This was a reminder of how fragile the pursuit of the Stanley Cup can be. This was a reminder that it’s impossible to wrap the Rangers in bubble wrap until the playoffs begin. It was a reminder that disaster looms around every corner, whether it’s a slapshot attack or a collision in the ice that causes collateral damage.
The Rangers appeared to avert an on-island disaster on Tuesday night as Mika Zibanejad appeared to escape a concussion following the trip. Splat! He first fell face down on the ice, and after colliding with Adam Pelech on the ice at 8:51 of the third period, he remained face down for a terrifying minute, either by chance or by faking it. It was a raft.
Head coach Peter Laviolette, furious and perhaps upset as he called a postgame press conference, said that Perek was facing Zibanejad as No. 93 walked across the ice to the bench to be substituted. There was no question in his mind that he believed the blow was intentional. That would have been polite.
“He came back at the end — oh, from that vicious hit,” Laviolette said of Zibanejad, watching the final moments of the 4-2 loss from the bench. “He came back from that bad shoulder. [and/or] Place your elbow on your head.
“Look. Vicious – from behind.”
Asked if he thought Pelech intentionally hit Zibanejad in the head with a defenseman standing at center ice while looking away from the play, the Blueshirts coach said, “I do.”
Listen, the impact of Ranger’s injury at this point in the game is obvious and more important than a point or two in the standings. With the loss, the Blueshirts’ division lead over Carolina was reduced to three points due to the Canes’ victory in Boston, but the Rangers still held a three-point conference lead over the Bruins.
So it wasn’t a particularly bad night for a Blueshirt team that is 24-6-1 since playing before the All-Star break. But it could break them. Not only was the seriousness of the injury to Zibanejad significant, but with 10 seconds remaining, Noah Dobson hit Vincent Trocheck from behind with the Blueshirts pulling away from Igor Shesterkin and trying to score the tying goal. I didn’t pretend to do anything other than crash through the wall behind me. . It was ugly.
Referee Kelly Sutherland and sidekick Peter McDougall abdicated. They made no calls as the Islanders swept in the opposite direction for an empty netter, cementing their place in the playoffs. This was also one of the reasons why Laviolette was furious.
“It’s vicious,” he said. “From behind. Both.”
And you know what? Tragedy was in front of Rangers fans of all generations at 5:15, when Zibanejad’s first-period slapshot caught Chris Kreider’s ankle, sending the winger to the room for several shifts. It flashed. Neither was he Dale Rolfe in 1972 against Jean Ratel that night when Zibanejad didn’t appear to have a concussion.
Rangers were caught with their pants down by a desperate opponent for the first 20 minutes and fell behind 3-0, but then built their game and dominated the final two periods. They competed hard and went into dirty areas, even if the talent game wasn’t at its peak.
The other team played hard, too, as Matt Barzal threw himself in front of Artemi Panarin early in the third period to protect a one-point lead.
Zibanejad had one of his most aggressive games in the first period against Montreal on Sunday, and after interchanging with Brock Nelson in the first period and jockeying for position, Zibanejad was attacked twice in the second period by Power. He also actively contributed to the play. Given that the power play is the club’s unique offensive weapon, six points out of 12 over the last four games bodes well for a group that features the club’s most productive players.
Laviolette put Matt Lempe in the seat and formed a check line with Barclay Goodrow, Johnny Brodzinski and Jimmy Vesey, playing against the unit of Barzal, Bo Horvat and Casey Cizikas. The matchup lines didn’t match up in this game. Laviolette will have to think carefully about the composition of his fourth line heading into the postseason.
So much of this season has been about the Rangers’ culture of unity. It’s the clichéd “all for one, one for all” mentality that has been preached by Laviolette and embraced by his players since day one.
“Tonight was tough, we had to go through everything,” the coach said. “But our players kept fighting until the end.”
That was the pride the Rangers spoke of on the night they avoided disaster.
