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New York Rangers vs Islanders: A huge last minute 3-2 win

By Steve Paulus

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - JANUARY 16: Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers scores the game winning goal on the power-play at 19:35 of the third period against the New York Islanders at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on January 16, 2020 in Uniondale, New York. The Rangers defeated the Islanders 3-2. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - JANUARY 16: Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers scores the game winning goal on the power-play at 19:35 of the third period against the New York Islanders at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on January 16, 2020 in Uniondale, New York. The Rangers defeated the Islanders 3-2. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers scores the game winning goal
Chris Kreider #20 of the New York Rangers scores the game winning goal /

Round two of this three game bout between the New York Rangers and Islanders ended with the Blueshirts victorious.  They scored the winning goal with 25 seconds left and have clinched this series.

The New York Rangers posted a 3-2 win at the Nassau Coliseum that has to be the best “feel good” game of the season.   It was a wild affair with periods of total domination by both teams, lost leads and outstanding special teams play.  Goats became heroes and the Rangers won it on a Chris Kreider power play goal with 25 seconds left.

You can sense a change in this team going back to the  loss in Calgary.  The forecheck is better, defensive play has solidified and as usual, the goaltending has been stellar.  There is a resilience and determination in this team that wasn’t present earlier in the season.  It may be too late to salvage this season, but they are definitely building for the future.

David Quinn said it best, calling it a “ballsy effort.” He talked about the progress the team has made.  “When you come in here against a team that has the success they’ve had, they test your mettle, they test your mental toughness, they test your physical toughness and to come in here and get two points, it certainly is a great sign of the growth. ” He added, “We do look different.”

It was a complete team effort against an Islander team that was much much better than the team they played on Monday.  Special teams told the story as the Rangers killed all five Islander power plays and scored twice on their five man-advantages.

This was as big a character win for this young Rangers team as any this season and they head into two more key Metropolitan Division matches with Columbus and the Islanders before the All-Star break.

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