Blog will be up later today, but until then, here the official NYR Postgame notes/news from Blueshirtsunited.com:
BANNER Team notes
– HIGH FIVE – The Rangers have registered five goals in each of the last two games, and each of the last two road games. It is the first time the Blueshirts have recorded five goals in two consecutive playoff games since Game 4 and Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals in 2008 against New Jersey. It is also the first time the Rangers have registered five goals in two consecutive playoff road games since Game 3 and Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals in 1994 against the Islanders.
– CORE (GAME) FOUR – The Rangers have won Game 4 in four of their last five playoff series, and in six of their last nine playoff series. The Blueshirts have won 13 of the last 18 playoff series in which they won Game 4 of the series.
– SPLITTING THE DIFFERENCE – Six of the Rangers’ last 12 playoff series have been tied at two games apiece following Game 4 of the series, dating back to the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Ottawa in 2012. Entering the Eastern Conference Final against Tampa Bay, the Blueshirts had posted a 4-1 series record in the five playoff series which were tied two games apiece after Game 4 over the span. The Rangers have posted a 6-2 series record in their last eight playoff series which were tied after Game 4, dating back to the Eastern Conference Final against New Jersey in 1994.
– ON POINT – Rangers defensemen tallied six points (one goal, five assists) in the contest. Over the last two games, Rangers blueliners have registered 13 points (three goals, 10 assists). At least one Rangers defensemen has recorded a multi-point game in three consecutive playoff games for the first time since Game 1 to Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Atlanta in 2007. At least two Rangers defensemen registered multi-point games in two consecutive playoff contests for the first time since Game 1 and Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against Philadelphia in 1995.
– POWER SURGE – New York was 2-for-4 (4:28) on the power play in the contest. The Blueshirts have registered two power play goals in each of the last three games, and they are 6-for-13 (46.2%) on the power play over the span. The Rangers have tallied at least two power play goals in three consecutive playoff games for the first time since Game 5 to Game 7 of the Patrick Division Semifinals in 1992 against New Jersey. The Blueshirts have registered at least six power play goals in one playoff series for the first time since the Eastern Conference Semifinals against Buffalo in 2007 (eight). Including the regular season, New York has tallied a power play goal in five of its last six games, 10 of its last 17 games, 11 of its last 19 games, and 13 of its last 23 games. The Rangers have posted a 6-0 record when outscoring their opponent on special teams in the 2015 Playoffs, and including the regular season, they have won 23 of 25 contests when registering more special teams goals than their opponent in a game in 2014-15.
– TWO GOOD – The Blueshirts have allowed two goals or fewer in 22 of their last 23 playoff wins, dating back to Game 1 of the Metropolitan Division Semifinals against Philadelphia on Apr. 17, 2014. New York has also allowed two or fewer goals in 38 of its last 43 playoff wins, dating back to Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against Pittsburgh on May 1, 2008.
– ROAD WARRIORS – The Blueshirts have won 32 of 48 road games they have played this season (regular season and playoffs included). Including the regular season, the Rangers have won 14 of their last 18 road games, 19 of their last 25 road games, and 28 of their last 39 road contests.
– SHUTTING THE DOOR – The Blueshirts have allowed two goals or fewer in 12 of 16 playoff games this year, including 11 of the last 14 games. The Rangers have also allowed one goal or fewer in nine playoff games in 2015.
– FINISHING THE JOB – The Rangers have won 42 of 43 regular season and playoff games in which they have led after two periods this season. New York has posted a 6-0 record in games which they have had a lead after 40 minutes in the playoffs this year.
– KILL ZONE – The Rangers were 4-for-4 (7:53) on the penalty kill in the contest. New York leads the NHL in penalty kill efficiency on the road in the playoffs this year (94.4%; 17-for-18).
– TEAM EFFORT – Four different Rangers tallied a goal for the second consecutive game, and nine different Blueshirts recorded at least one point in tonight’s contest. Through 16 games in the 2015 Playoffs, 12 different Rangers have recorded at least one goal and 18 of 20 skaters have recorded at least one point.
– FIRST IN SCORE – The Blueshirts have tallied the first goal of the game in 10 of 16 playoff contests this year, including each of the last two contests. The Rangers have outscored their opponents, 13-6, in the first period during the 2015 Playoffs. New York has posted a 7-3 record when tallying the first goal of the game in the playoffs this year.
– PLAYING THE GAME – Tonight’s contest was the Rangers’ 73rd playoff game since the start of the 2012 Playoffs. The Blueshirts have played more playoff games than any other NHL team over the span. New York is also tied for second in the NHL – and leads the Eastern Conference – in playoff wins (38) since the start of the 2012 Playoffs. The Rangers also rank second in the NHL in playoff games played since the start of the 2006 Playoffs (109). The Blueshirts have played more playoff games than any NHL team who has played in the Eastern Conference in every season over the span (Note: Detroit is the only NHL team who has played more playoff games than the Rangers since 2006, and they were in the Western Conference through the conclusion of the 2012-13 season).
BANNER Three Stars on Broadway
– Henrik Lundqvist made 38 saves in the contest, including 31 in the final two periods, to earn his 10th win of the 2015 Playoffs and his 53rd career NHL playoff win. The Rangers’ all-time wins and appearances leader in postseason action is the only goaltender in franchise history who has won 10 or more playoff games in one year three times (including two consecutive years), and he is also one of only three goaltenders in franchise history who has done so at least once (John Davidson – 1979; Mike Richter – 1994). Lundqvist is the only NHL goaltender who has won at least 10 playoff games in three separate years since his first year in the NHL in 2005-06. Since the start of the 2012 Playoffs, Lundqvist has posted a 20-12 record, along with a 1.87 GAA, a .935 SV%, and 4 SO in 32 playoff games following a Rangers loss. In the Rangers’ 23 playoff wins since the start of the 2014 Playoffs, Lundqvist has posted a 1.22 GAA, a .959 SV% (678 saves on 707 shots), and 1 SO. He has allowed 29 goals in those 23 contests, and he has allowed one goal or fewer in 17 of the 23 wins.
New York Rangers v Tampa Bay Lightning – Game Four– Rick Nash established single-game playoff career-highs with two goals and three points, and he led all Rangers with five shots on goal in the contest. He has tallied five of his last seven playoff goals in the Eastern Conference Final round. Seven of Nash’s eight playoff goals as a Ranger have been scored on the road. He has tallied four points (three goals, one assist) in the last six games and six points (three goals, three assists) in the last 10 games.
– Keith Yandle tied a single-game playoff career-high with three points (one goal, two assists), registered his first playoff goal as a Ranger, recorded four shots on goal, and posted a plus-two rating in 18:16 of ice time. Yandle had previously recorded three points in a playoff game once in his career (Game 2 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against Detroit in 2011 as a member of the Coyotes). Yandle has posted a multi-assist/point game in each of the last two contests, (one goal, four assists), and he has recorded seven points (one goal, six assists) in the last seven playoff games. Yandle has posted a multi-assist/point game in two consecutive playoff contests for the first time in his NHL career. He is the first Blueshirts defenseman to tally two assists in two consecutive playoff games since Fedor Tyutin did so in Game 1 and Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals in against Atlanta in 2007. Yandle has tied his playoff career-high in assists (eight) this year. He is also tied for third among NHL defensemen in assists, points (nine), power play assists (three), and power play points (three) in the 2015 Playoffs.
BANNER BLUESHIRT BREAKDOWN
– Alain Vigneault earned his 60th career playoff win in the NHL, passing Lindy Ruff for sole possession of 16th place on the NHL’s all-time playoff wins list. Vigneault has earned at least 10 wins in the playoffs in three of the last five seasons (2011 with Vancouver, 2014 with the Rangers, and 2015 with the Rangers).
– Kevin Klein established a single-game playoff career-high with two assists, tied a single-game playoff career-high with two points, recorded four hits, was credited with two blocked shots, and posted a plus-two rating in 17:43 of ice time. He has recorded three assists/points in the last two games and four assists/points in the last six contests. Klein has established a playoff career-high in assists (four) and has tied a playoff career-high in points (four) in the playoffs this year.
– Chris Kreider registered the game-winning goal and recorded three shots on goal in the contest. Kreider leads all Rangers in playoff goals (18) since he made his NHL debut in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Ottawa in 2012. Six of Kreider’s 18 career playoff goals have been game-winning goals. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Kreider is tied for second in franchise history in career playoff game-winning goals (Frank Boucher, Bill Cook, and Brian Leetch also have six; Mark Messier holds the franchise record with seven). Kreider is also tied with Pete Stemkowski for 11th on the Rangers’ all-time playoff goals list. He has established a playoff career-high, and is tied for fourth in the NHL, in goals (seven) in the 2015 Playoffs. Kreider extended his point streak to a playoff career-high four games (two goals, two assists), and he has notched a point in six of the last seven games (five goals, two assists). Kreider has also registered eight points (six goals, two assists) in the last 10 games.
– Martin St. Louis tallied a goal and registered three shots on goal in the contest. The Rangers alternate captain has recorded three points (one goal, two assists) in the last three games and six points (one goal, five assists) in the last 10 games.
– Kevin Hayes posted his first career NHL multi-assist/point game in the playoffs by recording two assists in the contest. Hayes has notched an assist/point in each of the last two games (three assists), and he has recorded a point in four of the last five games (one goal, four assists). Including the regular season, 30 of Hayes’ 33 assists in 2014-15 have been the primary assist. Hayes is tied for first among NHL rookies in assists (five) and is tied for second among NHL rookies in points (seven) in the 2015 Playoffs.
– Derick Brassard tallied a power play assist in the game. He has recorded a point in four of the last six games, registering five points (one goal, four assists) over the span.
– Dan Boyle recorded a power play assist in 20:25 of ice time. Boyle extended his assist/point streak to three games (one goal, four assists over the span), and he has notched a power play assist/point in each of the three contests. He leads all NHL defensemen in power play assists (five) and power play points (six) in the 2015 Playoffs.
– Carl Hagelin notched an assist and posted a plus-one rating in the contest. Hagelin has tallied four points (two goals, two assists) in his last eight games in the Eastern Conference Final round of the playoffs.
– Marc Staal skated in his 84th career playoff game with the Rangers in tonight’s contest, tying Ron Greschner for fourth place on the franchise’s all-time playoff games played list. He also tied Greschner for second place in career playoff games played by a Rangers defenseman.
LGR
