Who won tonight's game?
The fans.
- Tonight's game was an instant classic. Had the Rangers won, you'd be seeing it on Al Trautwig's MSG Vault for years to come. You got everything you wanted out of this game. Great goaltending, plenty of hits, and some pretty good offensive skills as well. And you got overtime; truly, this was the only way to decide such an even contest. Sure, the last goal of the game was pretty soft, but almost every tight playoff game that goes to overtime ends on a garbage goal.
- Devils fans, see what happens when your team stops whining and sticks to their gameplan? Those two power play goals really helped out tonight, didn't they? The Devils only had six shots on their eight power plays, but they made their chances count. That said, the Devils probably could have had even more power play time (they only had 9:26 in power play time despite being credited with eight power play chances) if they had kept their cool in the scrums that followed many of the plays in tonight's game.
- Speaking of the scrums, it's my personal opinion that if you drop your gloves, you should be charged with a fighting major. Two Devils had dropped their gloves in one scrum, but were only given roughing penalites. That's not right. I also think that if you drop your gloves and the other guy is turtling, that's an instigator and a game misconduct, but the officials don't see it that way. If the refs saw things the same way I do, Arron Asham would have been thrown out of tonight's game.
- Say what you want about Martin Brodeur being a whiner, but give him credit for getting knocked out in the third period, shaking it off, and staying in the game. Head trauma is a scary thing - even though I don't like Brodeur, I'm glad he was okay. It wouldn't have been the same if Kevin Weekes came in for the overtime session. I'm sure plenty of Devils fans are going to be up in arms at the Garden crowd chanting derisively at Brodeur as he was recovering from the hit. However, nobody could possibly be accused of thinking rationally in a packed house that had just seen over ninety hits in under three periods.
- Ranger fans, you've got a lot to look forward to as you look toward the next game. Sure, the Devils won tonight's game, but three of the four goals were extremely shaky. You had a puck go off a Ranger's stick, a puck somehow trickle over Lundqvist, and a puck ricochet off Marc Staal's skate and into the goal. On the other side of the equation, you brought in a packed house that tore the roof off the building. You stood up to each and every hit the Devils tried to throw at you, and you never lost your cool. You probably played your worst game of the series so far, yet still managed to force overtime. However, that 6-1 shot differential in the extra frame is something to be concerned about.
- Two random points about the Rangers: First, they seem to have modified their jerseys so that the curved "guy's dress shirt" shirttails now look like they used to. Second, it's remarkable how many of their young guys play significant minutes. They don't have to restrict themselves to their top two lines like some teams have to. They can roll three power play lines, which is insane. And none of the young players look out of place; if anything, they out-perform their senior counterparts. They remind me of the New York Yankees in that way - although the big-money guys get all the attention, it's the young guys who make peanuts that really make the team tick.
- The best part about tonight's game? We're now guaranteed at least two more games of this series. Each game is better than the one before it. The games are testy, but the hits are mostly clean and the rough stuff hasn't gotten out of control yet. There's a defensive feel to the series, but both teams (mostly the Rangers) have had their chances offensively. And both goalies have stepped up when necessary. It feels like there have been more cheap goals than good ones, and that's a good thing - it means that we're seeing some spectacular saves.
This is going to be one hell of a series. Wednesday can't come soon enough.
The fans.
- Tonight's game was an instant classic. Had the Rangers won, you'd be seeing it on Al Trautwig's MSG Vault for years to come. You got everything you wanted out of this game. Great goaltending, plenty of hits, and some pretty good offensive skills as well. And you got overtime; truly, this was the only way to decide such an even contest. Sure, the last goal of the game was pretty soft, but almost every tight playoff game that goes to overtime ends on a garbage goal.
- Devils fans, see what happens when your team stops whining and sticks to their gameplan? Those two power play goals really helped out tonight, didn't they? The Devils only had six shots on their eight power plays, but they made their chances count. That said, the Devils probably could have had even more power play time (they only had 9:26 in power play time despite being credited with eight power play chances) if they had kept their cool in the scrums that followed many of the plays in tonight's game.
- Speaking of the scrums, it's my personal opinion that if you drop your gloves, you should be charged with a fighting major. Two Devils had dropped their gloves in one scrum, but were only given roughing penalites. That's not right. I also think that if you drop your gloves and the other guy is turtling, that's an instigator and a game misconduct, but the officials don't see it that way. If the refs saw things the same way I do, Arron Asham would have been thrown out of tonight's game.
- Say what you want about Martin Brodeur being a whiner, but give him credit for getting knocked out in the third period, shaking it off, and staying in the game. Head trauma is a scary thing - even though I don't like Brodeur, I'm glad he was okay. It wouldn't have been the same if Kevin Weekes came in for the overtime session. I'm sure plenty of Devils fans are going to be up in arms at the Garden crowd chanting derisively at Brodeur as he was recovering from the hit. However, nobody could possibly be accused of thinking rationally in a packed house that had just seen over ninety hits in under three periods.
- Ranger fans, you've got a lot to look forward to as you look toward the next game. Sure, the Devils won tonight's game, but three of the four goals were extremely shaky. You had a puck go off a Ranger's stick, a puck somehow trickle over Lundqvist, and a puck ricochet off Marc Staal's skate and into the goal. On the other side of the equation, you brought in a packed house that tore the roof off the building. You stood up to each and every hit the Devils tried to throw at you, and you never lost your cool. You probably played your worst game of the series so far, yet still managed to force overtime. However, that 6-1 shot differential in the extra frame is something to be concerned about.
- Two random points about the Rangers: First, they seem to have modified their jerseys so that the curved "guy's dress shirt" shirttails now look like they used to. Second, it's remarkable how many of their young guys play significant minutes. They don't have to restrict themselves to their top two lines like some teams have to. They can roll three power play lines, which is insane. And none of the young players look out of place; if anything, they out-perform their senior counterparts. They remind me of the New York Yankees in that way - although the big-money guys get all the attention, it's the young guys who make peanuts that really make the team tick.
- The best part about tonight's game? We're now guaranteed at least two more games of this series. Each game is better than the one before it. The games are testy, but the hits are mostly clean and the rough stuff hasn't gotten out of control yet. There's a defensive feel to the series, but both teams (mostly the Rangers) have had their chances offensively. And both goalies have stepped up when necessary. It feels like there have been more cheap goals than good ones, and that's a good thing - it means that we're seeing some spectacular saves.
This is going to be one hell of a series. Wednesday can't come soon enough.
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