RANGERS THUMP HABS IN GARDEN 

VERSUS

NEW YORK RANGERS POST-GAME NOTES

November 5, 2011 (Game 12, Home Game 5)

Madison Square Garden – New York, New York

Team Notes:

–        The Rangers defeated the Montreal Canadiens, 5-3, in an Original Six match-up tonight at Madison Square Garden to improve to 6-3-3 on the season, including a 3-1-1 mark at home.

–        The Blueshirts have registered at least one point in seven of the last nine games, posting a record of 6-2-1 over the span.  New York has won each of their last three games.

–        The Rangers improved to 8-3-0 in their last 11 games vs. the Canadiens at Madison Square Garden.

–        New York notched one power play goal in tonight’s contest, and has now registered seven goals with the man advantage in the last seven games (7-37, 18.9% over the span).

–        The Rangers have now posted a record of 47-26-12 against Original Six opponents since the 2005-06 season, including a 12-10-3 mark vs. Montreal over the span.  The Blueshirts’ .624 winning percentage in Original Six match-ups ranks second.

–        Tonight’s victory marks John Tortorella’s 100th win as Rangers Head Coach, posting a record of 100-79-1-21 behind the Blueshirts’ bench.

Player Notes:

–        Artem Anisimov registered two assists and three shots on goal in 15:41 of ice time to earn first star honors.  He has recorded three points (one goal, two assists) in the last three games, and is now tied for third on the team in assists (five) and fifth in points (six).

–        Erik Christensen opened the game’s scoring with a power play goal, while skating five on three, added an assist and won eight of nine faceoff attempts (89%).  He has registered four points (one goal, three assists) in the last three games.

–        Derek Stepan tallied two assists, including one on the power play, and was credited with two blocked shots in 18:14 of ice time.  He has recorded four points (one goal, three assists) in the last four games, and is tied for the team lead in power play points (three).

–        Brad Richards notched the game-winning goal and led all forwards with 22:58 of ice time.  He has registered five points (three goals, two assists) in the last four games, and is now tied for the team lead in points (10) and assists (six), and ranks third in goals (four).

–        Dan Girardi tallied an even strength goal at 10:28 of the first period, tied for the game-high with three blocked shots and led all skaters with 30:50 of ice time to earn second star honors.  He has recorded six points (two goals, four assists) in the last six games, and is tied for third on the team in assists (five) and points (seven).

–        Ryan Callahan registered an empty net goal with 39 seconds remaining in regulation, was assessed a fighting major and logged 20:57 of ice time.  He has recorded six points (five goals, one assist) in the last six games, and now leads the team in goals (six) and is tied for third in points (seven).

–        Michael Del Zotto notched a goal in a season-high, 27:26 of ice time.  He is tied for second among team defensemen in goals (two) and ranks third in points (five).

–        Henrik Lundqvist made 25 saves to improve to 4-3-3 with a 2.27 goals against average and a .929 save percentage.  He is now 2-1-1 at Madison Square Garden this season.

–        Marian Gaborik recorded an assist on Christensen’s power play goal, and registered a team-high five shots on goal in 20:08 of ice time.  He has registered six points (one goal, five assists) through the first five games of the current homestand, and leads the team in home points (six) and home assists (five).  Gaborik is also tied for the team lead in points (10) and power play points (three), and second in power play assists (two), third in assists (five) and ranks second in goals (five).

–        Brandon Prust and Andre Deveaux each registered an assist on Richards’ game-winning goal at 18:50 of the second period.  The assist was Deveaux’s first point as a Ranger.

–        Ryan McDonagh and Brandon Dubinsky both recorded an assist on Callahan’s empty net goal at 19:21 of the third period.  McDonagh also posted a game-high, plus-three rating in 25:19 of ice time.  Dubinsky has now tallied three assists in the last three games.

–        Brian Boyle tied for the game-high with nine faceoff wins in 12 attempts for a 75% faceoff winning percentage.

Post-Game Quotes:                                                      

–        John Tortorella on tonight’s game…

“It was scratch and claw. Getting up 3-0 is not an easy lead.  It was one of those games where you’re scratching and clawing and trying to find a way to get it done.”

–        Henrik Lundqvist on Brad Richards’ goal…

“It was huge. The momentum was about to change – it already had changed a little bit – so that goal got us back into the game and it felt like we were on top again. He’s a big player that makes big plays at big times and that one was huge for us.”

–        Brad Richards on playing at home…

“We looked at the opportunity of a six game home stand.  The Leafs game was tough – we hadn’t been home in a long time and we didn’t play the way we wanted.  But we kept going, and building on things.  We looked at it as an opportunity.  If we could get some wins at home, get ourselves back into a good, regular NHL routine, and get our feet under us as we go.  Our schedule kind of permits us to get those home wins, take care of that, then we can get some rest and regroup, while playing and getting a couple wins.  That’s a great recipe.”

Team Schedule:

–        Please note there is no morning skate scheduled prior to tomorrow’s contest vs. the Winnipeg Jets.  Rangers’ Head Coach John Tortorella will be available to the media at 4:50 p.m. in the Press Conference Room, located on the fifth floor of Madison Square Garden.