Rangers in need of some puck luck after loss to Montreal (MTL 1 v. NYR 0)

By 
Jan 30, 2015
Carey Price stops MSL's shot with an acrobatic shoulder save (Photo: Jared Silber/Getty Images)

Carey Price stops MSL’s shot with an acrobatic shoulder save (Photo: Jared Silber/Getty Images)

A bounce here or a bounce there sometimes can be the difference in two points or none in the standings. Right now the Rangers are in a rut and are having trouble scoring with just 11 goals in their last 7 games which includes 3 shutouts.

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Canadiens 1 vs. Rangers 0

MTL at NYR 1.29.15 (ESPN)

MTL at NYR 1.29.15 (ESPN)

Hey, goal droughts happen, but this latest stretch has the Rangers on a 3-4 tail spin after winning 5 in a row previously. Those 5 wins came on the strength of 22 goals and the Rangers need those bounces back soon.

Last night, Max Pacioretty took a shot through a screen that handcuffed Lundqvist. It was a shot he stops 999 times out of 1000. “I don’t expect him to shoot,” said a dejected Lundqvist. “When I am about to push to my left, I got stuck in the post. There is no excuse. I have to expect him to shoot, even though it’s a tough angle. I have to stop it. This is on me, and it’s a tough feeling.”

Still, the Rangers had their own glorious chances earlier in the game. Alain Vigneualt lamented that “an inch here or an inch there” could have been the difference for the Rangers, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Although this loss was disappointing, the gloom and doom some Rangers fans feel is unwarranted. Marty St. Louis explained, “I thought it was a tight game. Both teams had some looks. They got a goal and we didn’t, but I don’t see this game as a letdown.”

The Blueshirts need to put this behind them and focus on a very winnable game this Saturday versus Carolina. As Henrik Lundqvist put it the Rangers are close to getting things right.

“We are doing a lot of good things, but we can try to get more traffic in front of the goalies,” Henrik said. “We are working really hard and are not that far off.” That hard work needs to turn into fortunate bounces and 2 points on Saturday.

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By Anthony Scultore

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at YardBarker, and MSN. Features have been linked on Sportsnet, NBC, TFP, NY POST, NEWSDAY and more.