The New York Rangers go 1-0 ahead against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 1
The New York Rangers managed a 2-1 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 1 of their first-round series, which still shows there is a margin for improvement for the home side if the Stanley Cup is to become a reality, but they can take some satisfaction from such a fine start to the series in the wake of all the nerves that normally play an important part of these matches. Veteran forward Martin St. Louis, whose name is already engraved on the Stanley Cup, admitted he still felt the jitters beforethe puck drop.”I’m 39 years old,” St. Louis said, “but I still get nervous before that first playoff game.” As did his team-mate defender Keith Yandle, (8years an NHL pro), who was also surprised by how raucous the crowd was at Madison Square Garden, in his first taste of playoff action on Broadway: “That was probably even more electric than I thought it would be,” he said.Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury a veteran of many a difficult encounter, surrendered a goal for the sort of start to the series that according to a top NHL tipster, the Penguins were desperately trying to avoid. This was not the only reason they lost this match though as a key factor in this defeat was the fact that the Penguins were forced to continually deploy their penalty-killing unit, meaning they had to leave their superstar Sidney Crosby with limited ice time, playing only 3:42 in the opening frame.”The momentum, the crowd, the surge and those penalties, they (the Rangers) earned it,” Penguins coach Mike Johnston said. “It took a lot of momentum away from our team. Key players couldn’t get on the ice, so certainly that was a key factor in the start of the game.”Crosby was held off the score sheet and managed only one shot on goal. EvgeniMalkin had a few more opportunities, particularly as the Penguins pushed back in the second and third periods, but he also was contained and a sports betting expert knows that it was a key for the Rangers heading into the series and will need to remain a point of emphasis moving forward as the Penguins aim to even up the series on the weekend.
A top NHL prediction has to take into consideration the fact that based on the performance of the second and third periods, there is clear indication that these Penguins are not just going to roll over and make it easy for New York. One game means virtually nothing and the Rangers openly acknowledge that, after all, they erased a 3-1 series deficit against the Penguins last spring in the second round so they know how dangerous it can be to rest on a lead. A world class NHL tipster know that the Penguins will have put this defeat behind them as they head into game 2.
