Rangers net three in third, lead series 2-1

Just when you thought no one would ever score a goal and Martin Brodeur was twenty years old again, the Rangers put two goals in early in the third period. Dan Girardi put a power play goal in at the 3:19 mark and Chris Kreider helped put another in at the 5:16 mark. Before these two quick goals in the third, this game was a defensive showcase. This was some of the best goaltending I've seen in one game for awhile. Brodeur was sprawling out for everything and making miraculous saves. Henrik Lundqvist was at the top of his game, just as usual. Lundqvist had a 36 save shutout. If you love hockey, it's not all about goals being scored. The defensive play and goaltending made this particular game so exciting and fun to watch.

One of the aspects that needs to be recognized about the New York Rangers is their ability to block shots. Head Coach John Tortorella has emphasized this the whole season. I don't know if any of you watched the HBO special leading up to the Winter Classic, but it showed Tortorella demanding that his players block anything shot their way. It looks extremely painful and I'm sure is, but it is crucial to the Rangers winning games. With a minute left in the game today, Ryan Callahan blocked a slapshot and it led to his empty net goal. The stat for blocked shots in game 3: Rangers 19 and Devils 6. Talk about leaving it all on the ice, these Ranger players dive in front of everything. When you have players like this and an outstanding goaltender like Lundqvist, it makes you a difficult team to beat.

The Rangers 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils today puts them in a good position. If the Rangers keep it up and win game 4 in New Jersey on Monday night, I feel they go back to MSG and wrap it up in game 5. But, there is a lot of hockey to be played and we will see what happens. In this series, you just never know what can happen. Unlike the Kings-Coyotes series, where it is pretty clear that the Kings are heading to the Stanley Cup Finals.


Source: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=400264443