For a Rangers team that can not match either weapon, NY must find a way to disrupt Pittsburgh’s defenders and somehow beat rookie Matt Murray, who has given up only one goal early in the second period of Game 3.
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Evgeni Malkin scored two goals and set up two others and the Pittsburgh Penguins pushed the New York Rangers to the brink of playoff elimination with a 5-0 victory Thursday night. In the last two games the Rangers had four power plays in each and were held scoreless by the Penguins.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are now one win away from advancing to the second round playing exactly how they did during a torrid second half of the regular season by unleashing a speedy, skilled lineup that has left the battle-tested New York Rangers bereft of answers.
The hit came behind the Penguins’ net shortly after they had taken a 2-1 lead in the third period.
Sidney Crosby got the Penguins’ first goal, directing a Phil Kessel feed past Lundqvist at 19:18 of the second period.
Rick Nash scored for the Rangers, who played without an injured McDonagh (upper body, hand) in the first two games in Pittsburgh.
Things already were grim for the Rangers after Eric Fehr’s net-crashing goal 1:09 into the game.
Cullen skated through the slot and flicked a wrist shot under the pads of goaltender Henrik Lundqvist for the go-ahead goal at 4 minutes, 16 seconds of the third period.
The over is 8-1-4 in the Rangers’ last 13 games following a loss of three or more goals and 7-1-4 in their last 12 road games. Lundqvist finished the night with 14 saves and four goals allowed in 26:04 played. “I thought he got better and better as the game went on”.
Crosby, on the Penguins’ diligent blue-collar performance throughout the game: “We understand that if we want to win games, that’s how we’re going to have to try to win them at this time of year”.
Lundqvist added, “we really have to come together”.
The special teams success continued in the final two periods when Malkin would celebrate his first two goals of the playoffs as the Madison Square Garden crowd slowly emptied out.
The Rangers recalled defenseman Raphael Diaz from Hartford on Monday, giving them an experienced player who can help on the power play. This feels so much better. “They’re quickly just firing it back out, high flips off the glass or rim, so you’ve got to put it in an area where you can create a 50/50 battle to get the puck back, but then you’ve got to win that 50/50 battle and I think we’ve got to do a better job with that”.
It’s easy to get sucked into the parallels with the Rangers trailing 3-1 in a series for the third straight postseason. Before Game 6, it was as if Malkin said, “enough is enough”. The “Blue Shirts” now have their backs against the wall as they head into a must-win game 5 back in Pittsburgh.Example?
A little more than two minutes after the goal, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault lifted Lundqvist. “We’ve been there, we’ve been in those situations, and I think what made it possible was that narrow focus, that staying in the moment, and that’s what we’re gonna preach”. The Penguins are a confident group that is rolling, but they need to use a killer instinct to not let this series linger longer than it should. They were three for six in that game on the power play.
Zatkoff was outstanding in his first National Hockey League playoff game.
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And as the New York Rangers are discovering during a first-round series that looks to be headed for a quick conclusion, they are extremely hard to contain in top form.
