The scene on the ice in Manhattan was reminiscent of the scene on the field in The Bronx in 1956, only this time it was Dominic Moore leaping into the arms of Brian Boyle rather than Yogi Berra jumping into the arms of Don Larsen.
That earlier tableau was played out following Larsen’s perfect game at the original Yankee Stadium in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series against the Dodgers, an event of somewhat more historical significance than the one that occurred in the second period of Sunday’s Game 5 of the Rangers-Flyers first round at the Garden when Moore scored to give the Blueshirts a 3-0 lead.
But the afternoon was darn near perfect itself for the Blueshirts, who recorded a methodical 4-2 victory over the Flyers that puts the club in position to close out this best-of-seven in Tuesday night’s Game 6 in Philadelphia.
“We have to have the killer instinct,” said Marc Staal, whose club has lost 11 straight games while leading a series dating back to 2009. “We want to get it done in their building.”
This hasn’t been a prototypical playoff series. There’s been essentially no carryover from game to game; no defining personality. Not only has it been pretty tame, there hasn’t been a single game yet in which both teams have played to a superior level.
But the Rangers earned this series advantage with a fundamentally sound Game 5 in which Henrik Lundqvist did indeed outplay Steve Mason — more Doug Favell than Bernie Parent this time — and by a significant enough margin to make a difference.
The Blueshirts were outstanding on the penalty kill, strong on the puck and positionally playing five-on-five in limiting the Flyers to 26 shots for the afternoon on which the home team was supported by a crowd that was often livelier than the action on the ice.
Alain Vigneault came from Vancouver with a track record of being a four-line coach, but it took some time for him to find a fourth line in which he had confidence. And then it took more time — until fairly deep into the season, actually — for Vigneault to commit important minutes to the unit centered by Moore with Boyle and Derek Dorsett on the wings.
Game 5 was made for a four-line coach and four-line approach. The Rangers went ahead 1-0 late in the first, then 2-0 before the midway point of the second, and then 3-0 when Moore found a loose puck in the high slot off the skate of Hal Gill, collected it and beat Mason with a quick wrist shot before he went off to celebrate with Boyle.
“The puck was bouncing a little, so you want to put pressure on there,” Moore said. “I thought we were on the puck a bit more and controlling the puck more in this game.”
Moore has become best known both around the NHL and in popular culture, for his and his late wife Katie’s story of love, devotion, courage and humanity in the face of tragedy.
The 33-year-old center, however, has a playoff hockey story, too, and it is one of rising to the occasion and elevating his game in the postseason, as he did scoring four goals for Montreal in the Canadiens’ ride to the conference finals in 2010 and then recording 11 points (3-8) the following year for Tampa Bay in the Lightning’s run to the Eastern Conference finals.
“I love pressure games and pressure moments,” Moore told The Post. “I kind of look forward to them, so when the opportunity comes, I want to embrace it.
“A part of it, too, is that I prepare the same way and with the same mentality every day during the season so that I am ready when something like this comes.”
Moore has played 49 career playoff games, fourth-most on the Rangers behind Brad Richards, Marty St. Louis and Dan Girardi. He got 12:36 of ice, including 2:28 on the penalty-kill unit, and went 6-1 at the faceoff dots. Moore has won 15-of-22 draws in the series, nine-of-13 in the defensive zone. Boyle, also a prime penalty killer, played 13:37, while Dorsett—who did not get a PK turn — played 7:11.
“I think it’s very important at this time of year to go with four lines,” Moore said. “You take a look at a team like Boston that plays to such a high level with four lines, you have to be able to match that.
“I know for me, and for us, we want to be able to contribute and make a difference.”
When Berra jumped into Larsen’s arms, the pitcher did not crumble to the ground under the weight of his catcher. Boyle fell down to the ice with Moore in his arms.
“Yeah, we don’t really have it down yet,” Moore said. “We’ve got to do a better job on that.”