Lindgren’s play sparks teammates
The Rangers rushed to Ryan Lindgren’s defense after what they saw as a cheap shot taken by Max Domi at their defenseman at the end of Game 3, both verbally and on the ice.
On Tuesday night, Lindgren repaid his teammates in kind, helping provide a spark in the Blueshirts’ 4-1 victory over Carolina that knotted their second-round series at two.
Lindgren himself did not score in the win, but he did narrowly miss two goals — getting credit for primary assists on both.
First, his wrist shot from the top of the left circle at 15:42 of the first period caught
Adam Fox’s stick on its way past Antti Raanta.
Then, after a Lindgren shot trickled past
Raanta at 16:48 of the third, Mika Zibanejad got to the crease on the follow to score. Still, Lindgren — who has scored just one goal this postseason — was the catalyst for both goals.
He finished the game with three hits and a plus-three mark, helping frustrate Carolina’s top line of Teuvo Teravainen, Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis for most of the night. And of course, the two assists. That’s the kind of play the Rangers have come to expect from Lindgren, who was banging down coach Gerard Gallant’s door to get back in the lineup after missing time against the Penguins in Round 1.
Speaking for the first time since incurring the lower-body injury he’s playing through, Lindgren said Tuesday he feels good.
“You never want to be sitting out,” he said. “Especially during playoff time. But you gotta be smart, too, and take your time. Make sure when you do get out there, you’re feeling good. You can play to the best of your abilities.”
Over 20:01 of ice time in Game 4, Lindgren was very much at his best, and his effect on the game was evident from the jump.
“You can see it right from the first game he got back,” said Adam Fox, Lindgren’s partner. “Just battling, competing. You can see it when he gets going offensively, too, shooting the puck. That’s what it’s gonna take.
“We’ve talked about it. He knows that he’s gonna be able to do that and has the confidence to jump in there. But I think just when you’re battling and giving 100 percent — and even at the end of last game — he’s not taking anything from anyone. He’s giving it right back. That stuff kinda trickles down to the team.”