Photo Credit: AP/Ross D. Franklin
The Rangers took the ice in Arizona on Saturday night where they won their fifth straight game and finished their back-to-back road game sweep.
Antti Raanta, backup to star goalie Henrik Lundqvist, led the team to victory by making an incredible 39 saves. Raanta had the game in a shut out until Coyotes’ forward Shane Doan got a power play rebound with merely 4.6 seconds left on the clock. Despite losing the shut out, Raanta was all smiles as the buzzer rang and the Rangers celebrated victory.
“I lost all my games last year on the road, so I didn’t really care about the shutout…” Raanta told MSG Network’s John Giannone in his post-game interview, “It was a great four points in two games for us, back to back like that.”
Raanta wanted a win and a good game for his team, and that’s what he got, though he credits his team just as much as his own efforts for their win.
The Rangers’ goals came from four younger teammates, Jesper Fast, J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider, and Kevin Hayes.
Fast kicked off the first of their goals when he deflected in a slap shot from defenseman Dan Girardi eight minutes into the first period. The second period brought two goals for the Blueshirts, bringing Miller’s fast paced goal towards the Coyote net with the help of fellow goal-scorer Kreider and defenseman Dan Boyle.
Kreider then took a goal for himself, and sent Coyotes’ goalie Mike Smith to the bench in exchange for Anders Lindback, by firing a quick five-hole goal past Smith. Hayes brought their fourth and final goal when he scored a power play goal against Lindback at 13:36 of the second period.
The Rangers’ only power play goal of their three power plays was the result of a high-sticking call, a double minor 4-minute penalty, on Coyotes’ forward Brad Richardson.
The Rangers found comfort in finishing such a game with an impressive 4-1 score without big name players, forward Rick Nash, who is sidelined due to a back injury, and goaltender Lundqvist, who was sidelined in exchange for Antti Raanta.
This was Raanta’s third time on ice as a Blueshirt, and his third win. Raanta currently has three wins as a New York Ranger, one being a shut out, and has only allowed two goals, giving him a save percentage of .976 and a goal against average of 0.67.
Following the 4-1 victory, Raanta told MSG’s Giannone that “our guys played unreal in front of me” and that “it was nice to have played behind them.”
Raanta became a Blueshirt during the off-season when his former team, the Chicago Blackhawks, traded the goalie in exchange for AHL Hartford Wolfpack forward Ryan Haggerty.
In just three games of his season, Raanta has already become an incredible addition to the New York Rangers and has happily settled into his new team. The Rangers hope to continue their winning streak this week when they host the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night.
