(Photo by Catalina Fragoso - Double G Media) Hockey Rangers Fall to Islanders: Battle of New York Isles grab late goal to overtake Rangers. by Olivia Hurley January 11, 2019 After being significantly outplayed at home by Pittsburgh, and on the road by Colorado, Arizona, and Vegas, 2019 hasn’t proven itself to be the New York Rangers year thus far. Although Thursday night’s game was undoubtedly the best game that the Rangers have played in the past five, the outcome didn’t reflect their efforts to break the losing streak A slump like this takes an emotional toll on any team and can take some time to get out of. After the game, Rangers Head Coach David Quinn said that he thought the team, “surely made strides,” in the last two games. Quinn also comments on the improvement saying, “We were a lot closer tonight to winning a hockey game than we were in Vegas. Although we did some good things in Vegas. As we’ve all alluded to seasons past the halfway point and the gaps getting bigger and every game brings on a new level of significance because of the situation were in so like I said I think it’s important to take tomorrow off and get ready to play Saturday afternoon.” If they play on Saturday the way they did in the third period, there may be some hope to finally put an end to this rough patch. So if Quinn thought that, “under the circumstances, we had a good night,” what is it that went wrong? How did the Islanders manage to snatch the lead in the last two minutes of the game with only one shot on goal in the third? “Throughout the game they scored some goals that hurt us,” according to Henrik Lundqvist. “And then the killer goal there in the end.” This “killer goal” that he refers to being Josh Bailey’s heart wrenching tiebreaker in the last two minutes of the game. Clutterbuck brought the puck into the Rangers zone with Staal on him, but Staal couldn’t block his pass to Bailey who was in front of the net. Pionk didn’t get a stick on it and Bailey put the Islanders back in the lead with 1:26 left in the third. Some say this was the product of poor defending. Some say the blame falls within the net. “I felt like I was late coming across,” Lundqvist said about the last goal. Lundqvist has always been known for being hard on himself and expressing his frustration after losses like these. Nevertheless, Henrik’s nobility after this game may not keep him in good graces with NYR fans. Lundqvist has been in the spotlight throughout the losing streak, being pulled to the bench after letting in six goals in the game against the Penguins as well as after allowing five goals in the game against the Coyotes. Fans worry that his age could be catching up to his game, saying his reflexes aren’t as they used to be. Yet the cautiously optimistic say that it could just be a small hiccup in his career, he is the king after all. Post Views: 921 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Olivia Hurley Latest posts by Olivia Hurley (see all) Devils Fall Short to Short-Handed Rangers - December 1, 2019 Getting the last laugh – a well predicted NHL Playoff Bracket - June 19, 2019 Zibanejad’s Hat-Trick Leads NYR to Victory Against NJ Devils - February 1, 2019 New York Rangers Center, Mika Zibanejad Named NHL Second “Star of the Week” - January 22, 2019 Related TopicsJosh BaileyNew York IslandersNew York Rangers 1 Comment 1 Comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 Women in Sports: Podcast Host, New York Riptide Sideline Reporter, Dani Wexelman by Luke Porco | posted on March 3, 2020 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 Lochte, Dressel and Ledecky all Chasing Gold at 2021 Tokyo Olympics by Anthony Paradiso | posted on April 18, 2021 “Overtime” l Ep. 28: TopSpin Celeb-Athlete Tournament – Dec. 6, 2018 by Stefany Romero | posted on December 19, 2018 More in Hockey Tim Peel is Discharged After Caught on Hot Mic Tim Peel was Discharged from the NHL After He was Caught on the Hot... NHL, Amazon Web Services Partner to Develop New Stats, Data, and Insights The National Hockey League (NHL) is partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS) in an... You Know I’m Right, Episode 81: ESPN’s Arda Ocal (Audio/Video) On the 81st episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 80: MSG Network’s Bill Pidto (Audio/Video) On the 80th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... Tavares’ 300th Goal Contributed to Devils 20th Loss of the Season Former Ranger Rick Nash Retires After 15 NHL Seasons