Just like that, it now becomes a best of three series as the Rangers even up round two in what was most likely their best performance against the Hurricanes thus far. The Rangers got after it right out of the gate, immediately generating offense and would even go on to out shoot the Hurricanes in the games opening period. Just four and a half minutes in, the Rangers power play would get their first look as Seth Jarvis tripped up Frank Vatrano. The Rangers had a dominant two minutes of hockey and I still can’t fathom how the puck didn’t end up in the back of the net there but alas, we were still scoreless and play continued.
The Rangers stayed the course and didn’t get discouraged from not capitalizing on the power play and sure enough, they would get another chance. It was pretty clear that this was going to be a far more physical game than anything we’ve seen from these two teams in the previous two meetings. After how game three ended with Domi going after Lindgren and DeAngelo barking at everyone, neither team was going to forget about it. Max Domi would find the puck along the boards in the neutral zone and Jacob Trouba had him right in his sights. Trouba had the opportunity to step up and make a clean hit, which he did and Carolina, ,specifically Steven Lorentz took exception to it, dropping the gloves with Trouba.
If I had a dollar for every time Trouba had to fight after delivering a clean hockey hit this year I’d probably have enough to buy lunch. I’ll be honest, at the initial replay, I thought it was a bad hit and that Trouba was going to get penalized. However, once we got a proper replay with a normal camera angle, it was very clear that Domi was in the process of falling as Trouba was about to deliver the hit. You can’t expect a player to defy the laws of physics and come to a complete stop to avoid contact if a player falls and as a result, gets put in a vulnerable position. You hate to see it, sure, but that isn’t a dirty play and Trouba isn’t a dirty player. He is simply one of the few players who still know how to play a big, physical game.
As a result, Steven Lorentz received an instigator penalty giving the Rangers another look on the power play and this time, they would capitalize. However this time, it would be the Rangers second power play unit finishing as Andrew Copp fed Frank Vatrano with a perfect pass to put it past Raanta and give the Rangers the lead. This wouldn’t be the first game the Rangers struck first in and you had to hope that they could build off the lead and not sit back on it like they have in the past. What do you know, they would get another one with under five minutes to go in the period, Ryan Lindgren let a perfect shot go from the high slot that took a redirect off Adam Fox’s stick to land in the back of the net, 2-0 Rangers.
Igor Shesterkin and the Rangers kept the Canes off the board in the final minutes of the period and took the lead to the second. Carolina picked it up a bit and would even up the shots on goal tally through the second period but Igor stayed strong, making a ton of key saves. The Rangers have been doing a good job killing penalties and would continue that as they had to work off a Ryan Lindgren interference penalty halfway through the period. Huge kill for the Rangers that would eventually lead to Mika Zibanejad putting away a loose puck sitting behind Raanta to make it a 3-0 game. Again, another huge play by Ryan Lindgren to take the initial shot for his second assist of the night. His contributions to this team can not be praised enough.
All of a sudden, there are twenty minutes of hockey keeping the Rangers from tying up the series. They haven’t been the best at playing while ahead on the scoreboard but so far they were doing a good enough job of it. Their luck would run out just a bit as Teuvo Teravainen would get Carolina on the board shortly after the Rangers killed off another power play that left them pretty gassed. While the Rangers already had an insurance goal, they could certainly benefit from another at this point against a team like Carolina. Thankfully, Andrew Copp got one and put his team up 4-1 with nine minutes to go. While there was still plenty of time left, the Rangers indicated through how they were playing this game that this was going to be their game no matter what.
Emotions flared once again just as the buzzer was set to ring as Ryan Reaves and Max Domi went after each other and K’Andre Miller was wrestling around on the ice with Ian Cole. You have to love how Reaves, who already exchanged pleasantries with Tony DeAngelo earlier in the game, basically laughed in the faces of Carolina’s “tough guys” as they are all well aware who would win that fight. Say what you will about Reaves’ hockey skills but man, for moments like these as well as what he does in the locker room and on the bench for this team is worth everything we paid for him and more.
Overall, this was hands down one of the Rangers better performances thus far in these playoffs for what was absolutely a must win game. The Hurricanes have not been a good team on the road as they have yet to win an away game this postseason. It will be pivotal for the Rangers to get the next win as well so they can have the opportunity to take this series from the Canes on Garden ice in one of the few scenarios they have the clear advantage. The Rangers will be back at it in Carolina for game five on Thursday night as they will look to take their first lead in the series as Carolina will look to get back on track. The Hurricanes could be nearing the return of Freddie Anderson as he has been skating with the team recently. It’ll be interesting to see if he’s an option on Thursday but regardless, this is an enormous opportunity for the Rangers to give themselves the upper hand in the series that they have quickly and quietly turned around.
Chris Feldman
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