subject: New York Rangers Tickets - Rangers Defeat Leafs 7-2 [print this page] Defensemen Dan Girardi and Sean Avery both had two goals, Wade Redden registered a goal and two assists, and Ryan Callahan and Marian Gaborik added goals as the New York Rangers took over the last 20 minutes and beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-2. Get New York Rangers tickets and see Sean "Bad Boy" Avery score a goal.
New York's Vinny Prospal acknowledged that the Rangers had a good start to the second period, but then the team suddenly stopped playing. After the second intermission, Rangers coach John Tortorella expressed his dissatisfaction with his team's effort to finish off the Leafs. The Rangers responded by quickly scoring their fourth goal in the third period. New York (5-1) has won seven straight games at home, dating to last season. Henrik Lundqvist played very sharp in between the pipes. He made 27 saves and earned his fourth victory of the season.
The Rangers has outscored the opposition 12-3 in the third period, including 4-0 against the Leafs. Toronto's Alexei Ponikarovsky and Jason Blue scored for their team. The Maple Leafs (0-4-1) and the New York Islanders are the NHL's only winless teams. Although goaltender Vesa Toskala had been 5-0-2 with a 1.37 goals-against average versus the Rangers while with Toronto, he couldn't stop the offensive flurry New York provided in the third period. Maple Leafs forward Niklas Hagman stated that his team did not play well enough to win the game. New York jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first period against the Leafs. Callahan drew first blood on a 5-on-3 power play. He whacked at a rebound in the crease as Toskala tried to cover the puck with his glove, and Toronto defenseman Luke Schenn knocked it in with his stick at 2:34.
Redden tallied the second goal for New York at 8:08 when he received a pass from Prospal, stationed behind the net, and scored his first goal of the season. The Leafs answered back when Ponikarovsky netted his third goal of the season with only 44.2 seconds left of the first period to cut the lead 2-1. In the second period, Girardi extended the Rangers lead 3-1 after Captain Chris Drury won an offensive zone faceoff back to him. The defenseman blasted a shot that hit Toronto defenseman Ian White's stick and went past Toskala. The Maple Leafs were still in the game after Blake scored his first goal of the season with 2:49 left of the second. The goal came on a power play and brought Toronto within one.
New York put the game away in the third. Avery scored his first goals in his second game following knee surgery. The left winger slipped the puck past Toskala with a backhander 1:56 into the third period. Gaborik made it 5-2 1:17 later and added an assist to raise his totals to five goals and four assists for the season (registered at least a point in all five games). Girardi scored his second goal of the game with 6:19 left of the third, and Avery finished the scoring at 18:03. Since 2005-06, the Rangers are 9-6-2 versus the Leafs.
