Penalties are usually bad but, on occasion, when you kill off a gigantic 5-on-3 opportunity, the extra energy can swing in your favor. That's partly what happened to the New York Rangers in the second period of Game 1.
Rangers Vs. Capitals, Game 1 Score: Jason Chimera Ties Score Late In Second, 1-1
Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers defense killed off a lengthy two-man Capitals advantage with some luck, some help from the post and a ton of blocked shots. As the Madison Square Garden crowd rose to its feet near the end of the kill, New York clearly used the boost to propel things in the opposite direction.
Less than three minutes after Brandon Prust stepped out of the box, Artem Anisimov picked up a puck behind the Caps net, shook off a tackle attempt from Mike Green, skated in front of Braden Holtby and beat the Caps goaltender with a shot under the arm. It gave them a 1-0 lead in a game where one goal could be what decides things.
But as quickly as the momentum shifted following the Caps' failed power play attempt, it changed again with seconds left in the second period. Jason Chimera received a beauty of a pass from Brooks Laich and, while Lundqvist was able to get into position in front of Chimera's point-blank shot, it just snuck through the five-hole to tie the score at 1-1.
It got Washington just minutes after they were robbed of either a) a power play attempt, b) a penalty shot or c) a goal when Marcus Johansson was hauled down on a breakaway. A Rangers defenseman tripped up Johansson, who careened into Lundqvist, the puck following into the back of the net. No penalty was called on the play, and the officials waved off the goal. Bad officiating: Par for the course in the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
We have full Game 1 coverage in our StoryStream. For more on the Rangers, check in with Blueshirt Banter, and for more on the Capitals, check in with Japers’ Rink.
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