In Spite Of It All

Rarely do the Rangers end up with the W after a game like that.

That the Rangers wind up winning this game on a Power Play is even more ironic.

Usually, FIVE  5-on-3s called against you in a game would end up as at least two or three goals against. From there, New York would find themselves scrambling for a tying goal in the final minutes. 

But not this day.

NYR penalty killers (and some guy named Lundqvist) were phenominal, surrendering only one goal in ELEVEN attempts. Blair Betts, Paul Mara, and yes, even Dimitri Kalinin deserve a game puck or something for their work on the PK last night.

Officiating on the other hand.... Hechting BRUTAL. (if you missed that reference then read back a couple of posts). It must have been so painful for them to be forced to make the call against Chicago in OT once Brandon Dubinsky's stick was snapped in half by a slash.

Still, What I like most about this game is the resiliency of the boys in blue. Instead of putting their guard down in frustration at the zebras, they bared down and got the job done in spite of it all. 

This is the HEART I have spoken about. The heart that sometimes goes missing for stretches of two or three games at a time. Consistency is key.

Anyway... 

This game goes to show exactly how important special teams are in this league. You win and lose so many games on the Power Play and the Penalty Kill.  Efficiency can be the difference between a 2nd seed and the 6th seed, and in the playoffs it can be the difference between a cup champion and a quarter-final drop out.

GAME NOTES

- Sure the penalty kill came up big last night, but the Power Play also went 2-6, which isn't terrible considering the struggles the group has had in the past. Not to mention that the two goals came in big spots, contributing the game-tying and game-winning goals.

- I get this strange feeling that Lauri Korpikoski is going to put up points in this league one day. His play yesterday to set up Dubinsky's goal was a move worthy of a 19th overall pick. Korpedo is still very young and he's starting to show flashes of breaking out of his shell a bit.

- As I mentioned, Dimitri Kalinin had a strong game in Chicago. His stick was active in the passing lanes on the Penalty Kill, and he actually cleared the puck effectively all night. Kudos to him.

- Dan Girardi's hit, in my opinion, was questionable in legality. Still, he rocked that guy. And it was fun as hell to watch. If this "upper body injury" (LOL) is anything that keeps him out of the lineup for an extended period of time, the Rangers will surely miss his presence on the blue line.

- How nice would it be to see Chris Drury go wild on goaltenders right now? Drury is a hot-and-cold player, and right now he's heating up with 5 goals in his last 6 games played. 

- Henrik Lundqvist. He's pretty good at this game.

- Pretty cool to see the Rangers' fathers in attendance. I bet it's just as special for the players right now as it was when my dad came to see all my games. Professional pro-shmessional. There's nothing like playing in front of your dad.

- The Rangers have now taken 7 of a possible 8 points on this road trip. They'll face an up-swinging Pens team on Sunday afternoon. A win there and we'll officially talk streak.

3 STARS OF THE GAME

3rd Star) Dimitri Kalinin (0 points). ::GASP!:: I know, I know. But the thing is that with Girardi's injury leaving the Rangers short a defenseman, Kalinin stepped his game up and was really, really solid in the d-zone. He's not gonna get many (positive) mentions in this blog so here's his day in the sun.

2nd Star) Chris Drury (2g, GWG). Captain Clutch is finally starting to show signs of clutch-ness. 5 goals in his last 6 is what I hope to see consistently from Drury. His two goals tonight were both well timed, and the guy is nasty at deflecting pucks.

1st Star) Henrik Lundqvist (32 saves, W). I don't care how awesome your penalty kill is, you don't kill off 10-of-11 penalties without your goalie standing on his head- and that's what the KING did tonight. He routinely robbed John Toews and Co. and held his team in the game so that a comback/win was possible. Gosh it's nice to have the best goalie in the league in your net.

The Rangers have now taken 7 of a possible 8 points on this 5 game road trip so far. They face an up-swinging Pittsburgh Crosbys team on Sunday afternoon, perhaps sans Crosby (knee/vagina injury). A win there and we'll officially talk streak.

-Rif