PITSBURGH, Pa – If you are a New York Rangers fan, and were looking for a hero coming into Game Four of the NHL Eastern Conference playoffs, one of the names you were thinking of probably wasn’t the name Kevin Hayes.
Hayes scored 17 goals during the regular season but when you score your first career playoff goal 3:14 into overtime to help the Rangers win 2-1 over the Pittsburgh Penguins, people start to get to know who you are. A former first round of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010 (24th overall), the same year the Hawks won the Stanley Cup, out of Boston College.
Now he has helped the Rangers get one step closer to reaching their own title.
The Penguins had two defenders in front of their net but had their backs to Hayes when the puck came to him and snuck the puck past Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury for the game winner and set up a chance for the Rangers to finish off the series at MSG.
“I felt it go through, under my arm pit,” Fleury said. “I didn’t know there was a guy right there though.”
The Penguins finally scored the first goal of the game thanks to Patric Hornqvist on a tip-in at 2:22 and things were looking up for Pittsburgh domination the Rangers for the first time in the series with an 8-2 shot advantage to boot.
“It was an ugly first,” Rangers defenseman Marc Staal said. “They just came out harder. They were forechecking hard, beating us to pucks, beating us in battles, and it wasn’t good enough. It was kind of a wakeup call to regroup and start playing better. I thought we did a good job. We came out and played a much better second period and carried it over into the rest of the game.”
The Rangers put on the jets and did some dominating on their own with a 13-8 shot advantage and Derick Brassard’s third goal of the series tied the game at 1-1 setting up Hayes’ overtime heroics.
New York is now up 3-1 in the series. If they win, their next opponent will be either the New York Islanders or the Washington Capitals.
Asked what the Rangers expect from the Penguins in Game 5, there was a simple response.
“Their best; everything,” Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist said. “It’s a desperation moment for them, and the key is to match that. You have to grab every opportunity you get to finish a series. You can’t just think you have more chances. You’ve gotta go for it and match their desperation.”
Each team has two goals apiece on the power play but the Rangers have had seven more chance (17) then the Pens (10).
“We had them for four chances in the third period; we had them for one chance in the first period,” Penguins coach Mike Johnston said. “We’re playing the right way. Yeah, I know the results haven’t swung in our favor 2-1, but they will.”
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