The Rangers rallied from 4-1 and 5-3 deficits to earn a heart-stopping 6-5 overtime win over the Islanders at MetLife Stadium. In the standings, the victory - like all - is worth two points. But sometimes a single game transcends the impact on the record. Sunday, given the environment, looked to be one of those contests. The challenge now will be to maintain those good vibes Tuesday at home against the Stars.
A few thoughts:
1) Highlights: while the Devils and Flyers went with the whimsical approach, hitting the right notes, coming in as the Sopranos and Rocky Balboa. The Rangers and Islanders came into the Stadium on fire trucks, honoring the NYPD and FDNY. Taking it a step further, the Blueshirts wore red and blue jerseys, which is what the NYPD and FDNY wear on the ice. In further crystallization of this, after having Mark Messier and Mike Keenan address the team pre-game, Connor McDonald, the son of Steven McDonald, whose story and connection to the Blueshirts is well-known, was in the locker room with his mom, Patti Ann, and read the starting lineups.
That touch hit all the right notes. You could see the impact on the players and Connor is Rangers' royalty because of his father and the families' connection to the team. The team tweeted out the intro during the game, so I didn't see it until the way home, but it was a nice closure to a tremendous day.
2) Environment - I attended the game with several Islanders' fans. Irrespective of the end result, we all remarked how amazing the spectacle was and how this could be an annual event amongst the four teams. You likely would have to keep the matchups the same to maximize attendance and interest, but the fan bases clearly can sell out both contests. It's possible that outdoor fatigue will set in - or has set in for many - and the entry price is not cheap. In addition, the set up and logistics are major factors as well, but 150,000+ people had a weekend to remember while attending the two games.
3) Matt Rempe had an interesting debut. Another rookie lap, a fight to start his first shift and then the Broadway Hat. The impact of the fight was negligible at best, as the islanders reeled off the next three goals in the period after the fight. In addition, Rempe saw just nine shifts for 4:26 of ice time. But he likely got the hat for how his first game went overall and he certainly did not look out of place while he was on the ice on the fourth line.
4) The comeback - the issues we have seen in the past for the Rangers were on full display. Similarly, the never say die attitude and willingness to continue to push and fight back. One major positive that came out of the win was that the power play finally produced, though the last two goals came with a two-man advantage with the net empty.
After going up 1-0 following a good shift by the third line and point shot by Erik Gustafsson that beat a screened Ilya Sorokin, the Rangers play reverted to the areas of weakness. The Islanders used their speed to create odd-man rushes.The Blueshirts were being beaten in puck battles, resulting in the Islanders maintaining puck possession and generating several chances on a shift.. They were outdone in front of both nets, especially in the defensive zone, as the Islanders swarmed their tunnel rivals. When you looked up, the Islanders scored three goals in 3:24, including a pair 16 seconds apart, and that 1-0 lead was a 3-1 deficit.
Down 4-1, the Rangers tallied twice in the second to make it a one-goal deficit heading to the third. When the Isles went up 5-3 less than two minutes into the third, you could sense the panic level rising in the stands, which were 70-30 Rangers fans. The Blueshirts kept pushing and tallied two PPG in less than three minutes late in the period to tie the game, setting the stage for...
5) Panarin's GWG: - a bad turnover almost right off the overtime faceoff by Noah Dobson, who had three assists in the game, gave Panarin the chance. His first shot was stopped and second deflected, but had just enough to cross the goal line even though the net was off the moorings. A goal was the call on the ice, which was confirmed by the NHL situation room. The tweet below with the rule provides more clarity on why the goal counted. In the stadium, from watching the replay, I was waiting for the NHL to overturn the goal. I was happy to be pleasantly surprised.
ICYDK, Rule 63.7: if the goal post is displaced either deliberately or accidentally by a D player b4 the puck crossed the goal line b/w the normal position of the goalposts the Ref may award a goal if the attacking player had an imminent scoring opp. b4 the net was displaced. pic.twitter.com/DLLR3SL9RR
6) Laviolette made a few key moves in the win. First the timeout after the score was 3-1 to try and settle down the team, which was reeling. While the impact wasn't readily apparent, at least the score stayed there the rest of the first period. Second, pulling Igor twice to create a 5-on-3 and 6-on-4 advantages, allowing the Rangers a chance to convert both times. The isles' lack of an empty-net goal partially contributed to the decision, as did the time remaining.
Now, New York had a little bit of luck and skill the last five minutes. Adam Fox made a brilliant stop to keep the puck in the zone leading to one PPG, In addition, Cal Clutterbuck missed an empty net, resulting in the score staying at 5-3, giving the Rangers a chance. The big boys came through late, Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Panarin all scored to give the Rangers the comeback win.
7) Lines: caveat this that it's one game and the environment and situation resulted in changes, but Jimmy Vesey on the top line did not have the desired effect yesterday, I would expect the lines stay the same versus the Stars but that is not set in stone. GM Chris Drury is likely burning up the phones with less than three weeks to go until the trade deadline.
As Larry Brooks noted, "The Rangers have some calls to make in advance of Tuesday’s match at the Garden against Dallas. Vesey started on the right with Kreider and Zibanejad but got only the opening shift there in the third. That is when Laviolette began juggling, sending No. 26 back to the fourth line with Barclay Goodrow and Adam Edstrom while Rempe sat, Kaapo Kakko moved up for a spin and Panarin did some double-shifting with the BFF’s."
8) Shesterkin - the stats will look like he had a meh game. Based on the conditions, sight lines and shots that beat Igor, I really only question one tally, the goal by Bo Horvat. That score went between Igor's blocker and pad. Beyond that, it's hard to blame him for any of the other four tallies, especially seeing where they came from, including a pair of deflections.
During the game, you could hear the rumblings to insert Jonathan Quick. Shesterkin, though, made at least three ridiculous saves to keep the score relatively close and got better as the game wore on. Maybe he was slightly rusty after not starting for almost a week, but he answered the bell in the second and third periods.
9) Ryan Lindgren - roboman was injured again. Lindgren took a stick to the face while tangled up with Alexander Romanov, which resulted in Lindgren leaving the game not to return. To add insult to injury, the Islanders scored when Dobson's point shot deflected off Jonny Brodzinski's to ironically Romanov, who beat Igor in front. Lindgren was helped off the ice and reportedly needed several stitches and the area around his eye was swollen. Knowing his recuperative abilities, we all expect Lindgren to play Tuesday. But I wouldn't be shocked if we see Zac Jones or Connor Mackey.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»