The Hurricanes did it again. It may have taken longer than 1:01, but like in the first game, Carolina beat Henrik Lundqvist blocker side early and never looked back.
Andrei Svechnikov who opened the scoring at 4:32 of the first stanza scored two more times for the hat-trick. The final score was 4-1 and Carolina now has a stranglehold on this best of five series, two games to none.
Alexandar Georgiev should start if Igor Shesterkin still unfit
If the Rangers want to stave off elimination, they will need to change it up in goal. This is not to say that Henrik Lundqvist was the reason they lost today, that would be unfair. However, he did let it what MSG Analyst, Steve Valiquette referred to as “bad goals” which makes it hard for teams to recover from.
The Hurricanes seem to have the scouting report down on Hank as they went high blocker side often. While the Rangers did tie the game up in the first and seemed to find their game, an early undisciplined penalty by Brendan Smith did them in.
The 20 year-old Svechnikov rifled a fluttering puck over the shoulder of Lundqvist on the PP. That would be the eventual game winner, and very likely the end of Lundqvist in this series.
Rangers bright spots
Artemi Panarin did score on a 5-3 advantage in the first period, but there was not much else to cheer about. I will say that Ryan Lindgren continues to impress and play with poise. He has been by far the Rangers best defenseman in this series.
CAR 4 vs NYR 1: Post-game notes
- The Blueshirts were credited with 37 hits in today’s contest, including 15 hits in the first period, and 15 of 18 skaters registered at least one hit in the game. The Rangers have recorded 77 hits in the first two games of the Qualifying Round this year
- Artemi Panarin recorded a power play goal in today’s game. He has notched a point in each of the first two games of the 2020 Qualifying Round (one goal, one assist). Panarin has tallied 28 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 29 career playoff games, and he has registered at least one point in 19 of those 29 contests.
- Ryan Strome notched a power play assist, which was his first playoff assist/point as a Ranger. He has tallied nine points (three goals, six assists) in 17 career playoff games.
- Tony DeAngelo tallied a power play assist, which was his first career playoff assist/point.
Notes: Courtesy of the NYR PR Dept.
