The Rangers parlayed a strong third period and special teams into a 4-2 win over the Hurricanes on Friday. Once again, the team fell behind despite solid pressure in the first and trailed by one goal into and during the third, before notching four markers in the frame to get the win. Lots of positives and some negative ones in the win, which I cover below.
Positives:
Special Teams - the addition of Martin St. Louis paid immediate dividends Friday. His patience on the 5-on-3 and cross-ice pass right to the tape resulted in Derek Stepan's game-winner. In addition, the Rangers killed all four of Carolina's power plays, for a total of 7:17 and notched their shorthanded goal in two games and second by Ryan McDonagh in as many contests. The power play saw Brad Richards and McDonagh at the points with Rick Nash, Stepan and St. Louis down low. (Update: Richards, who was slashed on the hand early in the third period by Eric Staal, had X-rays on his fingers last night, which fortunately came back negative. He was able to play through the injury and the Rangers can ill-afford to lose a skilled forward at this time.
Third period magic - under John Tortorella, we all believed that the third period was the Rangers. If they were up, lock in the win. If they were tied or down by a goal, no worries, somehow they would get even and then win it. This year, that has not always been the case, as the third period magic came and went too quickly, so seeing what they did Friday hopefully bodes well for the future.
Zucc - he and Benoit Pouliot were likely the team's best forwards Friday. Zuccarello did not appear to be inhibited at all returning from the left hand he fractured on February 16. The Norwegian Hobbit went strong to the net throughout the game and nearly had two goals, one in the first and third frames. The duo in the first sentence and Derick Brassard will remain together moving forward.
Negatives:
Even Strength Play - once again a lousy performance at even strength. It even got to the point, where coach Alain Vigneault, who has stuck with his lines through thick and thin, started shifting up combinations.Pat Leonard pointed out that in attempt to generate some scoring Zucc and Chris Kreider saw shifts alongside St. Louis and Richards with Carl Hagelin moving up to play with Stepan and Nash. In addition, he moved the defensive around, and while it helped, no one broke through until the third period.
Kreider - where oh where has Kreider's game gone? One goal and one assist since January 21, a span of 14 games. I am glad he is creating space for Nash and Stepan but he has to produce, or if not, at least look engaged. Lately, that has not been the case, and he played so poorly Friday that Kreider saw his minutes cut. If the Rangers had some real depth at forward, I would actually recommend sitting Kreider, but Dorsett really can't play on the first three lines and J.T. Miller has just been sent down and to keep jerking him in-and-out of the lineup is counterproductive for his development. So the Rangers are likely stuck with Kreider, who now is off the power play, with the second unit comprised of Dan Girardi and John Moore at the points with Pouliot, Zuccarello and Brassard down low.
Henrik Lundqvist and Penalty Shots - coming into the season. Lundqvist had stopped seven of 10 penalty shots and was a stalwart in shootouts. This year. Jeff Skinner's goal made opponents 4-for-4 on penalty shots against Hank and he has had his issues in shootout making 13 saves in just 20 shots. Maybe he is guessing wrong, or too passive after being too aggressive, but that aura of invincibility that he had in those situations is gone.
The blue line - another bad shift resulting in a penalty shot, this time on an Anton Stralman hook. Stralman took an Alex Semin shot to the left ankle, but is reportedly okay, so that can't be an excuse. Overall, the blue line had a so-so game, including Kevin Klein when matched up against Nathan Gerbe, and it may only be a bit of time before Raphael Diaz gets in the lineup.
I would also say the officiating, but that's been beaten to death already...
New York returns to action Sunday against the Red Wings in a game that is at 12:30, but will feel like 11:30am with the clock change. Detroit scored seven goals against NJ on Friday, led by two goals and two assists by new acquisition and Michigan native, David Legwand, and a goal and three assists by Gustav Nyqvist. The Rangers are just 15-15-4 at MSG but are 19-11-0 on the road, the best mark in the Metro, and will play 11 of their last 17 in their away whites. A big conference game Sunday, but we can almost say hat every game the rest of the way is big given how bunched up the division and conference are.