Times wires
Monday, January 2, 2012
PHILADELPHIA — Alone in the cold, it was up to Henrik Lundqvist to preserve a classic comeback in the Winter Classic.
His signature moment came with 19.6 seconds left and the Rangers leading the Flyers 3-2. New York defenseman Ryan McDonagh was whistled for covering the puck in the crease, and Philadelphia got a penalty shot.
Flyers center Danny Briere streaked down the ice — a replica of the Liberty Bell and bundled-up fans behind his back — trying to send the game into overtime.
Lundqvist dropped to his knees and stoned Briere with his pads when the center tried to sneak the puck through his legs.
Lundqvist stopped 34 shots, Brad Richards scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Rangers rallied from a two-goal deficit to win 3-2 at Citizens Bank Park on Monday.
"I was just trying to be patient and do my thing," Lundqvist said. "(Briere is) a sneaky guy, and there was a lot of pressure on me."
More pressure than any other regular-season games in January. The Classic, in its fifth season, now gets as much attention as the Stanley Cup final. NBC televised it, and HBO had 12 camera crews filming for its 24/7 series documenting the game and its buildup.
Rangers coach John Tortorella wondered if the game officials wanted time in the spotlight to build the drama.
"They called a penalty shot, which I still don't understand," he said. "I'm not sure if NBC got together with the refs to turn this into an overtime game. I thought the game was reffed horrible. I just thought in that third period, it was disgusting."
Lundqvist agreed with Tortorella's drama angle and said he "couldn't believe" the call. He and McDonagh said the puck wound up under Lundqvist's pad.
Mike Rupp scored twice as New York won for the third time this season against Philadelphia.
Rupp's first goal, late in the second, was capped by a salute toward the Flyers' bench, the move Philadelphia's Jaromir Jagr makes after scoring. Rupp smiled as his teammates mobbed him along the boards, and the crowd booed.
"It was just a moment of excitement," Rupp wrote on a game blog he did for NHL.com. "I was really just excited to contribute offensively and hopefully at that time get us back in the game."
Jagr, third on the team in points, left the game after playing a minute in the second. He said he hurt his left leg in the Flyers' last game, against the Penguins, but expected to be back playing soon.
around the league: Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban and center Tomas Plekanec exchanged punches during a one-on-one drill at practice until teammates stepped in. "It was an intense practice, and this kind of thing can happen sometimes," Plekanec said. Also, general manager Pierre Gauthier apologized to fans upset with the team for not hiring a coach who speaks French after Jacques Martin was fired last month. The hiring of Randy Cunneyworth sparked an uproar in majority French-speaking Quebec. … The Coyotes' Raffi Torres was suspended for two games for an illegal hit on the Wild's Nate Prosser on Saturday.
world juniors: Finland beat Slovakia 8-5 in the quarterfinals at Calgary to get a semifinal matchup with Sweden. Lightning defense prospect Adam Janosik had an assist for Slovakia.
First Period—None. Penalties—Carle, Phi (slashing), 16:58; Richards, NYR (tripping), 17:47.
Second Period—1, Philadelphia, Schenn 1 (Carle), 12:26. 2, Philadelphia, Giroux 18 (M.Talbot, Hartnell), 14:21. 3, N.Y. Rangers, Rupp 2 (Prust, Mitchell), 14:51. Penalties—None.
Third Period—4, N.Y. Rangers, Rupp 3 (Prust, Mitchell), 2:41. 5, N.Y. Rangers, Richards 14 (Dubinsky, Callahan), 5:21. Penalties—McDonagh, NYR (delay of game), 14:48; Callahan, NYR (holding stick), 18:54; Timonen, Phi (interference), 18:54; Hartnell, Phi, minor-misconduct (cross-checking), 20:00. Missed Penalty Shot—Briere, Phi, 19:40 third. Shots on Goal—N.Y. Rangers 9-8-16—33. Philadelphia 12-14-10—36. Power-play opportunities—N.Y. Rangers 0 of 1; Philadelphia 0 of 2. Goalies—N.Y. Rangers, Lundqvist 17-7-4 (36 shots-34 saves). Philadelphia, Bobrovsky 8-3-1 (33-30).
at Senators | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Devils | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
First Period—None. Penalties—Karlsson, Ott (tripping), 4:53.
Second Period—1, New Jersey, Zubrus 11 (Sykora), 7:47. 2, New Jersey, Clarkson 14 (Zajac, Tedenby), 14:18. Penalties—Kovalchuk, NJ (slashing), :39; Zajac, NJ (tripping), 2:16; Salvador, NJ (holding), 11:03; Boulton, NJ, major (fighting), 14:20; Neil, Ott, major (fighting), 14:20.
Third Period—3, Ottawa, Spezza 14 (Karlsson, C.Anderson), 1:21. 4, Ottawa, Condra 7 (Kuba), 13:17 (sh). Penalties—Spezza, Ott (tripping), 11:20.
Overtime—5, Ottawa, Alfredsson 12 (Karlsson, Spezza), 4:00 (pp). Penalties—Clarkson, NJ (hooking), 2:58. Shots on Goal—New Jersey 9-9-8-3—29. Ottawa 9-9-10-4—32. Power-play opportunities—New Jersey 0 of 2; Ottawa 1 of 4. Goalies—New Jersey, Brodeur 11-9-1 (32 shots-29 saves). Ottawa, C.Anderson 18-12-3 (29-27).