Rick Nash‘s third-period shorthanded goal lifts the New York Rangers to a well-deserved victory against the Stars in Dallas.
- New York Rangers 2 (21-10-1, 43 pts)
- Dallas Stars 0 (12-14-6, 28 pts)
- NHL, Final, Box Score
- American Airlines Arena, Dallas, Texas
The King, Henrik Lundqvist, made his long-awaited return to the New York Rangers lineup after witnessing Antti Raanta showcase a splendid brand of goaltending for the last four games.
All he did was pitch a shutout, his 61st shutout of his magnificent career. He was fantastic in stopping all 27 shots he faced.
Early on, things looked foggy. When Hank was handling a puck behind the net, Dallas Stars forward Cody Eakin creamed the Rangers goaltender, forcing him to leave the ice for several minutes:
Welcome back, Hank. Lundqvist gets drilled by Cody Eakin. Lundqvist seems fine, but leaves game. Eakin picked up a misconduct. #NYR pic.twitter.com/LRHws8URp2
— Elite Sports NY (@EliteSportsNY) December 16, 2016
Raanta didn’t face a shot while replacing Lundqvist, but, eventually, the Rangers starter returned to the ice to man his crease.
After two scoreless periods, Rick Nash made sure his return was also felt. On the penalty kill, he robbed the Stars and then sniped one past Antti Niemi for the game-winner:
Rick Nash SNIPES one for the shorty to give the Rangers the 1-0 lead in Dallas. #NYR pic.twitter.com/TwFv2btGek
— Elite Sports NY (@EliteSportsNY) December 16, 2016
Mats Zuccarello added an empty-net goal, tallying his first in quite some time.
Along with the brilliant returns of Lundqvist and Nash, captain Ryan McDonagh also made his return after missing a game due to the flu.
Next up for the Metropolitan leading Rangers will be a Saturday night game in Nashville.
#NYR TAKE IT 2-0! Nash and @zuccarello36 score while @HLundqvist30 makes 27 saves in the shutout! pic.twitter.com/UweChyjESw
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) December 16, 2016
Antti Niemi turns in another strong performance on home ice, but the #Stars fall to the Rangers, 2-0. Philly is in town Saturday. #NYRvsDAL pic.twitter.com/3pvCfvTdm5
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) December 16, 2016
