Rangers Best Ducks in Extra Time; Still Not Out of the Woods
Dec 22, 2015; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers right wing Mats Zuccarello (36) celebrates his game winning goal against the Anaheim Ducks with New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) following the overtime period at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers defeated the Ducks 3-2 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
It may be just one victory, but it feels like the entire weight of several worlds has just come off the back of the New York Rangers.
After losing six of their last seven, seeing many blown leads and even more goals fly past the normally sturdy pads of goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, something had to give. The Rangers looked nothing like their former contender selves from even the beginning of the season when they were one of the hottest teams the league had to offer.
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It seems as though the world had been falling apart for everyone involved and the team could do nothing to right the ship. So when Corey Perry gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead midway through the first period, it had to have done exactly nothing to help assuage those feelings.
Thankfully for the Rangers, Derick Brassard would answer just six minutes later to send the two clubs into the locker room tied 1-1.
After a scoreless and relatively quiet second period in which both teams registered just five shots, Brassard scored his second of the night early into the third period to give the Rangers a huge bright light at the end of the tunnel. But Rickard Rakell’s goal with under three minutes to go had to feel like a huge let down. Another blown lead and even more questions plaguing the Rangers.
Thankfully, the hobbit played the role of the hero on this night. With the man-advantage midway through the extra session, Mats Zuccarello buried a feed from Dan Boyle to give the Rangers their second win in eight tries and a huge sigh of relief as they head into the Christmas break.
Even better, the defense looked worlds better than they had in recent memory, even if it was against a Ducks team that has struggled to find the back of the net this season.
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“We didn’t give up much,” Lundqvist said. “It was really great to see that we were in control for the most part. They didn’t pressure us much; they made it a little easier for us to stay in structure. It is something that we have to keep working on here, try to get back to our game and get back to the time and making good reads. I think tonight we were really paying attention to being in the right place.”
In any event, the Rangers get to breathe a little easier for the time being. They are off for the holidays, getting back on the ice against the Nashville Predators on Monday the 28th and can use that time to figure out how to stay on the winning track.