Saturday, May 23
Neil Parker
2015-05-23
Rangers-Lightning Game 4, Henrik Lundqvist, All-RFA team and breakout defensemen.
***
The Rangers grabbed a 1-0 lead in Game 4, and then they went absolutely rope-a-dope in the second period.
Tampa Bay peppered Henrik Lundqvist with 19 shots in the second and only scored once.
Lundqvist robbed Steven Stamkos early on a wrap-around opportunity, which really could have swayed momentum. Then he slammed the door on an Alex Killorn breakaway.
Next, he stopped Nikita Kucherov in tight, which was the second time Kucherov was parked in prime real estate and didn’t score. The first time he was so surprised the puck landed on his stick, he fired a seven iron into the glass. All he needed was his putter.
But, back to Lundqvist. He won that game early in the second period. Because after Tampa Bay laid it all out offensively and couldn’t capitalize … well …
After that, it just fell apart for the Lightning.
Ben Bishop‘s lateral movement was exposed, and cross-ice passes were an element of each of the final four goals. Albeit, one went off of Victor Hedman and in, but still, it followed a lengthy east-west pass.
It is nothing new. When Bishop — like most “big” goalies — is moving from side to side, he is vulnerable. “Get the goalie moving,” is as old as “Get pucks on net.”
New York took their punches, grew lumps and kept the puck out of their net. When they went on the offensive, Tampa Bay couldn’t do the same.