Henrik Lundqvist was pulled after allowing four goals in the New York Rangers humiliating 7-4 loss to the Minnesota Wild at MSG.
- New York Rangers 4 (23-12-1, 47 pts)
- Minnesota Wild 7 (21-8-4, 46 pts)
- NHL, Final, Box Score
- Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Friday night’s result cemented that notion for many out there in Rangerstown and beyond.
The Minnesota Wild embarrassed the Blueshirts by a final of 7-4 at the World’s Most Famous Arena.
Henrik Lundqvist was pulled just 4:55 into the second period after Marco Scandella snuck one past him on the short-side. The Wild took a commanding 4-1 lead at that point and in came Antti Raanta. Hank finished with a porous line of nine saves on just 13 shots. Raanta didn’t fare any better as he could only stop five of the eight he faced.
Despite the low save percentages by both goalies — New York outshot Minny 35-21 in the game — the Rangers defense didn’t provide any favors. They were horrid in coverage and lacked overall structure all night long.
The three goal scorers for the Rangers were Chris Kreider (two goals), Ryan McDonagh and Derek Stepan. The Wild saw seven different players tally goals.
Both the Columbus Blue Jackets (50 points) and Pittsburgh Penguins (49 points) have leapfrogged the third-place Rangers in the Metropolitan Division. Next up will be the Ottawa Senators at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.
The biggest problem with this Rangers team is COACHING PHILOSOPHY. Vigneault's belief that highly skilled, speedy players are what it takes to win is failing.
This team needs to be bigger, stronger and meaner. The recent inability to counter the opposing team's forecheck is more than evident. Trading Dylan McIlrath was a BIG MISTAKE.