As Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette puts it, schedule is schedule, but the Rangers rose to the challenge of facing two of their toughest opponents who will likely be tied after the All-Star break.
This 3-1 victory over the Lightning at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night was preceded by a gutsy overtime victory over the Avalanche, where fans were impressed by the Blueshirts’ high-octane, low-scoring performance. I could see them coming out on the winning side and putting an end to the game. Tampa Bay has won three straight.
As a result, the Rangers recorded their own three-game winning streak for the first time since mid-December.
What is the common theme among the three?
Goaltender Jonathan Quick has found his spot between the pipes for three straight games for the first time since playing in four straight games in early November last season with the Kings.
Quick finished with 18 saves and held the Lightning in check until Brandon Hagel cut the Rangers’ lead to 2-1 at 5:29 of the third period.
Laviolette asserted that Igor Shesterkin “is still our player,” but the Rangers head coach won’t be able to find the net after his 32-save heroics against the Avalanche two nights ago. It was clear that it couldn’t be done.
Shesterkin is the only one who can stop the goaltending controversy from happening in Manhattan. He will likely get his first chance Friday against the Blackhawks in Chicago.
The pace of play was fast, but nothing major happened for either team in the first two periods.
But the Rangers happened to be more opportunistic.
Less than a minute and a half into the middle frame, Jimmy Vesey pops out on a two-on-one rush with Barclay Goodrow, keeps the puck for himself, and backhands Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilev. I dodged the ski and took the lead.
Then, both teams lost defensemen to injury, and there was a frightening scene in which Tampa Bay’s Mikhail Sergachev went down first.
The 25-year-old, playing in his first game back after missing out on a place in the last 17 with a lower-body injury, crashed to the ice after absorbing a reverse hit from Alexis Lafreniere near the corner.
Sergachev was taken off the Garden ice on a stretcher, clutching his knee in obvious pain.
Shortly after, the Rangers briefly lost Erik Gustafsson, when the Swedish defenseman appeared to take a puck in the face. Gustafsson returned in the third period wearing a full face shield.
With just over two minutes left, the puck popped out of a contest in the corner, and Johnny Brodzinski had no hesitation in putting it in the back of the net, giving the Rangers a 2-0 lead going into the second intermission.
The Lightning took penalties less than a minute after each of the Rangers’ goals in the second period, but could not accomplish the team’s goal. That said, the Rangers’ power play hasn’t helped their own cause either, and hasn’t in the past five games either.
The Rangers were 0-for-2 on Wednesday night, but are now 0-for-11 and have had the man advantage over their past five games.
But the Rangers’ penalty kill was successful late in the third period, fending off the No. 1-ranked Lightning’s power play.
These were important wins for a Rangers team that needed a confidence boost.
What the No. 1 team in the Tokyo metropolitan area must do is to stand on top of the team that tied for first place in the Central region and third place in the Atlantic region.
Rangers may be returning to the form that has seen them top the table since the start of the season.
