*Photo from TSN*
Series tied 2-2
There's something funky about the Carolina Hurricanes and road playoff games. Andrew Copp scored and had two assists, Adam Fox had a goal and an assist, and the New York Rangers defeated the Hurricanes with a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night in Manhattan.
After leaving North Carolina with two losses and a 2-0 series deficit, the Rangers woke back up at home, winning their second straight game to even the series at 2-2 and forcing a game 6. In the playoffs, the Rangers have now won 5 straight games at home.
Copp said of how the series has gone that "I think we've played a pretty good series so far. Just trying to build on some of this momentum we've created in these last two games. Guys are feeling a little bit better about themselves and we've got to ride this momentum into Carolina."
Starting the scoring with a power play goal 13:31 into the game was Frank Vatrano, scoring his 3rd goal of the playoffs, making it 1-0 with assists from Copp and Fox. At the 15:42 mark of the first, Fox scored his 4th goal of the playoffs, doubling the Rangers lead to 2-0, with Copp and Ryan Lindgren getting the assists.
The only goal of the second period came from Mika Zibanejad, who put the Rangers ahead 3-0 with his 5th goal of the postseason. In the 3rd period, Teuvo Teravainen put the Hurricanes on the board, making it 3-1 on his 3rd playoff goal. Copp then scored 11:10 into the 3rd, making it a 4-1 lead for the Rangers.
Fox said after the game that "When you're up 3-0, the other team is going to push a little, create chances, and they did that and we got the saves when we needed it. But overall, it seemed like every line was able to create chances, was able to give the team a spark if we needed it. I definitely say it was one of the more complete efforts we've had."
Getting the win in goal with another magnificent performance for the Rangers was Igor Shesterkin. In the win, Shesterkin saved 30 of the 31 shots that he faced from the Hurricanes, which was good for a .968 save percentage in the win.
Picking up his second straight loss for the Hurricanes was Antti Raanta, who didn't have his best showing. Raanta turned away 24 out of the 28 shots on goal that the Rangers sent at him, recording a .857 save percentage in the loss.
Carolina head coach Rod Brind'Amour said of the game 4 loss that "You've got to keep getting the chances. I'm happy that we're at least creating some offense. I mean, Shesterkin played well, you've got to give him tons of credit. But to me, the start is what did it to us."
Up next, game 5 of the series is on Thursday night back in Raleigh. The Hurricanes will look to stay undefeated at home and take a 3-2 series lead, while the Rangers look to take a 3-2 series lead themselves.
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