April 4, 2013, Pittsburgh Penguins-New York Rangers NHL regular season game story for the SportsXchange wire service

Rangers newcomers make immediate impact in 6-1 win over Penguins

By Denis Gorman, The Sports Xchange |  

The SportsXchange – 16 hours ago

 

NEW YORK -- The new guys were alright. 

 

Derick Brassard and Brian Boyle each finished with four points and Ryane Clowe had three points to lead the New York Rangers to a 6-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night. 

 

Brassard, John Moore and Derek Dorsett were acquired at Wednesday afternoon's NHL trade deadline as part of a six-player trade which sent Marian Gaborik to Columbus. The Rangers acquired Clowe from San Jose Tuesday night. 

 

"Funny how it works out, huh?" New York coach John Tortorella said. "Throws coaching right out the window, huh? It's true. Sometimes we do too much of it. Good for them. All of them played very well." 

 

Clowe scored two goals. Boyle, Brassard, Moore and Ryan McDonagh scored one each for the Rangers, who have won consecutive games. Henrik Lundqvist made 26 saves and passed Hall of Famer Eddie Giacomin (266 wins) for third place on the franchise's all-time wins list for a goaltender. Mike Richter's 301 wins are most in Rangers history. 

 

Pascal Dupuis scored Pittsburgh's only goal. Marc-Andre Fleury allowed all six goals on 39 shots. 

 

"I thought we were forced in a big way by their fore-check," Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma said. "We were forced in by their speed and they forced us into those turnovers. "They certainly took advantage of putting us back on our heels and got to the offensive zone. They forced us into those spots and came at us aggressively. They did that and six [goals] against is certainly something to be concerned about." 

 

The rout began early as Boyle, Clowe and Ryan McDonagh scored goals in a span of 4:18 in the first period. Boyle tipped a Brad Richards shot past Fleury 10:01 into the game. McDonagh gave the Rangers all the goals they would need when he ripped a drive past Fleury 2:18 later. Clowe's first of the game-and the season-came two minutes later and the Rangers went into the first intermission leading 3-0. 

 

"From the get-go we were ready to play," Dan Girardi said. "[The new guys] brought energy to the team and that really helped us have a good start, get a few goals early. I think that was a very complete game for us tonight." 

 

Even with the lead, the Rangers continued to press the attack. Brassard's first as a Ranger, just 1:53 into the second, gave New York a 4-0 lead. "They obviously have a great team and great players," Brassard said. "When we were coming in on the plane today we were excited. It's a great chance for us to show what we have, and for us, we just want to help in the push towards the playoffs." 

 

Dupuis cut the deficit to 4-1 with a one-timer off a Robert Bortuzzo cross-ice feed at 2:27 of the second. 

 

But Clowe's second of the game, at 11:52 of the period, gave New York a 5-1 lead at the second intermission. 

 

"Sometimes you just play," Clowe said. "We went over some system stuff before the game and I talked to [Tortorella] a little bit and he said, 'Don't worry about it too much tonight, just go out and play and that's all you have to do.' "And I said to myself, 'I just have to worry about skating and moving my feet and driving my legs, get some chances, and work down low.' All that stuff that I think makes me a good player I tried to do tonight. I thought for the first game, I gelled pretty well with that line." 

 

Moore scored his first as a Ranger 9:47 into the third with a slap shot to end the scoring. It was his first goal of the season. 

 

"Moore is the one I am really interested in because I know the least about him out of all of them," Tortorella said. "He's a terrific skater and I thought he did a really good job defending and make some really good reads." 

 

NOTES: Tortorella espoused a minimalist philosophy when asked if he was concerned that Brassard, Moore and Clowe did not have time to learn New York's system. "We let [them] play," Tortorella said in his pre-game press conference. "It's just time to play." ... Pittsburgh acquired Jussi Jokinen from the Carolina Hurricanes for a conditional sixth or seventh round draft pick. Jokinen was scratched, as was center Dustin Jeffrey and defenseman Mark Eaton. ... New York sent forwards Chris Kreider and Jesper Fast to AHL Connecticut. "[The trade] allows us to have a little bit of depth within our lineup and allows us to put our kids where they should be and develop the right way," Tortorella said. ... The Rangers scratched defensemen Matt Gilroy and Roman Hamrlik, and center J.T. Miller. ...The teams will complete the home-and-home Friday night in Pittsburgh. ... With the win, the Rangers jumped from ninth in the Eastern Conference to seventh. The New Jersey Devils are in eighth and New York Islanders are the ninth seed. "I think our team know we're in the final push," Tortorella said. ...New York has a practice scheduled for Noon Thursday at its training facility in Westchester, N.Y. ... The win snapped New York's seven game losing streak to the Penguins dating back to the 2011-12 season.

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