from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

... But do you know what else you don’t want? The brand of laissez-faire officiating on display at the Garden on Tuesday by referees Kyle Rehman and Dean Morton, who apparently already in playoff mode, allowed the Blues to commit up to a half-dozen flagrant violations without bothering to blow the whistle.

The Rangers did get three power plays, capitalizing on the first to take a 1-0 lead on Mika Zibanejad’s score at 12:36 of the first period, but the team should conservatively have had twice as many man-advantages.

“Listen, when that team is allowed to do some of the things they do…” David Quinn said after the Blueshirts’ 3-1 empty-net abetted defeat to the reigning Cup champs. “[The Blues] compete their asses off, so I’m not taking anything away from them, and I loved how we kept playing through it and fought through it, so…”

So, completing the thought, this is the time of year when the time and space shrink, the league’s referees officiate as if it’s 2003, and there’s even more of an advantage to being big and brawny. The Rangers, you may have noticed, are not particularly well known for being either. So that’s another obstacle the club will have to surmount in the attempt to qualify for the playoffs.

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Watch the game highlights below.