Down 3-1 in the series and being significantly outplayed by the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Rangers could have folded and just went for next year. Instead, they forced Game 7 with two strong wins, and then the Rangers completed the comeback last night to take the series in 7 games. This marks the third straight series win over the Penguins (I believe), with two coming from 3-1 series comebacks. The other, of course, was Carl Hagelin’s OT winner in Game 5.
Unlike Games 5 and 6, the Rangers did not spot the Penguins an early lead, but they still had to mount a comeback. Tied 1-1 after the first on goals by Chris Kreider and Danton Heinan, Jake Guentzel scored his 9,000th goal of the series to give the Penguins a 2-1 lead. K’Andre Miller got the Rangers even with a little luck, but then the Rangers surrendered a bad shorthanded goal to Evan Rodrigues heading into the third period.
Mika Zibanejad, one of the heroes in Game 6, tied the game with just over 5 minutes remaining. Then it was Panarin’s time to shine, beating Tristan Jarry, playing his first game this series, with a nice wrister over his glove.
The Rangers now get the Carolina Hurricanes, the top seed in the Metro Division. The Canes are a tough team and very skilled, but it took them 7 games against the Boston Bruins. The Bruins aren’t as good as the Rangers, but the Rangers didn’t play like the post-deadline Rangers at all this series. Rod Brind’Amour is another good coach who makes strong adjustments. This could be another fun series.
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