Barclay Goodrow has returned at the perfect time for the New York Rangers and he could be a key figure in Game Seven tonight.
This will be no ordinary Memorial Day for the Blueshirts who are a game away from reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
First, though, they must figure out a way to do what they haven’t done so far this series and that is win at PNC Arena with Raleigh proving a tough place for road teams throughout the postseason.
The Boston Bruins failed to win a game on the road in their First Round loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, while the Rangers are 0-3 on the road in this series and 1-5 in total in the playoffs.
However, Gerard Gallant’s team have proven time and time again that they simply don’t quit no matter how tough things get, and they also have an X-Factor at their disposal heading into Game Seven…
Goodrow.
Despite suffering a suspected fractured ankle in Game One of the First Round against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the bottom-six spark plug made a surprise but welcome return to the lineup for Game Six, some three-and-a-half-weeks later.
That was quite something given that the usual timeline for such an injury is around six weeks, but that underlines the toughness that Goodrow boasts in abundance, and that’s exactly why he could be a difference maker tonight.
The playoffs, and particularly Game Seven’s, are all about the fine margins and the veteran’s grit and hard-nosed play along the boards and in the dirty areas will be key in a game that will contested until the very death.
You need to get the basics right in games that have as much riding on it as tonight will, and Goodrow ticks so many of the boxes that the Rangers will need to tick in order to come out on top and beat a Canes team that have been unstoppable on home ice all year.
He plays a tough 200-foot game, he wins faceoffs, he’s a master of his craft on the penalty kill, he can chip in with offense and he’s able to drive the bus from a bottom-six role and provide a spark of energy for his team.
Perhaps more importantly for the Rangers, though, is the fact that Goodrow has been here before, done that and got the two Stanley Cup Championship rings to show for it.
He has 67 career playoff games under his belt, in which he’s scored the OT game-winner in a Game Seven for the San Jose Sharks as well as being the driving force in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s back-to-back Stanley Cup wins.
The 29-year-old averaged over 17 minutes of ice time in both of Tampa’s deep postseason runs, disrupting opponents in all three zones alongside Yanni Gourde and Blake Coleman as part of a third-line that just wore teams down.
That wealth of playoff experience, the knowledge of what it takes to win with the pressure really on and the intensity with which Goodrow plays will all be invaluable for the Rangers tonight.
With Raleigh now one of the most formidable places to go and play in the NHL, and against a Carolina team that is an absolute wagon, the Rangers will need some kind of edge to help them scale the mountain top that is another Game Seven, and Goodrow could prove to be exactly that given that he’s been here before.
This is why General Manager Chris Drury acquired Goodrow after all, for his experience, leadership and big-game mentality, and now it will be up to the tough-nosed forward to lead the way and help his team get over the mammoth sized hurdle that stands in their way of the Eastern Conference Final.