A constant over the past decade worth of battles between the Rangers and Penguins has been the stellar goaltending duels between New York’s Henrik Lundqvist and Pittsburgh’s Marc-Andre Fleury. Yet in a wild turn of events Wednesday night at the CONSOL Energy Center, the Penguins grabbed Game One of this best-of-seven opening-round playoff series with a 5-2 victory over the Rangers as one of the goaltenders played just one period and the other did not even dress for the contest.
Lundqvist started in goal for New York, but took an errant stick from teammate Marc Staal through his mask and near his right eye with 48. 2 seconds to play in the first period. After writhing on the ice in pain, Lundqvist was attended to during an extended delay by team trainer Jim Ramsay. He eventually finished out the period, but not before surrendering the game’s first goal to Pittsburgh’s Patric Hornqvist with 17.6 seconds to play.
When the teams took to the ice for period number two, Antti Raanta was in the Rangers net and Lundqvist remained in the dressing room. It was Raanta’s first career post-season appearance.
At the other end of the ice was Pittsburgh’s third-string netminder Jeff Zatkoff. With the team’s No. 1, Marc-Andre Fleury, sidelined still by a concussion, and his back up Matt Murray out with an undisclosed injury, Zatkoff made the start in Game One and turned in a sterling performance, stopping 35 of 37 shots in his NHL playoff debut.
It had appeared following the morning skate that Fleury was healthy and ready to play on Wednesday, but Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan decided to start the playoffs with Zatkoff–he of the 4-7-1 record and 2.79 GAA in 14 appearances this season–and looked smart in doing so as the 28 year-old made a string of big-time saves early in the first period as the Rangers repeatedly tested him en-route to an 8-1, then 12-3, shots advantage to start the contest.
The first shot Zatkoff faced was a tricky snap shot by J.T. Miller–off a neat passing sequence with Mats Zuccarello and Derick Brassard at 2:45–and he made a sharp blocker save. A minute later he robbed Kevin Hayes from the low slot on open rebound try.
Pittsburgh eventually found their legs and the game turned into a tight defensive affair. Hornqvist finally scored the first goal of the series in the waning seconds of the first period when he slipped behind Marc Staal and wristed a shot between Lundqvist’s pads after a slick pass into the slot from Conor Sheary.
Raanta kept it a one-goal game with a pair of big-time saves on Eric Fehr and another on Justin Schultz in the second period, but the Penguins scored once again late in the period to grab a 2-0 lead. Hornqvist sprung Sidney Crosby on a clean breakaway and Crosby sent a tracer over Raanta’s glove with 64 seconds left in the period to double Pittsburgh’s lead.
A major swing of events early in the third period briefly gave the Rangers hope before Pittsburgh dramatically regained control of the game. At 2:08 of the third Pittsburgh’s Carl Hagelin was assessed a double minor for high sticking Hayes, and at the same time Penguins defenseman Ian Cole was penalized for interfering with Eric Staal.
When it was all sorted out the Rangers had a 5-on-3 power play plus another two minutes after that. They cashed in early with Derek Stepan burying a Rick Nash goal-mouth feed at 3:10 to make it 2-1; but they struggled on the ensuing power play and ultimately were burned when Dan Boyle was caught deep in the Penguins zone trying to reach a rebound and Pittsburgh took off the other way on an odd-man rush.
Tom Kuhnhackl converted a Nick Bonino pass for a shorthanded goal at 5:31 as the arena in Pittsburgh erupted in a deafening roar. Less than three minutes later Hornqvist tucked a loose puck over the goal line at 8:02 for his second goal and third point of the night, giving the Penguins a secure 4-1 lead.
Stepan scored again with 9:49 remaining in regulation to give the Rangers a chance. Flying in from right wing Stepan chipped a rebound past Zatkoff to make the score 4-2. Boyle and Zuccarello assisted.
However Hornqvist completed his first career post-season hat trick at 17:10 by scoring into the empty net. Crosby earned the primary assist, his third point of the night.
Game Two of the series will be played at the CONSOL Energy Center on Saturday afternoon.
Jim Cerny
BlueshirtsUnited.com
(Reprinted with permission of the New York Rangers)
