PHILADELPHIA — No more freebies in this one, no sir.
As Steve Mason returned to the Flyers nets, following in his wake was the stark realization for the Rangers they can no longer expect any sort of gifts from here on out, and that effort and execution have to come hand-in-hand if there is any chance to move on.
Because what they got on Friday night at Wells Fargo Center was a game in which the Flyers pushed and pulled their way to a hard-fought 2-1 win, Mason answering almost all comers in tying this best-of-seven first-round playoff series at two games apiece.
And now Game 5 on Sunday afternoon at the Garden has a whole new tenor to it, a game that begins a best-of-three with both teams’ seasons hanging in the balance.
“You don’t want to go into MSG down 3-1 in a series and have to win in that building,” said Mason, who missed almost all of the first three games of this series with a suspected concussion, and returned to make 37 saves in taking control from overmatched veteran Ray Emery. “This was definitely a must-win.”
So maybe it wasn’t a must-win for the Rangers, and maybe there are reasons for them not to leave this building fully encompassed in what went wrong. They return to Manhattan still with home-ice advantage, and with the confidence they outshot the Flyers, 38-25, and out-attempted them, 72-61.
“We played a lot better game than we did the other night in Philly,” said Brad Richards, referring to the 4-1 win in Game 3 which gave the Rangers a 2-1 series lead. “This one, we lose by one, the other one, we win by three. That’s hockey.”
But in this one, that old nemesis, the power play, again reared its ugly head. The Blueshirts went 0-for-4 with 8:00 of man-advantage time, none more crucial than the 4-on-3 they had which bridged the second and third periods, and registered just a single (long) shot on net. They were down 2-1 at the time, and lo and behold, that was where it would finish.
“Our power play had the opportunity to get us back in,” coach Alain Vigneault said, “and we didn’t get it done.”
The difference was due in large part to Mason, but it’s not easy for the Rangers to hand over nothing but credit. They all said he played well, but they all look internally, as well, at what they could do better. And that starts with getting to the net to make it tougher on Mason, knowing that goals in the postseason are often the ones scored from within an arm’s reach of the crossbar.
“We got some pretty good looks, but I don’t think we got the second and third opportunities on Mason,” said Ryan McDonagh, who probably had the Rangers best chance to tie it late in the second when he weaved through three defenders, fought off a hook from Matt Read, and got off a slick backhand that somehow Mason managed to stop with a reach-back, on-ice paddle.
“We didn’t make his first game back too tough,” McDonagh said.
The Rangers pretty well dominated the first period, outshooting the Flyers 16-6, but leaving tied 1-1 after goals from Dominic Moore and Read cancelled each other out. Then, when Jakub Voracek got a power-play goal on a nifty tip-in 7:22 into the second, that was all the Flyers needed.
So the setting shifts yet again, and this time the Flyers go to New York with a new and better goalie. If the Rangers want to make something of this season, it will surely have to be earned the hard way.
“There’s always more when you lose 2-1,” Richards said. “There always is.”