The New York Rangers could be rebranded as the New York Ruffhausers after Thursday night.
That’s fitting, considering the Blueshirts crushed the Devils in a roaring 5-1 victory at the Prudential Center. The game featured two games and the intensity of a playoff rather than an actual first-round series. This happened between the two clubs 10 months ago.
This quickly became troublesome. There was blood drawn. The hatred was palpable.
And the Rangers did their part in a stubborn and smart way, leaving the Devils unable to get past the red point. It was a performance befitting a team on a nine-game winning streak.
Goalkeeper Igor Shesterkin was almost perfect.
He was dominant in this game, showing some swagger at the net that he once lost, but has regained 10 times that this month.
Shesterkin also had 39 saves and an assist on the night, snapping a five-game winning streak.
The Devils ran an incredible power play for an incredible 11 minutes, 52 seconds in a 60-minute clash across the Hudson River.
Still, 2019 No. 1 overall pick Jack Hughes sat out until the game got completely out of hand.
Instead, the Rangers’ 2020 No. 1 overall pick, Alexis Lafreniere, put on a show with two goals.
Both came from the flashy hands of top picks, but also from plays that required positional awareness.
