On May 7 in NYR history: An insane finish & an overtime win

What happened on May 7 in the history of the New York Rangers

The New York Rangers got one of their most improbable Stanley Cup Playoffs wins on this date in 2012.  They tied the game as time expired and then went on to win right after overtime began, beating the Washington Capitals 3-2 in Game Five of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals at Madison Square Garden.

Let’s set the stage.  The Rangers were trailing 2-1 with time running out in the game. They had gotten a first period goal by Anton Stralman, but couldn’t get another one by Braden Holtby.  Meanwhile, the Caps tied the game on a Brooks Laich goal in the second period and took the lead on a power play goal by John Carlson about four minutes into the third period.

With 22 seconds left in the game, Washington’s Joel Ward high-sticked Carl Hagelin, drawing blood and earning a double minor.   With Henrik Lundqvist pulled they had a two man advantage and with just 7.6 seconds left, Brad Richards put the rebound of a Michael Del Zotto point shot into the net.

The key factor was that Ward had been given a double minor, meaning that the Rangers had a power play as overtime started.  1:35 into the overtime, Marc Staal took a shot from the blueline that deflected off a Caps defender and past Holtby.

It was the first time in NHL history that a team scored the tying goal in the last 10 seconds of a game and then won in the first two minutes of overtime.

On a personal note, I was at that game and will never forget that when they gave Ward the double minor, a fan in front of me proclaimed, “Great, we can tie it and still have a power play in overtime and win.”  Note that this was with 22 seconds left in the game.  I thought he was nuts, but he turned out to be prescient.

The stirring win gave the Blueshirts a 3-2 lead in the series which they won in seven games.

Bobby Orr’s brilliance

It’s hard to believe that Bobby Orr was in his prime about 50 years ago, but in that time he was the most dominant player in the NHL.   That dominance was on full display on this date in 1972 in Game Four of the Stanley Cup Final.  Orr had a hand in all three goals in a 3-2 win for the Bruins over the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Orr scored the first two goals for the Bruins in the first period, then set up Don Marcotte for a shorthanded goal late in the second period.  The Rangers clawed back on goals by Ted Irvine and Rod Seiling, but it was too little too late and the win gave the Bruins an insurmountable 3-1 lead in the series.  The Rangers won Game Five in Boston, but were shut out in Game Six, giving the Bruins their second Cup win in three years.

The three points gave Orr  an NHL record for a defenseman of 22 points in the playoffs, breaking his own record of 20 points that he set in 1970.

Today’s birthdays

There were 22 NHL player born on May 7 with four forgettable New York Rangers in that mix.

Brad Isbister was born on this date in 1977 in Edmonton, Alberta.  He played 10 seasons in the NHL, but only one season with the Rangers, playing 19 games and spending most of the season in Hartford.  Isbister originally came up with Phoenix, but spent four years with the Islanders.  One fascinating note about Isbister is that in less than two years as an Islander he drew five penalty shots, missing all except one.  The left winger had five penalty shots himself while in that same time period, the entire Rangers team had a total of two penalty shots.

Dave Karpa was born on this date in 1971 in  Regina, Saskatchewan.    He was a defenseman who spent 12 seasons in the NHL, the last two with the Rangers after being signed as a free agent in 2001.  He spent one full season on the blue line for the Rangers and split the next season between the Blueshirts and the AHL.

Reg Mackey was a defenseman born on May 7, 1900 in Ottawa, Ontario.  He played 41 games for the Rangers in their first NHL season in 1926-27.   That was the extent of his NHL career and he was scoreless in those 41 games and on playoff game.

Lawrence Nycholat was born on this date in 1979 in Calgary, Alberta.  He was a defenseman who played in the NHL from 2003 to 2009 for five different teams including the Rangers.  He played in 50 NHL games including nine games in New York as a rookie. He did spend many years in the AHL including three years in the Rangers system.

The numbers

The Rangers have won only one game of seven playoff games in regulations, but have pulled out two wins in overtime.

Playoff games: 7
Wins: 1
Losses: 4
Overtime wins: 2
Winning percentage: 43%