The New York Rangers were desperate for a win on Monday night and the team desperately needed to score some goals and luckily for John Tortorella, the team got both as they defeated the Washington Capitals 4-3 to put the series at 2-1 with Game 4 on Wednesday.
The Rangers were shutout in Game 2 and did not score a goal since Carl Hagelin had the first of the series in the first period of Game 1. The Rangers needed to avoid going down 3-0 to the hottest team in the NHL and they did just that with their performance on Monday that saw goals from Brian Boyle and Derek Stepan, two players the team needs to get going. The series is now at 2-1 with the home ice holding and despite the fact that the Caps tied it up each time the Rangers got a lead, they were able to pull ahead for the victory by the end. Derick Brassard added a goal for the Rangers to go up 2-1 and when things were tied 3-3, Stepan stepped up for the winner.
The team got a boost from having Marc Staal back in the lineup and the defenseman said he felt good after missing nearly 30 games after getting hit in the eye with a puck and Henrik Lundqvist was fantastic when he needed to be. At the end the Caps mounted furious comeback attempt with a six on four advantage, but the Rangers held tight and were able to get the victory at home. Braden Holtby was solid for the Caps as well and the Rangers were still dealing with life without Ryan Clowe, who could give the offense some juice as well.
The Caps tied things up at 2-2 and 3-3, but the Rangers did not get discouraged and were able to bounce back from the ties. The Bruins spoiled the return of playoff hockey to Toronto with a 5-2 victory in Game 3, while the Red Wings tied their series with the Ducks at 2-2 after winning in overtime. The Blues and Kings are also tied at 2-2, as the Staley Cup champs won 4-3 in Game 4 to bring tings even.
"As I've said all along, it's a good group of guys," Rangers head coach John Tortorella told a news conference. "It's just trying to get momentum on your side and finding a way to win the hockey game and we got it done tonight."
