NEW YORK (AP) — Matt Rempe helped the New York Rangers get their postseason off to a robust begin.
Rempe and Artemi Panarin scored 33 seconds aside within the second interval, and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers beat the Washington Capitals 4-1 on Sunday in Recreation 1 of their first-round playoff collection.
Jimmy Vesey had a purpose and an help, Chris Kreider additionally scored, Barclay Goodrow had two assists for the Rangers. Igor Shesterkin completed with 20 saves.
“It’s clearly good to get that first one,” mentioned New York’s Peter Laviolette, who grew to become the primary coach in NHL historical past to steer six totally different groups to the Stanley Cup playoffs. “There’s issues we might have accomplished higher. … That you must win one after the other, so for that the outcome was good.”
The Rangers, in search of their first championship in 30 years, received their third straight and eleventh within the final 14 video games.
Martin Fehervary scored and Charlie Lindgren stopped 27 photographs for the Capitals, who had received three straight and 4 of their final 5 video games to earn the second wild card within the Japanese Convention.
“We’ve received to do a approach higher job offensively,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery mentioned. “It’s no secret. We struggled all 12 months however we’ve received to search out methods to create extra on the inside. We’ve received to skate out of stress, we’ve received to maintain pucks off the yellow. We frequently ran pucks round.”
Recreation 2 of the best-of-seven collection is Tuesday evening.
Main 3-1 after two durations, the Rangers outshot the Capitals 15-6 within the third.
Kreider made it 4-1 as he put a backhander previous Lindgren on a breakaway from the precise facet with 3:43 left within the third interval. It was his forty first postseason purpose, extending his franchise document.
The Rangers bottled up Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, who had no photographs on purpose. He was held with out a shot solely 5 instances in 79 video games in the course of the season.
“All of us perceive it’s the playoffs,” Ovechkin mentioned. “Overlook about this one and transfer ahead.”
After a scoreless first interval during which the groups mixed for 11 photographs on purpose, there have been 4 objectives within the second interval.
Rempe received the Rangers on the scoreboard first, sweeping within the puck from the left facet off a deflection throughout the entrance of the web by Vesey at 4:17.
Rempe, the 21-year-old rookie who has garnered plenty of consideration for his bodily play and fights, drew chants of “Rem-pe! Rem-pe!” from the gang.
“That was an enormous purpose to place vitality within the constructing, possibly as a result of it was him, too, put a little bit extra further juice within the constructing,” Laviolette mentioned. “After which be capable to get one other one proper after that. That was a turning level within the recreation.”
Panarin, who had a career-high 49 objectives in the course of the common season, made it 2-0 simply 33 seconds later at 4:50 as he fired a shot previous Lindgren from the precise circle. Alexis Lafreniere knocked defenseman Vincent Iorio off the puck and shoulder-first into the boards. Lafreniere then ship the puck to Trocheck, who despatched throughout to Panarin for the purpose.
Iorio went to the dressing room after the play and didn’t return. Carbery didn’t have an replace on his standing.
“I don’t suppose it was that, it was shut, it was borderline,” he mentioned of the hit. “I really feel unhealthy for him as a result of he put himself in a tricky spot. Most likely wants to maneuver the puck faster there and get it out of his fingers. Then he hangs on to it, wobbles it.”
Vesey made it 3-0 as he received the puck off a attract the precise circle and fired it previous Lindgren at 6:23. Rempe in entrance knocked down Beck Malenstyn to present Vesey some area for his shot.
“(Rempe) scoring despatched the followers loopy, and we scored two extra objectives within the subsequent jiffy,” Vesey mentioned. “He undoubtedly will get the gang into the sport and because the crew with home-ice benefit, you’re going to attempt to feed off that vitality within the crowd.”
Fehervary deflected a shot by Tom Wilson off his foot and previous Shesterkin to get the Capitals on the scoreboard at 7:31.
Rempe was whistled for charging to present the Capitals an influence play 2:07 into the sport. The Capitals managed only one shot on purpose in the course of the benefit and had a number of photographs blocked. Additionally they went a 14:09 stretch within the interval with out a shot on purpose because the Rangers had an 11-7 benefit.
The Rangers improved to 21-9 within the openers of a seven-game collection at dwelling.
___
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL