Don't kid yourself. The Rangers won Game 7 on Thursday night. Henrik Lundqvist dragged his team into the battle and emerged the victorious team in Game 7. Yes. Game 7. Lundqvist was great when he needed to be in the knockout game of the Eastern Conference Finals. Without Lundqvist, there's no trip to the Stanley Cup Finals for the Rangers. The King played his worst game of the 2014 playoffs in the Game 5 loss in Montreal. He was lit up, then lifted in place of Cam Talbot in that loss.
Lundqvist could not allow himself to lose two games in a row. He had to be better. He needed to be his best in order to avoid a trip back to Montreal. The King handled his business in his castle
This one save on Thomas Vanek in the second period inspired the Rangers to win the elimination game. The Hbs through everything they had at The King. He refused to lose.
Thanks, NBCSN
Lundqvist was yanked from his cage in Game Five after allowing 4 goals on 19 shots. On Thursday night, The King stopped all 18 shots he faced earning his ninth career playoff shutout, tying Mike Richter for the all-time franchise record. Lundqvist also notched his 42nd career playoff win, leap-frogging Richter for the all-time franchise lead among goalies.
Dominic Moore scored the only goal of the game late in the second period, as Montreal's Dustin Tokarski kept the Habs in the game with his 31 saves. New York blitzed Montreal on the shot clock, 13-5.
I tip my bucket to Lundqvist. He's an elite goalie and he deserves a lot of respect for his post season heroics.
Lundqvist never ceases to amaze. The guy deserves a all of the accolades that are being heaped upon him. He's a special breed of competitor.
Thanks, NBCSN
It was 20 years ago that the NY Rangers won the Stanley Cup.
Hey, you never know.
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The future is looking bright for the Buffalo Sabres' D corps with Mark Pysyk, Rasmus Ristolainen, Nikita Zadorov, Jake McCabe, and Chad Ruhwedel on the cusp of cracking the the Buffalo lineup. On Thursday, Sabres GM Tim Murray added another ass kicker to his blue line. Murray signed Austin to his three-year entry level deal.
Austin is mobile, agile and hostile. Another Mike Weber, if you will. I loved what I saw of Austin when I watched him up close at the 2013 Prospects Camp in Buffalo. He plays a solid gap-control game and has an active stick.
Austin scored a career high 33 points (9 G, 24 A) Belleville Bulls and the London Knights in 67 games this season. His career-high plus-51 rating during the 2013-14 regular season ranked sixth among all OHL skaters.
In addition to the Knights and Bulls, Austin also spent two seasons with the Erie Otters during his five-year career in the OHL. He has appeared in 322 career OHL games, registering 110 points (29 G, 81 A) and 194 PIMs
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