ANAHEIM, Calif. — This was not ideal, far from it. But the details that so often have been overlooked were back in place, and at least for one night, the Rangers were back to being that stingy defensive behemoth that has roamed the Eastern Conference for half a decade.
The result was a 2-1 win over the Ducks on Wednesday night at Honda Center, with a career-high two goals from defenseman Kevin Klein. The Rangers started their three-game California road trip in style and retook second place in the Metropolitan Division over the Islanders, who have two games in hand.
“When you look at the teams coming from behind us in the playoff picture, there are a lot of teams winning,” said Klein, who got the winner when he charged the net and deflected an Eric Staal centering pass with 6:41 remaining in the third period.
“It’s becoming a tight race.”
What was tight was how the Rangers (40-23-7) defensively handled a Ducks (38-22-9) team that was as hot as any in the league. The Blueshirts still dealt with some turnover issues, made more difficult by the horrible ice conditions coupled with the ineptitude of officiating crew of Tim Peel and Greg Kimmerly. But each time the Rangers gave it away, they collapsed in front of goalie Antti Raanta and mostly thwarted all the good scoring opportunities before they could bloom.
“We were a little messy coming out of our zone still,” said defenseman Marc Staal, who was a force in playing 18:41. “When our forwards are coming back, it permits us to be up in the neutral zone and slow them down, and that makes a huge difference in the game. If we keep doing that, we’re going to keep getting better.”
The difference between the defensive awareness in this game and during the 0-1-1 weekend that preceded it was drastic.
Look no further than a backcheck by Rick Nash early in the third period. He raced back to block a Ryan Kesler shot and then got the puck out of the zone to preserve a 1-1 tie.
“That’s the kind of stuff we’re used to doing consistently,” Staal said. “When there’s a mistake, a guy is in a position to make a play like that. Our attention to the defensive part of the game was much higher than it had been.”
It was a special night as well for Klein, who saved face after he had his pocket picked by Corey Perry late in the first period, ending in a Jamie McGinn goal that gave Anaheim a 1-0 lead. By 3:11 of the second, Klein had corralled a rebound off a Tanner Glass shot and put it into the gaping net, with goalie John Gibson woefully out of position, tying it 1-1.
“I wanted a little redemption from that first goal against, that was my bad, obviously,” said Klein, now with eight goals on the year. “The second and third, we played with more speed, were getting on the forecheck a little bit more. It was good to see.”
There wasn’t a ton of work for Raanta, but he was called upon to make 11 of his 22 saves in the third period. With Henrik Lundqvist set to take the goaltending reins for the next two games — Thursday at Los Angeles and Saturday at San Jose — Raanta was appreciative of the sturdy performance in front of him.
“We started from our defense,” Raanta said. “When you’re defense is going, you’re going to get your chances.”
That’s exactly how the game-winner came. J.T. Miller made a good play on the boards to get the puck up to Eric Staal, who started the break up the ice as Klein filled the lane on the far side. It was a classic Rangers nail-biting win — hardly a piece of art, but just as pretty in the standings.
“We have a tough two games left on this road trip,” Klein said, “and we have to come with that same intensity and that same energy.”