The scoreboard doesn’t care how it happens, and neither do the standings or the playoff seeds or the engraver of the Stanley Cup.
So is it that big a deal the Rangers’ 5-1 win over the Lightning last night at the Garden was not a thing of beauty? Is it that big a deal their mistakes were absorbed by the sprawling focus of goaltender Henrik Lundqvist and the offense was produced mostly from names that do not sell tickets?
“It wasn’t a great game by us,” said Carl Hagelin, who scored twice for his first multi-goal game since Dec. 26, 2011. “Hank made some unbelievable saves and kept us in there and we scored on our chances. It was a pretty sloppy game, but anytime you can win 5-1, you take it.”
Hagelin netted his first goal just 31 seconds into the game, and he was backed up 15 minutes later by an open breakaway goal from Ryan Callahan. But finishing the first period up 2-0 was not an indicator of the way the Rangers (6-5-0) played, as Lundqvist made six of the most important saves of the early part of this 48-game season, keeping a wide-open game from getting out of control.
“I really feel the most important part of the game was Hank in the first period,” said coach John Tortorella. “We’re up 2-0 and we’re giving up chance after chance. We could have easily been down 3-2 in the first period, and that’s where we really settled down and played more a complete game in all zones.”
Tortorella cited six odd-man rushes for the dangerous Lightning (6-5-0) in the first period, and the best of Lundqvist’s 19 saves came when Steven Stamkos passed across the ice to Martin St. Louis, who found nothing but the blue shirt of the Blueshirts’ backbone. When Nate Thompson tried to stuff in the rebound, he was denied by Lundqvist just for good measure.
“I’m starting to get close to where I need to be,” Lundqvist said. “It’s just making the extra save when you need to. I felt like I was not far away, but the last couple games I feel like I’m doing my job.”
After the first, the Rangers settled down into a regular rhythm, playing physical hockey, not giving up too many chances, and continuing to try to take advantage of the opportunities given to them. One of those came halfway through the second, when Hagelin rushed up the left boards with new linemates Derek Stepan and Rick Nash, trailed by defenseman Marc Staal. Nobody picked up Hagelin, and he shot it under the pads of Mathieu Garon, who was yanked for starter Andres Lindback afterward with the score 3-0.
“I didn’t really have a lane to pass, saw a lot of guys focusing on [Nash and Stepan],” Hagelin said. “So I saw an opening five-hole and it went in.”
The Rangers were then close to adding to their league lead in too-many-men penalties, but somehow Staal managed to stay on the ice — but the delay in getting back on defense led to a Vinny Lecavalier goal to make it 3-1.
But with third-period add-ons from Arron Asham and Nash, the game was sealed in grand fashion, no matter how ugly it might have started.
“Finally as a team, we figured it out how to win two in a row,” said Hagelin, whose team has won three of the past four. “That’s when you can gain confidence and start rolling as a team.”