Welcome to The Other Half’s crowdsourced playoff-recap for May 8, 2015. Rangers fan Beth Boyle Machlan as well as Eliza Eaton-Stern, Sheila Lane, and Amber French contributed to the recap, though Eliza, Sheila, and Amber were a little less, uh, intense about it than Beth was. We keep hearing her mutter “Rangers in 7!” under her breath.
At the end of the night the basics looked like this:
The New York Hockey Rangers won 2-1 in OT to push the Capitals at least one more game, and the Anaheim Ducks outlasted the Calgary Flames 4-2, allowing them to potentially close out the series at home on Sunday.
How about them details:
New York Rangers vs. Washington Capitals
Goals:
-(WSH) Curtis Glencross at 10:54 in the 3rd period
-(NYR) Chris Kreider at 18:19 in the 3rd period
-(NYR) Ryan McDonagh at 9:37 in 1st OT
Goalies:
Lundqvist stopped 28 of 29; Holtby stopped 41 of 43.
Notables:
Chris Kreider eats tape. Just keep scoring, kiddo.
goodnight all. i leave you with a clearer version of Kreider….eating his stick tape. sweet nightmares. pic.twitter.com/IfV292YWy6
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
We’re all pros at the overtime challenge thing by now:
My overtime goal picks are Wrist Shot That Deflects Off A Stick And A Butt and Wrist Shot That Deflects Off A Shin And Two Butts
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) May 9, 2015
Best:
The Rangers picked a really good time to figure out how to beat Holtby. Fast forced a turnover, then skated it in instead of dumping it; he made a perfect pass to Stepan, who realized he had no lane and sent it to McDonagh, just a few ticks behind him to his right. For the first time, Holtby was not only screened, but also manipulated out of position, and the Rangers, uh, capitalized.
Worst:
As a Rangers fan, I got nothing. Sure, I burst into tears when Chris Kreider gave the puck away along the left-hand boards in the exact same way that led to their recent loss, and with two minutes left on the clock in regulation I broke a pint glass with my forehead, but hey … I got over it.
Rangers 2, Capitals 1. The Capitals lead the series 3-2.
This series continues Sunday, May 10 at 7:30 PM in Washington.
Anaheim Ducks vs Calgary Flames
Goals:
ANA PPG – Jakob Silfverberg at 3:58 in the 1st
CGY – Sean Monahan at 4:37 in the 1st
CGY – Micheal Ferland at 5:44 in the 1st
ANA – Andrew Cogliano at 16:42 in the 2nd
ANA PPG – Matt Beleskey at 1:11 in the 3rd
ANA ENG – Patrick Maroon at 19:23 in the 3rd
Goalies: Frederik Andersen stopped 25 of 27, Karri Ramo stopped 25 of 28.
Notables:
A power play goal by Jakob Silfverberg led things off in the 1st, but Sean Monahan scored a not-so-boring goal less than a minute later to answer, and Micheal Ferland put the Flames up soon after. At the end of the first, the Flames were up 2-1 on the Ducks, and things were looking pretty good for fans in the Saddledome.
Then, in the 2nd, the Ducks started ducking. Johnny Hockey turned over the puck on a really unfortunate giveaway in the Flames’ end, and Andrew Cogliano capitalized on the error:
GIF: Gaudreau turns it over directly leading to Cogliano goal pic.twitter.com/vI6VAMvphO
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
It was Everyday Andrew picking Johnny Hockey clean on that. Potentially huge goal.
— Eric Stephens (@icemancometh) May 9, 2015
We have it on good authority that Gaudreau will be grounded for at least a week and his mom may not even let him go to prom for that mistake. I’m sure that sweet girl from your English class will understand, kid.
The Flames had a few good looks throughout the rest of the 2nd period, but nothing seemed to work for them, and just before the buzzer to end the period, Colborne put the Flames down a man when he caught Beauchemin with a high stick and made him bleed his own blood.
Colborne’s mistake teed up a 4-minute power play to start the 3rd, and the Ducks took full advantage, with Matt Beleskey slipping a quick wrister past Ramo – screened brilliantly by Ryan Kesler – just over a minute into the 3rd to put the Ducks ahead:
GIF: another look at Belesksey PPG pic.twitter.com/QiOuxiOBMv
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
The Flames had a few good looks in the 3rd to try to tie it up, but nothing would go. The empty netter by Patrick Maroon with less than a minute to go put the game thoroughly out of reach:
GIF: Andersen celebrates Maroon's ENG pic.twitter.com/itznY2vFPB
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
So in the end, it could have been great for the Flames, but ended up not so great:
a Flames fan that probably represents the feelings of many a Flames fan right now? pic.twitter.com/692BWr4JLb
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
Best:
Obligatory hockey players in suits, because Flames fans need something to smile about. (Where are your ties, children???)
Caption: We got this. “@SUNjimwells: Monahan and Gaudreau board bus to airport as Flames head to Anaheim for game 5. pic.twitter.com/dE0eMbGZp3”
— Darren Haynes (@DarrenWHaynes) May 9, 2015
Worst:
The answer to this is Yes, FYI.
does ryan getzlaf throw a hissy fit every single time a penalty goes against his team?
— ari (@thirtyfourseven) May 9, 2015
FFS CALGARY PROTECT YOUR GOALIES.
that was like slow motion just letting the ducks right in on ramo all alone how do you let that happen aaaahh
— ari (@thirtyfourseven) May 9, 2015
But seriously, rough game. Maybe we break the curse in the Honda Center?
— Matchsticks&Gasoline (@MatchsticksCGY) May 9, 2015
Anaheim 4, Calgary 2, giving the Ducks a 3-1 series lead.
This series continues Sunday, May 10 at 10:00 PM EST in Anaheim.
Once the points were tallied and the soundbytes given The Other Half took a vote and we agree:
What impressed us: Henrik Lundqvist doesn’t like to go down in front of the home crowd – this game takes him to a perfect 8-0 in elimination games played at Madison Square Garden.
What distressed us: Skaters, we know goalies are overprotected by the refs. We get it. But please stop running them deliberately. Looking at you, Corey Perry.
perry came over to ramo during a commercial break pic.twitter.com/BQybnlt4bb
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 9, 2015
Tomorrow’s edition will check in on the Montreal Canadiens at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning, where we’ll see if the apparent lightning storms in Montreal were some sort of omen for the evening.