LDN - Sports

Rangers dominate Blues, 5-0

[November 02, 2016] NEW YORK -- At some point this season, the New York Rangers will fall off their average of four goals per game and they won't find themselves demolishing the NHL's best teams on a regular basis.

For now, however, that's exactly what they're doing.

Five players scored goals and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist stopped all 35 shots as the Rangers pummeled the St. Louis Blues 5-0 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.

Rookie left winger Jimmy Vesey scored his sixth goal and added two assists as the Rangers followed their 6-1 beatdown of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday with another dominant performance against one of the top teams in the Western Conference.

The Rangers (7-3-0) entered the game as the league's top offensive team and increased their lead in that area with their five-goal attack. But perhaps the most encouraging part of the victory was the performance by Lundqvist, who had a .901 save percentage in a characteristically subpar October.

"This was his best game so far this year, there's no doubt," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. "The difference was Hank made those two breakaway saves and when we had opportunities, we were able to capitalize."

Lundqvist was at his best in the second period, when left winger Rick Nash and right winger Mats Zuccarello scored to extend the lead to 4-0. Lundqvist stopped 16 shots, including a breakaway chance from left winger Robby Fabbri when the score was still 2-0.

"Even when we were three-up in the second, they kept coming," said Lundqvist, whose save percentage now sits at a more respectable .917. "A game can change so much with the skill they have up front. There have been a lot of games so far this year that have had low shots, and sometimes it's hard to come up with that extra save when you're not involved in the game. But today there were shots, chances, and I felt like I was tested a lot and it felt good."

Defenseman Dan Girardi scored a 4-on-4 goal at 9:37 of the first period to start the scoring, then Vesey scored his sixth goal, which ties him for the league lead with eight other players, on a power play at 11:11 to make it 2-0.

The game was all but over at that point, as the Blues (5-3-2) hadn't scored more than one goal in a game over the previous three contests. Goaltender Jake Allen allowed four goals on 20 shots before yielding the net to backup Carter Hutton, who allowed center Kevin Hayes to score with 1:43 remaining in the second period on a 3-on-1 rush.

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Rangers left wing Chris Kreider (20) looks to clear the puck during the second period against the St. Louis Blues at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

"I think when we get our chances, it's as a unit of five," Blues center Paul Stastny said. "We have to create more to get some power plays. Even if you're not scoring, you kind of get momentum with the puck and you're getting more chances and eventually going to make them crack. It starts with my line from the top and then all the way down, we need to get better."

It would be difficult for the Rangers to get any better than they have been over the first 10 games. They're first in goals scored, have converted 23.7 percent of their power-play chances and the one underperforming player -- Lundqvist, their best player -- had his best game of the season Tuesday night.

The Rangers overwhelmed a notoriously stingy team and left their coach impressed.

"Could've been 2-0, could've been 1-0; The way they were playing, they were in control," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. "Their game was in control. They were in control. Their team play was excellent. They're well-coached. Their team plays excellent and it should be an eye opener for everybody in the league. It's a real eye opener for us."

NOTES: Blues D Jay Bouwmeester played his 1,000th career NHL game. He made his NHL debut on Oct. 10, 2002, as a member of the Florida Panthers. ... St. Louis D Robert Bortuzzo (lower body) did not play although he did travel with the team for its two-game road trip to New York and Dallas. ... Rangers LW Chris Kreider was back in the lineup after a four-game absence due to neck spasms. ... The Rangers scratched LW Oscar Lindberg to make room for Kreider.

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