|
 The speedy left winger scored in every period, boosting his
season goal total to 16, as the Rangers knocked off the struggling
Winnipeg Jets 4-2 to snap a two-game losing skid.
The Rangers (36-28-4) vaulted ahead of the idle Columbus Blue
Jackets and into second place in the NHL's Metropolitan Division,
while the Jets (30-29-9) have now gone six games without a victory.
Hagelin, 25, who was born and raised in Sweden but played college
hockey at the University of Michigan, admitted he hadn't fired a hat
trick since he was a teen playing in his homeland.
"It feels good. I've never had one before, not even in college,"
Hagelin said. "Any time you can help the team win a game, especially
scoring three goals, it's pretty special."
To mark the occasion, Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist flopped the
fedora on Hagelin's head just as the press corps surrounded him.
"We give out the hat after every win, so Hank (Lundqvist) gave me
the hat and said, 'Three goals, you deserve it,'" he said.
Lundqvist stopped 30 shots and tied the team mark of 301 wins with
the Rangers, set by Stanley Cup-winner Mike Richter
Hagelin notched his second goal of the contest at 19:52 of the
middle frame to break a 2-2 tie, taking a pass from veteran right
winger Martin St. Louis and backhanding a shot past goalie Al
Montoya.
St. Louis, the Rangers' prized pickup just before the NHL trade
deadline, took an ill-advised hooking penalty at 17:41, but his club
managed to kill it off. He streaked out of the box to beat out an
icing call, grabbed the puck and fed Hagelin for his second goal of
the game with just eight seconds left in the period.
"That was a timely kill," St. Louis said. "I come out of the box,
negate the icing, shoulder check and I think Hags was tired but he
extended himself because he felt like it would probably be a scoring
chance. It was fortunate it was on his tape and he finished it off."
Montoya had replaced Winnipeg goalie Ondrej Pavelec to start the
second period. Pavelec wasn't even on the bench, and the Jets later
said he suffered a lower-body injury.
Hagelin scored the insurance goal midway through the final period,
taking a pretty pass from center Brad Richards and rifling a shot
through Montoya's legs.
Rookie left winger Chris Kreider ripped his 17th goal of the season
in the first period for New York.
Defenseman Dustin Byfuglien and left winger Andrew Ladd scored
first-period goals for the Jets. The big defenseman-turned-left
winger batted in his 17th tally, while Ladd, the Jets captain, beat
Lundqvist on a wrist shot that likely should have been stopped for
his 19th goal.
Lundqvist wasn't sharp in the opening period but shut down the Jets
in the second and third. He got his 25th victory of the season.
"There was a lot of action (in the first period)," Lundqvist said.
"They were throwing a lot of pucks from the side and creating a lot
of rebounds. They have a couple of big guys that are good at getting
to rebounds. I had to be a little more aggressive than the way I
started the game. I had to be a little more on my toes.
"It was a mindset. After that second goal, you feel upset and you
try to just push yourself to be a little bit better. And I'm happy
the way I responded and the way the team responded. It's a huge win
for us. We needed the points big time."
[to top of second column] |
Montoya and Pavelec combined to make 19 saves for Winnipeg.
After the game, Jets head coach Paul Maurice couldn't provide an
update on the health of either Pavelec or right-winger Chris
Thorburn, who was hurt when he was smacked by a shot early in the
second period.
Maurice said Hagelin's late goal in the second period was a defining
moment.
"That's a tough goal," Maurice said, adding later, "Clearly, the 3-2
goal changed how we moved the puck and how we moved some things
around. It was tough."
On Sunday, the Jets host the Dallas Stars — the club they trail by
six points for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Winnipeg has only earned three of a possible 12 points since March
1, and has a stretch of very tough games ahead.
"It's a frustrating run," Maurice said. "There's no question the
mountain that we've got. I believe the winning percentage (of teams
they play) would be the most difficult of schedules in the league.
We know what we're facing now."
New York heads home to play the San Jose Sharks on Sunday.
NOTES: In their only previous matchup this season, the Jets posted a
5-2 victory over Rangers on Dec. 2 at Madison Square Garden. ...
Winnipeg captain LW Andrew Ladd played the 600th game of his career
on Friday night. Originally drafted fourth overall by Carolina in
the 2004 NHL entry draft, Ladd has won Stanley Cups with the
Hurricanes (2006) and Chicago Blackhawks (2010). ... The Rangers won
the sweepstakes to sign free-agent RW Ryan Haggerty, 21, of
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., and immediately
added the college star to their roster. Because he was signed after
the trade deadline, he is ineligible to be sent to the minors. The
Stamford, Conn., native, who had 43 points in 35 games for the RPI
Engineers, grew up a big fan of the Blueshirts. He will join the
club when it returns home this weekend. ... Winnipeg is getting the
job done while short-handed. Coming into the game, the Jets'
penalty-killing unit had killed off 12 straight minors and was
operating at 84.6 percent this season (fifth in the NHL). The PK is
particularly stingy away from home and is tied with Tampa Bay for
the best road efficiency at 88.8 percent. ... RW Martin St. Louis
hit the score sheet Friday with an assist but has struggled
offensively since coming to New York in the blockbuster trade that
sent Rangers captain Ryan Callahan to Tampa Bay. Prior to Friday's
action, St. Louis had no goals and just one assist in five games
since the deal. ... Rangers coach Alain Vigneault and assistant
Scott Arniel both coached in Winnipeg with the AHL's Manitoba Moose
before the NHL returned to the city. Arniel also played parts of six
seasons with the Jets during the 1980s.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
