PHILADELPHIA — The bait was set, but the Rangers weren’t biting.
The Blueshirts took a commanding 4-1 win in Game 3 and a 2-1 lead in their best-of-seven first-round playoff series with the Flyers on Tuesday at Wells Fargo Center. And then afterward, opposing captain Claude Giroux said his team would “be ready for Game 4” on Friday night in Philly, and “we’re going to tie up the series and go back to New York.”
Yet to a man, the Rangers were not about to get into a battle of words.
“It’s not an uncommon thing to believe you’re going to win the game, but I think it’s more uncommon that you say it,” Rangers alternate captain Marc Staal said after Thursday’s practice at the Garden, his team about to board a train and head down to Philadelphia. “Obviously, we know they’re confident, he’s a confident player. We have every expectation of going in there and trying to win a hockey game.”
Giroux, who led the Flyers this season with 28 goals and was the third-highest point producer in the league during the regular season, has no goals and two assists in the series and got his first shot on goal in Game 3.
Asked if that made him any less qualified to be making predictions, Staal again was even-keeled.
“No, he’s their leader,” Staal said. “He’s the guy that gets them going. He’s a guy that puts it on himself to get things going, so we have to keep doing a good job as a team against him.”
Rangers coach Alain Vigneault already has begun to prepare his team for facing a new goaltender, as it was announced Steve Mason will get his first start of the series in Game 4. Mason is the regular starter, but as he recovered from what was believed to be a concussion, veteran Ray Emery started the first three games. Mason did dress as the backup in Game 3, and got some mop-up duty, the final 7:15 after the Rangers were already up 4-1.
“Same preparation on Mason that we went through with Emery,” said Vigneault, who had goaltending coach Benoit Alaire prepare a scouting report on the opposing netminder. “We had some video to show our group. We know what to expect from [Mason], and we know the areas that we need to go after, and we’re going to try and go after that tomorrow.
“We tested Emery, and we’re going to test Mason, no doubt.”
Dan Carcillo had little to say about Matt Read not receiving a fine or suspension following an incident in Game 3 when Read got away with an unpenalized shoulder to Carcillo’s head.
“I haven’t thought about it,” said Carcillo, who added he had not seen the replay. “I’m going to stay away from commenting against league decisions. It never gets you anywhere.”