Post-game notes & quotes courtesy of the NYR:
Rangers 5, Capitals 2.
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– BY THE DOZEN – The Rangers have earned eight wins and 18 points through their first 12 games of the 2015-16 season. The Blueshirts’ eight wins and 18 points are tied for the fourth-most wins and fourth-most points the team has posted in the first 12 games of a season in franchise history. In addition, it is the 11th time the Rangers have registered eight or more wins in their first 12 games of a season, and it is eighth time they have recorded at least 18 points in their first 12 contests of a season.
– SEVENTH HEAVEN – The Rangers extended their point streak to a season-high seven games (5-0-2), and they extended their winning streak to three games. The Blueshirts have posted two separate three-game winning streaks this season (first three games of the season from Oct. 7 at Chicago – Oct. 10 vs. Columbus). New York has earned at least one point in 10 of 12 contests thus far in 2015-16 (8-2-2).
– HOME COOKING – The Blueshirts extended their winning streak at home to five games, and they have outscored their opponent, 20-5, in the five contests. In addition, the Rangers have earned at least one point in each of their last six home games (5-0-1) and in seven of eight home games in 2015-16 (6-1-1). Dating back to last season, the Blueshirts have earned at least one point in 37 of their last 47 home contests (31-10-6), including 20 of their last 25 home games (17-5-3).
– TWO GOOD – The Rangers have allowed two goals or fewer in regulation in each of the last seven games. In addition, New York has allowed two goals or fewer in nine of 12 games in 2015-16 and has allowed 1.83 goals against per game this season.
– FOUR SCORE – The Blueshirts have registered at least four goals in four of their last six contests and have tallied at least four goals in six of 12 contests this season. The Rangers have posted a 102-1-1 record in the last 104 regular season games in which they have registered at least four goals, dating back to Oct. 31, 2011 vs. San Jose. In addition, the Rangers have posted a 123-1-2 record in the last 126 regular season games in which they have notched four or more goals, dating back to Nov. 14, 2010 vs. Edmonton.
– SAVING THE DAY – Over the last eight games (since. Oct. 15 at Montreal), Henrik Lundqvist and Antti Raanta have combined to post a .955 SV% (231 saves on 242 shots). This season, Rangers goaltenders have posted a .947 SV% (356 saves on 376 shots).
– KILL ZONE – The Blueshirts were 2-for-2 (4:00) on the penalty kill in the game. The Rangers are 19-for-19 on the penalty kill over the last eight games, and they have killed off 31 of 35 power play opportunities (88.6%) this season.
– TAKING THE METRO – The Rangers have earned at least one point in all five games they have played against teams in the Metropolitan Division this season (3-0-2). The Rangers have earned at least one point in 29 of their last 33 games against Metropolitan Division opponents (26-4-3), and they have won 23 of their last 29 intra-division games (23-4-2).
– MAKING THE DIFFERENCE – New York ranks second in the NHL in goal differential this season (plus-14; 36-22). Note: doesn’t include team goals awarded for a shootout win.
– MAGIC NUMBERS – The Rangers have posted an 8-0-0 record in games which they have tallied three or more goals in 2015-16. In addition, the Blueshirts have allowed two or fewer goals in all eight of their wins thus far this season, and they have posted an 8-0-1 record in games which they have allowed two goals or fewer.
– FIRST IN SCORE – New York tallied the first goal the game for the eighth time in 12 games in 2015-16. The Rangers have posted a 6-1-1 record when registering the first goal of the game in 2015-16. In addition, New York has posted a 47-7-4 record in games which they have tallied the first goal since the start of last season. The Rangers have outscored their opponent, 14-6, in the first period thus far this season.
– FINISHING THE JOB – The Rangers have posted a 156-1-9 record in their last 166 regular season games when leading after two periods, dating back to Feb. 6, 2010 vs. New Jersey. New York’s .940 winning percentage and .967 points percentage when holding a lead after 40 minutes over the span rank first in the NHL. In addition, the Blueshirts have posted a 42-0-1 record in 43 contests in which they have held a lead after two periods since the start of the 2014-15 season.
– CAPITAL-IZING – The Blueshirts have won five of their last six games against the Capitals, dating back to Jan. 19, 2014 (5-1-0). In addition, New York has earned at least one point in 14 of its last 19 games against Washington, dating back to Dec. 12, 2010 (13-5-1).
– FLAVOR OF THE MONTH – The Rangers have posted a 74-42-9 record in 125 games during the month of November since the start of the 2005-06 season, and they lead the NHL in wins in November over the span.
– Henrik Lundqvist made 32 saves to earn his sixth win of the season. Lundqvist appeared in his 630th career game with the Rangers in tonight’s contest, passing Turk Broda for sole possession of seventh place in career appearances by a goaltender with one franchise. The only goaltenders in NHL history who have appeared in more games with one franchise than Lundqvist has with the Rangers are Martin Brodeur (New Jersey), Tony Esposito (Chicago), Terry Sawchuk (Detroit), Olaf Kolzig (Washington), Billy Smith (NY Islanders), and Mike Richter (Rangers). Lundqvist has posted a 7-0-2 record, along with a 1.85 GAA and a .944 SV% in his last nine games against Metropolitan Division opponents. The Rangers’ all-time wins and shutouts leader has made at least 30 saves in six of 10 appearances in 2015-16. In the six contests in which he has made at least 30 saves, Lundqvist has posted a 5-0-1 record, along with a 1.81 GAA and a .951 SV%. Lundqvist has been named one of the game’s Three Stars in eight of the 10 contests he has played thus far this season, including eight of his last nine appearances and each of his last six appearances. He has been named the game’s First Star four times and the game’s Third Star four times. In addition, he has been named the game’s First Star in four of the six games he has won this season.
– Derick Brassard recorded two points (one goal, one assist), won six of eight faceoffs (75%), and posted a plus-two rating. Brassard extended his point streak to four games, and he has registered seven points (three goals, four assists) over the span. Brassard has tallied a goal in three of those four contests. In addition, Brassard has recorded five points (one goal, four assists) in the last two games. He leads the team in points (10) and is tied for the team lead in assists (six) this season.
– Oscar Lindberg registered two points (one goal, one assist), led the Rangers with six hits, recorded three shots on goal, and posted a plus-two rating. Lindberg leads NHL rookies in goals (six) and even strength goals (six) this season. He has registered a point in seven of 12 games in 2015-16 and has recorded a goal in five of those contests. The Rangers have posted a 5-0-2 record when he has tallied a point, including a 5-0-0 record when he has recorded a goal. Lindberg has posted a plus/minus rating of even or better in each of the 12 games he has played this season, and he is the only Ranger who has done so in 2015-16.
– Kevin Klein tied single-game career-highs with two points (one goal, one assist) and a plus-three rating, and tied for the game-high with three blocked shots while skating in a team-high 21:11 of ice time. Klein has posted 15 multi-point games in his career, including six as a Ranger. As of the conclusion of tonight’s game, Klein is tied for first among NHL defensemen in even strength goals (three) and is tied for third among NHL defensemen in goals (three) this season. He has also posted a plus-eight rating over the last five games, and leads the Rangers in plus/minus rating (plus-11) this season.
– Kevin Hayes tallied two points (one goal, one assist), led all Rangers with four shots on goal, and posted a plus-two rating. He has registered a point in four of the last five games, tallying five points (two goals, three assists) over the span. In his NHL career, 30 of Hayes’ 33 assists have been primary assists. Hayes leads the Rangers in primary assists since the start of the 2014-15 season.
– Jarret Stoll tallied his first goal as a Ranger and posted a plus-one rating in 16:11 of ice time. He has tallied a point in two of the last three games (one goal, one assist).
– Keith Yandle notched an assist and posted a plus-one rating in 20:05 of ice time. He has tallied a point in four of the last six games (one goal, three assists) and he is tied for the team lead in assists (six) in 2015-16.
– Viktor Stalberg recorded an assist, registered three shots on goal, posted a plus-three rating, and recorded two hits. Stalberg has registered two points (one goal, one assist) in his last four games and four points (one goal, three assists) in his last eight games. Stalberg has notched 69 of his 74 career NHL assists – and 132 of his 137 career NHL points – at even strength.
– Marc Staal notched an assist, tied for the game-high with three blocked shots, and posted a plus-one rating in 19:27 of ice time. The Rangers’ alternate captain has recorded an assist/point in four of the last six games, registering five points (one goal, four assists) over the span.
· Alain Vigneault, New York Rangers head coach
On tonight’s game…
“Control, probably isn’t the word to be used. I thought we played one of our best first periods of the year. We executed well, we came out of our zone pretty clean. In the second period, we just lost total momentum. We have to kill off the penalty, and then we spend a shift and I had to use my timeout, and then we took another penalty. We probably spent at least seven or eight straight minutes, they were totally dominating us in our zone, cycling. That’s when you need your great goaltending, and we did get some great goaltending. We weathered the storm in the second, got out in the third (and play a) pretty balanced period. You knew they were going to push, take some chances, which led to some opportunities for us. So, (we are) happy with the first and third (periods). Obviously the second was a little more challenging for us.”
On the play of Henrik Lundqvist…
“Well, he works hard all the time, but obviously there was good focus between him and Benoit (Allaire) on how to prepare himself for this start. He’s certainly a big reason we have been winning a lot of games.”
On the line of Stalberg-Lindberg-Hayes…
“Well I thought that line tonight was our best line at both ends of the rink. When they were on the ice, I was calm. I knew they were going to make the right plays with the puck, and they did, and that’s why they were successful. Every night you need somebody stepping to the plate, helping you get it done, and tonight I thought that they did a real good job leading one another and they spent some good quality time getting great looks in the other end.”
· Barry Trotz, Washington Capitals head coach
On tonight’s game…
“I think we did a lot of good things. We created enough offensively when we had the puck a few times, we just mismanaged it. They got momentum at the end of our power play. It’s two games in a row, that’s got to stop. We mismanaged the pucks there, and it ends up in our net, one on the wall. We’ve just got to do a better job there. So a little bit of frustration set in on us, but we stayed with it. If you learned anything, we just stayed with what we’re attempting to do all night. I thought the second period, you come away from that period, we had control of the puck the whole period, and we lose that period really 2-1. We scored a late goal there, it gave us a bit of hope. We were just hoping to get one in the first ten. We got through that penalty and you need a save. Holts [Braden Holtby] gave us two big saves right at the start of the period, and we need a save there to keep us back in the game.”
More on tonight’s game…
“They’ve been a quick start team. We’re not exactly known as a quick start team, but I didn’t think we were that bad in the first. I thought we were pretty even in the first, in the second period we got that going a little bit, and I thought we were pretty good at it and we could’ve had a few more looks there… a few extended shifts which they got some big blocks and some big saves. They got the timely save and a timely goal, and we didn’t get the timely save and the timely goal tonight.”
· Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers goaltender
On tonight’s game…
“I think you never know how a game is going to be played when you play a skilled team like Washington. Maybe you’re not on top of your game, maybe we had too many turnovers, but at the same time we’ve been talking the past couple of weeks about finding ways to win games. I think we did a great job of making them pay on their mistakes and for the most part we played a pretty smart game. We just had stretches where it was tough for us to get the puck out and they’re skilled. They’re going to find some looks if you’re not careful.”
On the message in the locker room after being outshot in the second period…
“Just try to stay positive. It was almost like we didn’t really talk about the second period; we looked forward to the third instead and talked about what we needed to do. We’ve been in that situation so many times, so you don’t really need to talk about it. We know what we need to do in the third. You need to respect Washington, the skill they have and they can really turn a game in seconds the way they create chances, so I thought we probably played our best in the third and it helped us big time.”
On scoring throughout the lineup…
“I think it’s huge that you don’t rely on one line or just a few guys, you need everybody to step up and make plays and score goals and do everything for us. We play so many games, you are going to have different guys step up at different times and it gives confidence to the group knowing there are more guys that can do it. I think moving forward as well, having that many games, it’s going to be important to have different players that can step up.”
· Oscar Lindberg, New York Rangers forward
On tonight’s game…
“I think we spent too much time in our own zone. Eleven shots after the first two periods and that’s not enough, but we were effective and scoring on our chances so that’s a positive thing.”
On his start to the season…
“I wasn’t expecting it coming in but I’m happy with the way I’ve been playing and the way the team has been playing.”
On his goal…
“There are going to be rebounds and you just have to try and find the open space. (The puck) was on that side and I got lucky that it came out on my stick.”
· Dan Girardi, New York Rangers defenseman
On scoring right after the timeout…
“That definitely helps. Those guys were out there for a while and they battled hard. A couple of guys made some big blocks. That really helped our team. We had some adversity, we were in for four or five minutes, however long it was and then we go back and get a goal…It was definitely a momentum swing.”
On tonight’s game…
“I definitely think it was a big win for us against a really good team. Obviously we could’ve had a full 60-minute game with not so much time in our end and made some better plays with the puck, but overall I think it’s a great game for us against a team that was at the top of our division.”
On his disallowed goal…
“I knew it was pretty close but that’s the typical play we’re good at. We just have to get it in, chip in, move it up and get it to the net. Millsy (J.T. Miller) might have looked a little offside. That probably would have been challenged for sure but it was just a little unlucky I guess.”
· Derick Brassard, New York Rangers forward
On tonight’s game…
“We are not jumping in the air right now. We are pretty aware we beat a pretty good team, but at the same time, we know we didn’t play our best hockey. When you win a game, you take it, you take the points, but we have to come out with a better execution in Colorado for the next game.”
More on tonight’s game…
“They had the puck the whole time and we were chasing it. They have pretty good, skilled forwards and their defensive core was managing the game pretty well. They were finding the forwards in the neutral zone, coming with speed and it was pretty hard to defend. In the second period when we got stuck in our end for four minutes, it was a momentum killer for our team. We lost our legs and our energy and we had a hard time getting pucks in their end and making plays. But we found a way (to win) and that’s the good thing about it.”
On moving forward…
“I think Stoll’s goal in the third period was kind of a reliever for our team. Like I said, we know we can play better but we have to give them credit. They played really well and they were moving the puck fast. We just have to come out with better execution. We know what we have to do, we just have to come out and be better.”
· Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals forward
On the team’s performance…
“We make lots of mistakes and it costs us goals and we didn’t use our chances.”
On tonight’s game…
“Lundqvist is a top goalie in the league and he makes big saves to keep them in the game. We didn’t get any success from in front of the crease. We missed a lot of chances in the neutral zone and I didn’t finish on the 2-on-1.”
· Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals goaltender
On playing the Rangers…
“They’re a team that thrives on odd man stuff and they wait for it. We knew that last year and we think it took us a few games last year to get used to it, too. That’s their strength and if you’re going to beat them you’re going to have to shut them down either by goaltending or system-wise.”
On his performance…
“I’ve always felt better when consistently on the ice. It’s not an excuse here. You adapt to what you’re dealt with and I didn’t do that well enough tonight. That’s something I’ll learn from and be better at next time.”
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