In the end it was gritty, not pretty, and that actually made last night’s 4-3 Rangers’ victory over the Penguins at the Garden even more impressive.
Because even after losing two goals of the 4-1 lead they had carried late into the second period by the 3:39 mark of the third, the Rangers refused to crack, maintaining their poise against a very talented crew to go 10-2 in their last 12 games and 13-5-3 overall for the NHL’s best points-per-game record.
“It was a good test for us, the way we wound up having to do it,” said Brad Richards, who had a goal and two assists. “It wasn’t ideal, but we stayed with it.”
The Rangers stayed with it through a topsy-turvy match that was part up-tempo, part-grind. They stayed with it through a match in which they scored all four of their goals within a span of 10:25 through the gut of the second, the final three strikes coming within 4:17. They stayed with it after giving two goals back within a span of 3:46 bridging the second and third.
“We had some hiccups but we did what was necessary to win, which is what we have been doing all season,” said Marian Gaborik, who high-stepped and shimmied his way to a two-point (1-1) night. “Obviously we would have liked to have added to that [4-1] lead, but we were able to protect the one-goal lead.
“We’ve learned from our mistakes this year and we have to learn from this. [The Penguins] are talented guys. You can’t let up because they can shove it to you.”
The Rangers scored their first two goals on power plays, marking just the third time this year they had chinned up that high on the man-advantage bar. But after converting their first two attempts, the Rangers failed on their next four opportunities, all of which came within a span of 4:25 late in the third period.
It was as if the power play unit became a penalty kill unit, the Rangers getting just one shot on net while up a man (or two for a total of 1:53 ) for 6:08 of a 6:25 stretch from 12:41 to 19:06.
“But the reason we were able to get those power plays is because we were on our toes,” said Henrik Lundqvist, who acknowledged that his wallet was a bit thinner for having arrived at the Garden an hour after report time for Saturday’s 2-0 shutout over the Flyers. “Even though we had allowed the lead to slip, we didn’t fall back.
“There were times in the game where you could feel the momentum and the pace changing, but we stayed with it.”
Carl Hagelin was outstanding, not only using his speed and skill to create chances and set up John Mitchell’s first wearing the Blueshirt, but by going to the dirty areas in a pace game.
In the third, though, as the match slowed until the uniquely successful failed power plays, the five-man defensive unit collapsed down low and would not allow the Penguins more than three shots on The King. .
So now the Rangers — who have beaten the Capitals (in DC), Flyers and Penguins in succession and have won seven straight at the Garden — take it back on the road to Carolina and Tampa.
“When you beat these types of teams, it feels really good right after the games, and it gives you a boost,” Lundqvist said. “But in the end, it doesn’t matter if you beat the first-place team or the last-place team.
“They’re all tough and they’re all good.”
That includes the pretty and the gritty.