Big nights from Halak, Lindgren help Rangers snap skid in Ottawa

On Wednesday night, Jaroslav Halak finally earned his due. The Rangers netminder made 34 saves in his 7th start of the season and was supported by Ryan Lindgren’s first career three-point game, giving Halak his first Broadway win in the process, as New York snapped their three-game losing streak with a 3-1 win over the Ottawa Senators,

Most importantly, the Blueshirts took a two-goal lead and defended it with ruthless shot-blocking, penalty-killing, and goaltending. They summoned all that had eluded them at crucial times in devastating home losses to the Oilers and Devils. No the last-place Senators are nowhere close to the level of Edmonton or New Jersey, but this was a road game nonetheless, and New York was up to the challenge.

At the outset, Ottawa came out strong and tested Halak early. Still, the former Senator was up to the task of the early flurries, which included him stonewalling Tim Stuztle in front to keep the game scoreless as part of a 13-save period.

The rest of the frame was dominated by Jimmy Vesey on both ends of the ice. The left winger saved a goal on one end and scored on the other to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead.

The second period was more of the same, with Ottawa bringing the first wave of pressure and the Blueshirts withstanding it, doing everything they could to keep the Sens off the board for their goalie, even if it meant scraping a puck off the goal line as captain Jacob Trouba did on a Derrick Brassard chance that squirted through Halak’s pads.

Akin to the way Vesey took over the first period for the Rangers, Ryan Lindgren did the same in the second, taking a shot to the knee on one end before fighting through the pain and setting up a Barclay Goodrow deflection goal on the other to double the New York lead.

The tally was Goodrow’s fourth in the last ten games, and he showed great strength and stickwork on the play, fighting off Erik Brandstrom in front of the net while getting his stick high enough to deflect Lindgren’s shot past Cam Talbot and into the net. It capped a hard-working shift by the fourth line, which we’ll likely see again when these teams meet at Madison Square Garden on Friday.

As fans of Halak now that he’s a Ranger, you would hope his first victory would come by way of the shutout. Still, if you’d ask me to pick one Senator, I wouldn’t have minded scoring Wednesday night, provided the Blueshirts won; it would be New York native and NHL rookie Shane Pinto.

Before his pro days, the 22-year-old played at a local community rink near me, so it’s great to see how far he’s come since then. Sure enough, three minutes after Goodrow scored, Pinto took advantage of a recent Trouba turnover and pinged one in for his ninth of the season, slicing the deficit to 2-1.

Ottawa would then have a power play with an opportunity to tie the game after a Vitali Kravtsov penalty. Still, a couple of Halak stops and stifling defense by Adam Fox helped preserve the 2-1 Rangers advantage heading into the second intermission.

The mission statement in the third was to finish the job which meant playing defense which is what New York did, and when Ottawa had their chances, such as Parker Kelly’s prime two-on-one opportunity, Halak came to the rescue.

With 7:00 remaining and the Rangers looking for insurance, Lindgren flung one at the net, which Chris Kreider tipped home to restore the two-goal advantage and give Lindgren his maiden three-point night in the show.

https://twitter.com/RangersMSGN/status/1598140851028459521?s=20&t=wQ3zhrl1__4eN-3VgiNrMQ

The only thing missing in this one was a power play goal, which almost came to fruition late in the contest, but Vincent Trocheck, Mika Zibanejad, and Artemi Panarin all rang posts in a minute which kept that from happening. Still, even though they didn’t score, it was good to see that trio hadn’t lost its mojo following a power play goal in the third period in Monday’s game against New Jersey.

The final few minutes of the third period reflected what this win felt like to the Rangers.
It was a hollow victory with not much going on spare the few goals that were scored in the contest. Nevertheless, the players, coaches, and fans will definitely take it and hope it’s something we can use over the next few games at least.

MARV’S 3 STARS OF THE GAME:
I saw a reader request this in the comments section for game recaps but decided to wait until a Rangers victory to break it out.

HONORABLE STAR:

Shoutout to the legend himself Sam Rosen for battling through a cold and strained voice while still being able to call tonight’s game on MSG network. Get well soon Sam!

3. JIMMY VESEY:
The 29-year-old has continued to reinvent himself as a two-way player since he signed his professional tryout contract at training camp a couple of months ago. No matter the situation, he’s looked calm and confident in his abilities and is starting to be rewarded for them. With a goal on Wednesday, Vesey now has six points in his last ten games.

2. RYAN LINDGREN
No wonder the Rangers are 8-14-2 over the last few seasons when he’s not in the lineup; this man is a warrior. Before embarking on his three-point night, the toughness he displayed on his blocked shot embodies the true character of a hockey player, showing you how valuable he is to this team. It makes you wonder if he can attain at least an “A” on his jersey at some point down the line.

1. JAROSLAV HALAK:
   Halak finally recorded his first win as a Ranger in seven tries and #285 of his career, making 34 saves to stop his losing streak and the teams.  In some ways, it benefited the Blueshirts; he was the stopper to lead the team to a refreshing victory rather than Shesterkin, who got a well-deserved night off in what we hoped allowed him to clear his head after a frustrating last couple of games.

THE RETURN OF KRAVTSOV:
Vitali Kravtsov was back in the lineup after an eight-game absence, while Ryan Carpenter was scratched. Kravtsov was slotted on the third line with Alexis Lafreniere and Vincent Trocheck. The right winger looked good aside from his second-period penalty, registering two shots on goal, and even delivered two hits in 10:30 minutes.