The New York Rangers continue to show persistence and resiliency after coming back twice against the Philadelphia Flyers to win in a shootout.
By Chris Wengert
The New York Rangers continue to surprise their fans after coming back twice to defeat the Flyers in a shootout.
And it looked alike like the Flyers-Rangers rivalry that fans are used to seeing.
What a game, what a comeback, and what a shot from Keith Yandle.
Armchair General Managers keep saying that it’s impossible for the Rangers to retain Yandle, but he adds offense and hands that no one else on the defense even comes close to matching.
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It wasn’t only his game-tying goal, but also his puck movement and overall hockey IQ that the Rangers desperately need.
With Nash and now McDonagh out for some time, the Rangers may have to bite the bullet and keep Yandle if they want any chance at a playoff run.
Henrik Lundqvist played a great game. He challenged the shooters and made some key saves when the team needed them. Hank was also clutch in the shootout. The Flyers have players with amazingly quick hands but Hank made them flinch first.
Chris Kreider is very close to finding his game. He is breaking to the net and using his physicality to his advantage. If he can put it all together the first half of the season could be a distant memory come April.
That was a scary play by Wayne Simmonds on Ryan McDonagh:
We have seen with Marc Staal and Rick Nash how concussions can change a player.
Mats Zuccarello was an exception to that rule, but if McDonagh is out for any length of time the results could be disastrous. It’s ironic too, because he was just starting to find his own game.
The Rangers continue to struggle on special teams.
They once again gave their opponent four power plays, which is especially bad considering the Rangers lack of execution on the penalty kill. It’s no surprise at this point, but the Rangers left two Flyers all alone in front of Hank on the goal:
A penny for your thoughts Henrik?
The Rangers are starting to play strong second and third periods. While their second in this game may not have been their best, their effort in the third was encouraging.
The Flyers played a very conservative defensive shell in the third, which led to their inevitable demise. On the Yandle goal all five Flyers collapsed around Mason, which allowed the Rangers to move the puck to Keith Yandle.
Yandle placed that shot exactly where it needed to be-pure talent.
The Flyers did a great job slowing down the Rangers in the neutral zone and this really hurt the fore check as a result. The Rangers didn’t do themselves any favors by making passes along the blue line, rather than just skating the puck into the offensive zone or dumping and chasing.
This resiliency is really something that the Rangers can build on and is quietly becoming their identity, which is something they haven’t had all year.
The Rangers will be back in action Monday night against the New Jersey Devils.
