FIRST PERIOD:
Mark Arcobello (13) surprised the garden faithful with a his 5th goal in 7 games only 41 seconds in from David Moss (5) and Michael Stone (12). Ironically, the Arizona Coyotes only had seven goals in nine games coming into the contest. The Rangers rallied, however, forcing goalie Mike Smith to put on a clinic. Tanner Glass was robbed of his first goal of the season as Smith lunged from left to right after giving up a juicy rebound. J.T. Miller was then robbed on another rebound by Smith’s stick followed by yet another big save on Martin St. Louis with the blocker after yet another risky rebound. At 6:29, Mats Zuccarello kept his legs churning and forced Brandon Gormley to take a tripping penalty. The Rangers were unable to convert, which is concerning considering they’re 0-15 with no power play goals in 6 games coming into tonight.
The Boston College boys tied it up at 8:11, a beautiful passing sequence from Zuccarello (23) to Kevin Hayes (16) who finessed a dime over to Chris Krieder for his 15th of the year. John Moore showed some valor at 14:39, initiating a scrap with Kyle Chipchura after Chipchura hit Moore a little too high. Things started to spiral downward after St. Louis was called for tripping at 16:20 after trying to recover from a fanned shot. Kevin Klein was then called for delay of game at 17:23, putting the blue shirts in a predicament. Sam Gagner(11) silenced the Garden on the 5 on 3 after faking the pass all the way and rocketing a shot over Cam Talbot‘s shoulder, assisted by Oliver Ekman-Larsson(14). Gagner (12) then got another tally on the 5 on 4 advantage with a snap shot off Hayes’ skate, from Stone(13) and Martin Erat (20). The Coyotes registered a whopping 17 SOG, compared to the Rangers’ 12.
SECOND PERIOD:
The Rangers struck first in the second frame, after a Gagner turnover, J. Moore (5) snapped the puck on net and Lee Stempniak(8) deflected it past Smith at 5:33 to cut Arizona’s lead to 3-2. Quite a bit of time was consumed by 5 on 5 play with neutral zone breakups before it started to open up around the 12 minute mark. Stone rang a shot off the post, followed by a big scoring chance squandered by Marc Staal down on the other end. Gormley hit the pipe soon after, capping off a fantastic shift of hard work and puck retrieval by the Coyotes. Then, Lucas Lessio motored past Dan Boyle and shot a partially deflected puck off the right post and then left post before Talbot covered up. The theme of undisciplined hockey continued with Klein committing a double minor for high sticking at 10:22. The Rangers responded with a gutsy penalty kill, allowing no shots over four shorthanded minutes. Stone was called for holding on Stempniak after the puck was moved behind the net at 18:54, giving the Rangers a grand opportunity. Disaster was averted with 18 seconds left in the period, where the referees missed what would have been another double minor penalty, as Andrew Campbell needed medical attention with a bloody mouth. Kreider(16) then showcased his skill set at 19:48, using his speed to isolate himself on a breakaway and then his quick hands to deposit his own rebound after a big initial stop by Smith. Smith then lost his cool and smashed his stick into two against the goal post, which turned into an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, served by David Moss.
THIRD PERIOD:
The Rangers were buzzing on the power play early on but couldn’t capture the go ahead goal just yet. Talbot was up to the task early on, as well as Smith for that matter, as decent scoring chances were going both ways. Especially in the third, coaches Dave Tippett and Alain Vigneault were clearly not pleased with their teams’ respective defensive efforts. New York started to turn up the heat after consecutive shifts in Arizona’s end late in the third. Stemniak (9) then got his second goal after getting his initial shot stopped (a frequent occurrence in tonight’s game) assisted by Hayes (17). St. Louis then left the door wide open for Arizona to tie it up, tripping up Arcobello on the forecheck. The Coyotes, 2-4 on the power play for the night, had the chance to equalize the game with 1:21 to go. But Talbot, McDonagh, and Girardi wanted none of it, as they teamed up to thwart any attempt at a tying goal and secure a Rangers win. First place in the Metropolitan Division now belongs to none other than the New York Rangers.
THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Lee Stempniak: 2 goals, GW goal
2. Chris Kreider: 2 goals
3. Sam Gagner: 2 PP goals