RANGERS DROP HOME OPENER 

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NEW YORK RANGERS POST-GAME NOTES

October 27, 2011 (Game 8, Home Game 1)

Madison Square Garden – New York, New York

Team Notes:

–       The Rangers were defeated by the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-2, tonight in the Blueshirts’ home opener at Madison Square Garden.

–      New York held Toronto scoreless in four power play opportunities (5:24), and are now 20-22 (90.9%) while shorthanded in the last five games.

–      The Rangers were credited with 19 blocked shots, led by Dan Girardi and Michael Sauer who recorded three blocked shots apiece.

Player Notes:

–      Dan Girardi opened the game’s scoring with an even strength goal while skating four on four at 6:23 of the first period.  He also tied for the game-high with three blocked shots in 23:03 of ice time.  Girardi has now registered four points (one goal, three assists) in the last four games, and is tied for first among team defensemen in points (four) and ranks first in assists (three).

–      Michael Del Zotto notched an unassisted goal at 15:26 of the third period, registered a team-high-tying three hits, and was credited with two blocked shots in 19:51 of ice time.  He has now tallied a point in each of the last two games (one goal, one assist).  Del Zotto also extended his streak of posting a plus or even rating to eight consecutive games to begin the season, and leads   the team with a plus-four rating.

–      Marian Gaborik recorded the primary assist, his first of the season, on Girardi’s first period goal, and registered four shots on goal and two blocked shots in a season-high, 23:14 of ice time.  He is now tied for the team lead in points (five) and shots on goal (32), and ranks first in goals (four).

–      Artem Anisimov also tallied an assist on Girardi’s first period goal, and is now tied for third on the team in assists (three).

–      Henrik Lundqvist stopped 32 of 36 shots, and has now posted a record of 2-3-2 with a 2.14 goals   against average, a .934 save percentage and one shutout.  He has now turned aside 30 or more shots in four of his last five games.  Lundqvist is 4-1-1 with a 2.72 goals against average and a .918 save percentage in six career home-opening games at Madison Square Garden.

–      Ryan Callahan led all skaters with six shots on goal, tied for the team-high with three hits and logged 20:56 of ice time while making his Broadway debut as Rangers’ captain.

–      Michael Sauer tied for the game-high with three blocked shots in 21:42 of ice time while making his return to the lineup after missing the previous five games due to a shoulder injury sustained on October 8.

–      Brad Richards led the Rangers with 23:54 of ice time and registered three shots on goal while making his Broadway debut.  He now leads all team forwards and ranks third on the Rangers in average ice time (21:18).

–      Brandon Dubinsky won six of eight faceoff attempts (75%), and now leads the team with a 55.4% faceoff winning percentage (56-101)

Post-Game Quotes:

–      John Tortorella on tonight’s game…

        “I think we had juice just coming back home and playing in front of the crowd and all the things   going on around us. The first period was probably our best period of the year.”

–      Ryan Callahan on tonight’s game…

        “I thought we had a pretty good first period with some sustained pressure. We created some opportunities and got a lot of pucks to the net, which we wanted to do, as well as get some bodies to the net in the first (period)… The crowd was great and definitely gave us a lift in the first period.”

–      Henrik Lundqvist on the atmosphere in Madison Square Garden…

        “It was great. It’s always great to play here. Coming back here after so many games on the road, we definitely were looking for a better start. But we have to forget about this one and get ready for Saturday.”

Team Schedule:

–              The Blueshirts’ practice schedule for tomorrow, October 28, is 12:00 p.m. at the MSG Training Center.