The♛ winning and shutout streaks are over, and thus a decision to go with Henrik Lundqvist for Thursday night’s match in Dallas sets up as an easier one for Alain Vigneault should the coach choose to make it.
But understand this — Antti Raanta was every bit as good in the Blueshirts’ 2-1 defeat to the Blackhawks at the Garden on Tuesday🔥 as he had been in recording two straight shutouts and three consecutive victories through which he had allowed one goal.
So if an opportunity to reassert himself awaitℱs The King, a healthy backup for four straight for the first time in his 12-year NHL career, so does the bar of excellence establish꧃ed by the (nominal?) backup, whose work has opened eyes and the possibility that he might sometime and somewhere achieve his objective of becoming an NHL No. 1.
“It’s great to get these games, but everybody knows who the No. 1 is,” said Raanta, who extended his shutout streak to 176:22 before Trevor Van Riemsdyk ended it at 5:18 of the second 🔜period to give Chicago a 1-0 lead. “When you’re a backup, you always try to be there and show everybody you can also do the job. Everybody who has made it this far hopes to be the guy the 🤡team relies on. That’s always the dream.”
This is one that could have gone New York’s way just as Friday’s 1-0 overtime victory in Chicago could have belonged to the Blackh🥂awks. Both teams attacked, with the skilled western power creating the better chances off odd-man rushes. Both goaltenders — Scott Darling on the other side — were o🅠utstanding.
Both defenses were strong in their own end, the Blueshirts compromised both by the absence of Ryan McDonagh (a late scratch with the flu) and of Brady Skjei for nearly all of the second period after he was nicked on the chin by Kevin Hayes’ skate blade with just about fiv🎉e minutes remaining in the first.
Indeed, Nick Holden (26:24), Kevin Klein (23:27), Marc Sta🅺al (23:08) and Dan Girardi (23:05) all logged season-high ice 💟times in the up-tempo, entertaining match in which there were only 11 faceoffs in the first period, 16 in the second and 15 in the third for a total of 42 draws.
Think about that foꦓr a second — subtracting the mandated nine television timeouts, the draws that opened each period, the goals and two whistles on penalty calls, there were otherwise onl🔯y 25 stops of play in 60 minutes. It was hockey the way it is meant to be played.
“I just thought it was a good hockey game for 60 minutes with tight ch🌼ecking, good looks and good goaltending,” said Derek Stepan, whose line featuring wingers Chris Kreider and Mats Zuccarello had difficulty creating. “Their goaltender was good and so was ours.”
The Rangers tied it 1-1 at 8:15 of the second when Jesper Fast bunted one in from the left doorstep in finishing an Oscar Lindberg centering feed. The Blackhawks struck for the winner at 18:51 of that period when Artem Anisimov recorded the winner from the slot — after Holden had drifted away from coverage — at 🅰18:51 of the period.
Most of the Rangers’ offense was supplied by the bottom six forwards, with Jimmy Vesey leading the way with seven shots in 14:47 — but 8:09 in the third — while playing on the fourth line with Brandon Pirri and Nicklas Jensen through two🔯 periods before moving up to skate with Lindberg and Fast in place of Marek Hrivik. Indeed, Vesey was the extra attacker when Raanta was pulled late𒈔 in the third.
If Vese𝓀y was the team’s best forward, Raanta was his team’s best player. The Finn has been nothing short of outstanding, going 8-2 (with one no-decision) in 11 starts while recording a 1.57 GAA and .944 sa๊ve percentage.
Now, presumably it will be Lundqvist, whose four straight assignments as an und🐻erstudy were certainly not a consequence of a master plan to reduce his regular-season workload. This was a deviation from the norm, not only as regards the Swede, but No. 1 goaltenders around the league. It is now up to Lundqvist to stifle controversy.
“You know what? In my first year here [2013-14], this sort of happened in December,” said Vigneault, who went with then-backup Cam Talbot for three straight bridging that season’s Christmas break. “But when we were making ꦬour playoff push to the final, I don’t remember anyone bringing up the fact that Hank missed three games in December.”
To repeat: a high bar.