Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
What a game that was. The New York Rangers trailed 3-0 to the Minnesota Wild heading into the third period. A comeback against the best defensive team in hockey (through six games) seemed unlikely, especially with Chris Kreider and John Moore lost to ejections. But then the lead was 3-2. After a breakdown gave the Wild a two goal lead again, the game became 4-3, then tied, then the Rangers took the lead. The Wild allowed six goals in their first six games, and that number almost doubled after the third period last night.
Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello led the way with a goal and two helpers. Rick Nash and Kevin Klein added a goal and an assist, and Matt Hunwick added a pair of assists. Henrik Lundqvist wasn’t spectacular, but he made key saves when they needed it to stay in the game. After a disastrous five period span in Montreal and The Garden, the third period erased a good portion of that.
On to the goals.
Wild 1, Rangers 0
Nate Prosser was the third man in on the play, and no one picked up as he slid behind Hunwick and John Moore. Justin Fontaine threaded the needle with his pass to Prosser, and Hank almost got this one. Unfortunately, almost doesn’t count in this sport.
Wild 2, Rangers 0
Where were the other Rangers? And what exactly is Carl Hagelin doing along the boards? This is pretty bad.
Wild 3, Rangers 0
Minnesota entered the zone on a 3-on-4, and Zucc got caught watching the play instead of noticing Jason Pominville breaking in as the trailer. Ryan Malone also got caught watching the play, not picking up Zach Parise, leading to mass confusion for coverage. That allowed Pominville to get wide open to take the Mikael Granlund pass.
Rangers 1, Wild 3
There were no issues with Minnesota’s coverage on this one. Sometimes goals happen without breakdowns on defense.
Rangers 2, Wild 3
This is an uncharacteristically sloppy play from Minnesota, as no one picked up Nash in front. He had all day to bang home that rebound.
Wild 4, Rangers 2
Jason Zucker just skated by Hunwick on this one, who didn’t do much to stop him from cutting to the net to deflect the Nino Niedereiter shot from the point. Hank didn’t stand a chance.
Rangers 3, Wild 4
More sloppiness from Minnesota. No one covered Hagelin in the slot, and his pass from Zucc went uncontested. Also uncontested: Brassard’s path to the net, as I guess Mikko Koivu thought Hags’ shot went in, because he just stopped skating and allowed Brass to collect the loose puck behind Darcy Kuemper and tuck it in.
Rangers 4, Wild 4
Anthony Duclair got his first NHL goal to tie the game in dramatic fashion. I have no issues with the way Ryan Suter played this one. Suter did his job by keeping Duclair to the outside, not getting burned by an incredibly fast skater, and the shot was taken above the faceoff dot. Kuemper just got beat.
Rangers 5, Wild 4
Zuccarello completed the comeback on a pretty poor defensive play by Jared Spurgeon. I’m guessing he thought Suter would take over for the coverage, as Zucc cut across the crease to his side of the ice. Problem was that Spurgeon didn’t read the play and notice it was a 2-on-5.
Shift Chart:
Courtesy of war-on-ice
The shift chart for this game is, well, intriguing. There’s no real pattern here, since the Rangers were without Kreider and John Moore for most of the game. You can see who the coaching staff trusts on the PK (note: Not many). Kevin Klein took a ridiculously long shift leading up to his goal. Seriously, that’s about a four minute shift, with a TV timeout in between.
Fenwick Chart:
Courtesy of war-on-ice
Worth noting that the chart itself depicts all situations, not just even strength in close situations (which is what we try to use the most to determine puck possession). Minnesota held a 60% advantage in those situations, which shouldn’t really be surprising to anyone that watched the games. But, as we note quite often, puck possession in single games is about a weighted coin flip advantage.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the potentially suspension-worthy hits by Kreider on Brodin and John Moore on Haula. Both hits look bad, and both look like they might see some form of suspension real soon. The already gutted defensive depth will be tested if Moore gets suspended, but the Rangers might be able to tread water if Kreider is suspended, since there is some decent wing depth.
This was one of those character-building wins against a team that should be headed back to the playoffs again this season. The fact that the Rangers have ended October with a winning record is pretty solid, since they are missing two critical pieces. Can’t really be upset with the first month, and now they get four days off before taking on the Winnipeg Jets.
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