Rangers drop Canucks; Tortorella's woes; Vigneault embraced; Fogarty of Notre Dame; Playoff seeding
Today's New York Rangers notes.
Some simple hockey math from last night: The Rangers won (two points), and the Flyers lost in overtime (one point) so the Rangers increased their lead for the second spot in the Metropolitan Division. More of that. Here are your morning notes.
The Rangers took an early lead, and then held off a Canucks rally on the strength of a...wait for it... Martin St. Louis goal. Not to mention, a pretty incredible performance from Henrik Lundqvist, who turned back 34 shots. Some recaps of the late game. [Daily News] [ESPN NY] [NY Post] [Blueshirts United]
Of course, I'd be remiss not to mention the concern surrounding Ryan McDonagh. With the game pretty much sealed up, McDonagh was run hard into the board by Alexandre Burrows. McDonagh was already being engaged by Zack Kassian, and went into the boards awkwardly, appearing to injure either his right arm or should. The team provided no update after the game, and will travel to Denver where the Rangers will face the Avalanche Thursday, and McDonagh will presumably be reexamined.
Prospect Steven Fogarty of Notre Dame is learning an NHL-style game with the Fighting Irish. [Blueshirt Banter]
Known for being outspoken, Tortorella said new Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault looks smart while winning while, "I'm the idiot." [ESPN NY]
And as his first season as the Rangers' bench boss winds down, his players have embraced Vigneault's system and calmness. [Newsday]
Oh, that and Tortorella guy? Well he wasn't too happy last night as his team fell behind. [Blueshirt Banter]
Chris Kreider's injury has exposed a weakness in the Rangers' depth, writes Larry Brooks. [NY Post]
Does playoff seeding matter for the Rangers? No, says Barry Melrose. [ESPN]
