Rangers Pepper DiPietro, Then Beat Him in Shootout

Rick DiPietro stopped an Islanders-record 56 shots, but counterpart Henrik Lundqvist made the biggest save, denying Randy Robitaille in the shootout to give the Rangers a 2–1 victory last night in the New York-New York matchup.Matt Cullen scored the only goal in the tiebreaker, beating DiPietro over the blocker after freezing the goalie with a head fake. DiPietro was otherwise brilliant. The only other puck to get by him was Petr Prucha’s rebound goal in the opening minute of the third period.The Rangers’ second straight shootout victory lifted them into a 10th-place tie in the Eastern Conference, two places and two points behind Carolina and the playoff cutoff. The seventh-place Islanders are three points ahead of Carolina.Jason Blake scored the lone goal for the Islanders, who won the first four from the Rangers this season. The teams will meet three more times, including Thursday night on Long Island.Lundqvist made 29 saves for the Rangers, who went 3–1–2 on a season-high, six-game homestand. Four were decided in shootouts.In a first period otherwise dominated by the Rangers, the Islanders grabbed the lead with 1:43 left in the frame. Blake took advantage during the Islanders’ first power play, sending a shot off the leg of Rangers defenseman Paul Mara that caromed past Lundqvist.The Islanders’ power play has gotten a recent jump-start with the acquisitions from Edmonton of forward Ryan Smyth and defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron. The unit clicked four times in seven chances during Smyth’s first two games and went 7-for-20 in Bergeron’s initial six.Blake extended his career high with his 33rd goal.The Rangers held a 17–6 shots advantage in the first period and 36-19 through 40 minutes, yet they couldn’t dent DiPietro.They needed only 26 seconds of the third to get even. Jed Ortmeyer fired a hard shot from inside the blue line that DiPietro kicked out, but Prucha quickly got to the fat rebound and fired a shot over the goalie’s glove for his 16th goal and third in seven games.Then the action turned frantic as the Rangers tried to turn the momentum into their first lead.They peppered DiPietro relentlessly around the 7-minute mark, forcing him to spin to make saves. He even deflected a shot with his blocker while facing away from the pressure.Lundqvist was solid, too, but was bailed out when Andy Hilbert’s shot during a breakaway hit the left post.Sean Avery was at his agitating best in the opening 5 minutes of the game, goading DiPietro into punching him with a glove to draw a roughing penalty. But it was Avery who was left raising his arms in disgust and frustration when DiPietro stopped his shot in close with 5:46 left in regulation for save No. 50.The Rangers put up 19 shots in the third period, compared to the Islanders’ eight.Notes: Rangers LW Martin Straka returned after missing three games because of a left shoulder injury. But LW Marcel Hossa went out in the second period with a sprained MCL in his left knee. … Islanders captain Alexei Yashin, who missed his 16th straight game due to a knee injury, is expected to return to the lineup Thursday. … The Islanders allowed 50 shots in a 5–4 shootout victory at Anaheim on October 11.

Rangers Pepper DiPietro, Then Beat Him in Shootout

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