  private _change: Observable<Event>;
-
-  /** Subscriptions to streams that invalidate the cached viewport dimensions. */
-  private _invalidateCacheSubscriptions: Subscription[];
-
-  constructor(platform: Platform, ngZone: NgZone, scrollDispatcher: ScrollDispatcher) {
-    this._change = platform.isBrowser ? ngZone.runOutsideAngular(() => {
-      return merge<Event>(fromEvent(window, 'resize'), fromEvent(window, 'orientationchange'));
-    }) : observableOf();
-
+  constructor(scrollDispatcher: ScrollDispatcher) {
     // Subscribe to scroll and resize events and update the document rectangle on changes.
-    this._invalidateCacheSubscriptions = [
-      scrollDispatcher.scrolled(0, () => this._cacheViewportGeometry()),
-      this.change().subscribe(() => this._cacheViewportGeometry())
-    ];
-  }
-
-  ngOnDestroy() {
-    this._invalidateCacheSubscriptions.forEach(subscription => subscription.unsubscribe());
+    scrollDispatcher.scrolled(0, () => this._cacheViewportGeometry());
   }
 
   /** Gets a ClientRect for the viewport's bounds. */
@@ -82,6 +56,7 @@ export class ViewportRuler implements OnDestroy {
     };
   }
 
+
   /**
    * Gets the (top, left) scroll position of the viewport.
    * @param documentRect
@@ -100,7 +75,7 @@ export class ViewportRuler implements OnDestroy {
     // `document.documentElement` works consistently, where the `top` and `left` values will
     // equal negative the scroll position.
     const top = -documentRect!.top || document.body.scrollTop || window.scrollY ||
-                 document.documentElement.scrollTop || 0;
+                  document.documentElement.scrollTop || 0;
 
     const left = -documentRect!.left || document.body.scrollLeft || window.scrollX ||
                   document.documentElement.scrollLeft || 0;
@@ -108,32 +83,23 @@ export class ViewportRuler implements OnDestroy {
     return {top, left};
   }
 
-  /**
-   * Returns a stream that emits whenever the size of the viewport changes.
-   * @param throttle Time in milliseconds to throttle the stream.
-   */
-  change(throttleTime: number = DEFAULT_RESIZE_TIME): Observable<string> {
-    return throttleTime > 0 ? auditTime.call(this._change, throttleTime) : this._change;
-  }
-
   /** Caches the latest client rectangle of the document element. */
   _cacheViewportGeometry() {
     this._documentRect = document.documentElement.getBoundingClientRect();
   }
+
 }
 
 /** @docs-private */
 export function VIEWPORT_RULER_PROVIDER_FACTORY(parentRuler: ViewportRuler,
-                                                platform: Platform,
-                                                ngZone: NgZone,
                                                 scrollDispatcher: ScrollDispatcher) {
-  return parentRuler || new ViewportRuler(platform, ngZone, scrollDispatcher);
+  return parentRuler || new ViewportRuler(scrollDispatcher);
 }
 
 /** @docs-private */
 export const VIEWPORT_RULER_PROVIDER = {
   // If there is already a ViewportRuler available, use that. Otherwise, provide a new one.
   provide: ViewportRuler,
-  deps: [[new Optional(), new SkipSelf(), ViewportRuler], Platform, NgZone, ScrollDispatcher],
+  deps: [[new Optional(), new SkipSelf(), ViewportRuler], ScrollDispatcher],
   useFactory: VIEWPORT_RULER_PROVIDER_FACTORY
 };
diff --git a/src/lib/tabs/tab-group.spec.ts b/src/lib/tabs/tab-group.spec.ts
index 0718faa6c7ad..a82befc61f89 100644
--- a/src/lib/tabs/tab-group.spec.ts
+++ b/src/lib/tabs/tab-group.spec.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,8 @@ import {async, ComponentFixture, fakeAsync, TestBed, tick} from '@angular/core/t
 import {Component, QueryList, ViewChild, ViewChildren} from '@angular/core';
 import {BrowserAnimationsModule, NoopAnimationsModule} from '@angular/platform-browser/animations';
 import {By} from '@angular/platform-browser';
-import {dispatchFakeEvent} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
+import {ViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/scrolling';
+import {dispatchFakeEvent, FakeViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
 import {Observable} from 'rxjs/Observable';
 import {MdTab, MdTabGroup, MdTabHeaderPosition, MdTabsModule} from './index';
 
@@ -18,6 +19,9 @@ describe('MdTabGroup', () => {
         AsyncTabsTestApp,
         DisabledTabsTestApp,
         TabGroupWithSimpleApi,
+      ],
+      providers: [
+        {provide: ViewportRuler, useClass: FakeViewportRuler},
       ]
     });
 
diff --git a/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.spec.ts b/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.spec.ts
index 564f6fe53cc9..64239dfc60a2 100644
--- a/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.spec.ts
+++ b/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.spec.ts
@@ -6,8 +6,9 @@ import {CommonModule} from '@angular/common';
 import {By} from '@angular/platform-browser';
 import {ENTER, LEFT_ARROW, RIGHT_ARROW, SPACE} from '@angular/cdk/keycodes';
 import {PortalModule} from '@angular/cdk/portal';
+import {ViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/scrolling';
 import {Direction, Directionality} from '@angular/cdk/bidi';
-import {dispatchFakeEvent, dispatchKeyboardEvent} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
+import {dispatchFakeEvent, dispatchKeyboardEvent, FakeViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
 import {MdTabHeader} from './tab-header';
 import {MdRippleModule} from '../core/ripple/index';
 import {MdInkBar} from './ink-bar';
@@ -34,6 +35,7 @@ describe('MdTabHeader', () => {
       ],
       providers: [
         {provide: Directionality, useFactory: () => ({value: dir, change: change.asObservable()})},
+        {provide: ViewportRuler, useClass: FakeViewportRuler},
       ]
     });
 
diff --git a/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.ts b/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.ts
index 17ceb10e02e6..00f0987bc69e 100644
--- a/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.ts
+++ b/src/lib/tabs/tab-header.ts
@@ -26,14 +26,14 @@ import {
 } from '@angular/core';
 import {Directionality, Direction} from '@angular/cdk/bidi';
 import {RIGHT_ARROW, LEFT_ARROW, ENTER, SPACE} from '@angular/cdk/keycodes';
-import {startWith} from '@angular/cdk/rxjs';
+import {auditTime, startWith} from '@angular/cdk/rxjs';
 import {Subscription} from 'rxjs/Subscription';
 import {of as observableOf} from 'rxjs/observable/of';
 import {merge} from 'rxjs/observable/merge';
+import {fromEvent} from 'rxjs/observable/fromEvent';
 import {MdTabLabelWrapper} from './tab-label-wrapper';
 import {MdInkBar} from './ink-bar';
 import {CanDisableRipple, mixinDisableRipple} from '../core/common-behaviors/disable-ripple';
-import {ViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/scrolling';
 
 /**
  * The directions that scrolling can go in when the header's tabs exceed the header width. 'After'
@@ -132,7 +132,6 @@ export class MdTabHeader extends _MdTabHeaderMixinBase
   constructor(private _elementRef: ElementRef,
               private _renderer: Renderer2,
               private _changeDetectorRef: ChangeDetectorRef,
-              private _viewportRuler: ViewportRuler,
               @Optional() private _dir: Directionality) {
     super();
   }
@@ -185,7 +184,9 @@ export class MdTabHeader extends _MdTabHeaderMixinBase
    */
   ngAfterContentInit() {
     const dirChange = this._dir ? this._dir.change : observableOf(null);
-    const resize = this._viewportRuler.change(150);
+    const resize = typeof window !== 'undefined' ?
+        auditTime.call(fromEvent(window, 'resize'), 150) :
+        observableOf(null);
 
     this._realignInkBar = startWith.call(merge(dirChange, resize), null).subscribe(() => {
       this._updatePagination();
diff --git a/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.spec.ts b/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.spec.ts
index 6328fc651918..e38e006ad6a0 100644
--- a/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.spec.ts
+++ b/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.spec.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,8 @@
 import {async, ComponentFixture, fakeAsync, TestBed, tick} from '@angular/core/testing';
 import {Component, ViewChild} from '@angular/core';
 import {By} from '@angular/platform-browser';
-import {dispatchFakeEvent, dispatchMouseEvent} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
+import {ViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/scrolling';
+import {dispatchFakeEvent, dispatchMouseEvent, FakeViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/testing';
 import {Direction, Directionality} from '@angular/cdk/bidi';
 import {Subject} from 'rxjs/Subject';
 import {MdTabNav, MdTabsModule, MdTabLink} from '../index';
@@ -22,7 +23,8 @@ describe('MdTabNavBar', () => {
         {provide: Directionality, useFactory: () => ({
           value: dir,
           change: dirChange.asObservable()
-        })}
+        })},
+        {provide: ViewportRuler, useClass: FakeViewportRuler},
       ]
     });
 
@@ -171,7 +173,7 @@ describe('MdTabNavBar', () => {
       spyOn(inkBar, 'alignToElement');
 
       dispatchFakeEvent(window, 'resize');
-      tick(150);
+      tick(10);
       fixture.detectChanges();
 
       expect(inkBar.alignToElement).toHaveBeenCalled();
diff --git a/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.ts b/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.ts
index 3e5e961d0f27..d247017fe418 100644
--- a/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.ts
+++ b/src/lib/tabs/tab-nav-bar/tab-nav-bar.ts
@@ -28,10 +28,11 @@ import {
 import {ViewportRuler} from '@angular/cdk/scrolling';
 import {Directionality} from '@angular/cdk/bidi';
 import {Platform} from '@angular/cdk/platform';
-import {takeUntil} from '@angular/cdk/rxjs';
+import {auditTime, takeUntil} from '@angular/cdk/rxjs';
 import {Subject} from 'rxjs/Subject';
 import {of as observableOf} from 'rxjs/observable/of';
 import {merge} from 'rxjs/observable/merge';
+import {fromEvent} from 'rxjs/observable/fromEvent';
 import {CanDisableRipple, mixinDisableRipple} from '../../core/common-behaviors/disable-ripple';
 import {coerceBooleanProperty} from '@angular/cdk/coercion';
 import {CanDisable, mixinDisabled} from '../../core/common-behaviors/disabled';
@@ -104,8 +105,7 @@ export class MdTabNav extends _MdTabNavMixinBase implements AfterContentInit, Ca
               elementRef: ElementRef,
               @Optional() private _dir: Directionality,
               private _ngZone: NgZone,
-              private _changeDetectorRef: ChangeDetectorRef,
-              private _viewportRuler: ViewportRuler) {
+              private _changeDetectorRef: ChangeDetectorRef) {
     super(renderer, elementRef);
   }
 
@@ -121,10 +121,14 @@ export class MdTabNav extends _MdTabNavMixinBase implements AfterContentInit, Ca
 
   ngAfterContentInit(): void {
     this._ngZone.runOutsideAngular(() => {
-      const dirChange = this._dir ? this._dir.change : observableOf(null);
-
-      return takeUntil.call(merge(dirChange, this._viewportRuler.change(10)), this._onDestroy)
-          .subscribe(() => this._alignInkBar());
+      let dirChange = this._dir ? this._dir.change : observableOf(null);
+      let resize = typeof window !== 'undefined' ?
+          auditTime.call(fromEvent(window, 'resize'), 10) :
+          observableOf(null);
+
+      return takeUntil.call(merge(dirChange, resize), this._onDestroy).subscribe(() => {
+        this._alignInkBar();
+      });
     });
 
     this._setLinkDisableRipple();