from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,
Gerard Gallant said he didn’t want the Rangers to focus on Sidney Crosby, and by golly, his team followed the head coach’s instructions to a tee.
Unfortunately, the Blueshirts seemed to interpret Gallant’s message literally, with No. 87 and linemates Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust turning in a dazzling and dominating performance in the Penguins’ 4-3 triple overtime victory at the Garden on Tuesday to grab a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven.
Crosby did not get the winner. That belonged to Evgeni Malkin, who scored on a deflection that counted as the 83rd shot against a gallant Igor Shesterkin after 105:58 of pulsating hockey. The Rangers had their chances, oh they had their chances throughout this contest — in which Casey DeSmith equaled Shesterkin’s work before leaving with an undefined ailment 9:18 into the second overtime. Relief netminder Louis Domingue pitched shutout ball the rest of the way while facing 16 shots.
So though Shesterkin was superlative in this one, the Penguins found that he was not impregnable. Who would be? The fact though is that DeSmith and Domingue canceled the Blueshirts’ perceived edge in nets right off the bat.
Watch the game highlights below.
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