New York Rangers vs Philadelphia Flyers Game 5 Wrap-up

Final Score:

New York Rangers: 4 Philadelphia Flyers: 2

Apr 27, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A shot by New York Rangers defenseman Marc Staal (not pictured) gets past Philadelphia Flyers goalie Steve Mason (35) in the 1st period of game five of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports

First Period:

There was no question about how this game would begin; the pressure was immediate. The Flyers started off throwing bodies early and the Rangers had great pressure on Steve Mason early. Carl Hagelin took the first penalty of the game for standing too close to Claude Giroux when he fell down. The “slashing” occurred at 3:17 but the Rangers killed the penalty off very well. The Flyers got their first shot late in the period; nearly eight minutes after the game began. Hagelin took the second penalty of the game, again against Giroux, at 7:28. The Rangers again killed the penalty, giving up only two shots. Jakub Voracek got a few extra hits on Henrik Lundqvist after he covered the puck around the 11 minute mark. Mats Zuccarello jumped up and made sure Voracek knew that would not be tolerated; Benoit Pouliot jumped in there as well. Not even a moment later Marc Stall buried the puck on the weak side past Mason to take the lead at 11:53. Vincent Lecavallier then had a two-minute sit down for holding Kevin Klein at 12:03. The power play was it’s usual horrible two minutes of nothingness. The Rest of the period was relatively uneventful in terms of whistles. The Rangers did have a few more good scoring opportunities. Despite a slow start, the Flyers out shot the Rangers 8-6 in the period and they dominated in face-off wins. The Rangers dominated in hits 15-6 in the period.

Second Period:

The Rangers came out of the dressing room ready to play. Nash got the puck on net early and after only 38 seconds the Rangers went on the power play as Nash drew a holding call. The Rangers scored but the zebra got a little too whistle anxious as Mason never had control of the puck. Based on the rules, whistles are not reviewable. The fans were very clear in their chant “these refs suck” was easily audible on television. J.T. Miller took a shot off the leg and looked really bad going to the bench. Scott Hartnell clearly maintained his full speed as he drove the net. The Rangers took clear accept ion to the maneuver and let the Flyers know that no one would run at Lundqvist. With 11:53 remaining Brad Richards buries the puck behind Mason as the Flyers were completely out numbered. Hartnell took himself out of the events after trying to get a call at the other end. Miller got his first post season point with an assist on the goal. Merely 19 seconds after the goal, Klein managed to get a penalty for “Unsportsmanlike Conduct”. If you can figure out that call feel free to let us know. Hagelin took his third penalty of the game at 10:39 this time it was against Hartnell; it saved a goal. The Rangers were great on the kill and went on their own power play at 13:01 as Matt Read was called for holding Hagelin. At 16:20 Dominic Moore stole the puck from Hal Gill and beat Mason to get the 3-0 lead in the game. As the game went, Anton Stralman was called for goal tender interference because Mason fell over while Stralman was pushed into him. The Flyers got a goal with only 32.6 seconds left in the period. The teams headed to the dressing rooms tied in shots with eight each in the period. The Rangers led in hits, take aways, and blocked shots with 20, 7, and 10 respectively. The announcers said “the Flyers are coming unglued” and man were they ever correct.

Third Period:

The Flyers came back to the ice ready to play. They had plenty of pressure on Lundqvist early and he stood up to the challenge. The Flyers had some new lines on the ice; may as well shake things up. Derrick Brassard had a nice attempt just before the five-minute mark but the puck was stripped a bit from behind. Derek Dorsett stood up to Hartnell and even took him down cleanly. Derek Stepan completely out maneuvered Braydon Coburn but missed his shot and there was no one else there to pick up the rebound. Just over the midway mark of the period, St. Louis had a beautiful chance on goal but he was stopped by Mason. Dom Moore had the moves in the next trip down the ice but was also blocked by Mason. The game was very much going the Rangers’ way throughout the period. The refers finally put their whistles away, no matter how awful the dives were from the Flyers. Mason went to the bench with three minutes remaining and McDonagh just missed the empty net wide at the 2:40 mark. With 1:29 remaining in the game the Flyers found the back of the net with a shot from Giroux. The Flyers fought hard and Mason made his way to the batch again with just under a minute to go. There were several icing calls as the Rangers opted to clear the puck at every chance. Brian Boyle tallied the empty net goal with only 15 seconds remaining in the game. The Rangers won 4-2, though it should have been 5-2. The Flyers out shot the Rangers 26 to 22 in the game.

TEAM STATS

These teams meet next on Tuesday but the NHL has not released the schedule for Tuesday’s game just yet. The New York Rangers travel back to Philadelphia for the next game. Stay tuned for updates.