The New Jersey Devils skated into Madison Square Garden Monday night in hopes of erasing their four-game losing streak. The Rangers were similarly trying to get out of a two-game slump.
Neither team wanted to continue slouching their way towards the playoffs, but on this night, the Rangers simply wanted it more, played better hockey, and made sure they came out with the victory, putting the Devils away 3–0.
As the first period unfolded, New Jersey sat back too much, giving up 20 shots on goal while only getting 10 shots against Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvuist.
Former Devil Scott Gomez created the spark for the Rangers with three shots on goal, joined by teammates Ryan Callahan and NHL super pest Sean Avery, both with three shots as well. Gomez also drilled Travis Zajac in the first period, setting the tone for the Blueshirts.
After a scoreless yet action-packed first period, the Rangers started the second on fire with continued offensive pressure. Their effort would reward them the first goal of the game just after four minutes into the period.
Creating traffic in front of the Devils’ net, Dan Girardi fed Brandon Dubinksy with plenty of room to maneuver in the crease and the big center took a quick shot past Brodeur’s left shoulder, putting the Rangers up by one.
Minutes after the Rangers goal, tempers flared and Gomez mixed it up with Devils tough guy Bobby Holik. Gomez was sent sprawling to the ice resulting in double roughing minors, creating a four-on-four. The Rangers would take advantage of the extra space and strike again as Girardi was fed by teammate Nik Antropov in front of the Devils’ net. The defenseman put the puck past Brodeur increasing the Blueshirts’ lead to two goals.
With just under five minutes remaining in the period, Rangers winger Ryan Callahan added insult to injury with a quick release near the blueline that sailed past Brodeur into the top shelf, putting the Rangers ahead 3–0.
By this time, you could almost hear the fat lady singing. Although from the sound of it, it sounded a lot like catcalls of “Mart-ee, Mart-ee, Mart-ee,” courtesy of Ranger fans doing their best to shake the confidence of the NHL’s all-time winningest goalie.
The third period contained a lot of the same action that typified the previous two periods but no goals were scored.
As the game ended, it was obvious that the Rangers came ready to play and the Devils continued to doubt themselves. New York’s defense limited the Devils to very few scoring chances.
The Devils also seemed to play passively, failing to stand up at the blue line, and lacking any aggressive hitting or forechecking.
If the Devils want to prevent another early exit from the playoffs, they must turn things around as soon as possible. They should finish no worse than third in the Eastern Conference, but with a five-game losing streak building up steam, this is not the way this team wants to head into their playoff run.
The Rangers got back on track and put some more distance between themselves and the chasing Canadiens and Panthers. The Rangers remain in seventh place, one point behind red-hot Pittsburgh.
Neither team wanted to continue slouching their way towards the playoffs, but on this night, the Rangers simply wanted it more, played better hockey, and made sure they came out with the victory, putting the Devils away 3–0.
As the first period unfolded, New Jersey sat back too much, giving up 20 shots on goal while only getting 10 shots against Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvuist.
Former Devil Scott Gomez created the spark for the Rangers with three shots on goal, joined by teammates Ryan Callahan and NHL super pest Sean Avery, both with three shots as well. Gomez also drilled Travis Zajac in the first period, setting the tone for the Blueshirts.
After a scoreless yet action-packed first period, the Rangers started the second on fire with continued offensive pressure. Their effort would reward them the first goal of the game just after four minutes into the period.
Creating traffic in front of the Devils’ net, Dan Girardi fed Brandon Dubinksy with plenty of room to maneuver in the crease and the big center took a quick shot past Brodeur’s left shoulder, putting the Rangers up by one.
Minutes after the Rangers goal, tempers flared and Gomez mixed it up with Devils tough guy Bobby Holik. Gomez was sent sprawling to the ice resulting in double roughing minors, creating a four-on-four. The Rangers would take advantage of the extra space and strike again as Girardi was fed by teammate Nik Antropov in front of the Devils’ net. The defenseman put the puck past Brodeur increasing the Blueshirts’ lead to two goals.
With just under five minutes remaining in the period, Rangers winger Ryan Callahan added insult to injury with a quick release near the blueline that sailed past Brodeur into the top shelf, putting the Rangers ahead 3–0.
By this time, you could almost hear the fat lady singing. Although from the sound of it, it sounded a lot like catcalls of “Mart-ee, Mart-ee, Mart-ee,” courtesy of Ranger fans doing their best to shake the confidence of the NHL’s all-time winningest goalie.
The third period contained a lot of the same action that typified the previous two periods but no goals were scored.
As the game ended, it was obvious that the Rangers came ready to play and the Devils continued to doubt themselves. New York’s defense limited the Devils to very few scoring chances.
The Devils also seemed to play passively, failing to stand up at the blue line, and lacking any aggressive hitting or forechecking.
If the Devils want to prevent another early exit from the playoffs, they must turn things around as soon as possible. They should finish no worse than third in the Eastern Conference, but with a five-game losing streak building up steam, this is not the way this team wants to head into their playoff run.
The Rangers got back on track and put some more distance between themselves and the chasing Canadiens and Panthers. The Rangers remain in seventh place, one point behind red-hot Pittsburgh.
