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Rangers Defeat Islanders... Finally
Rangers victorious over Islanders; Savard speaks out
With a 5-1 victory over the crosstown Islanders, the New York Rangers got their first win over their arch-rivals in their fifth attempt this season. The Islanders have been a thorn in the side of the Rangers all season, but Marc Savard and captain Paul Kariya helped lift the Blueshirts to victory Sunday night.
"It's about time we put together a good game against these guys. Things are finally starting to click for us," said Savard, who was penalized four times for unsportsmanlike conduct, high sticking, elbowing, and goalie interference during the game. "They're a dirty team. When we saw Tkachuk lay that brutal cheap shot check from behind on our captain (Kariya) at the beginning of the game, it lit a fire under us. If they want to play dirty, we can play dirty too."
When asked about the goaltender interference penalty he took in the third period, Savard had this to say, "Yeah, I took a run at Biron. When you have clowns like Colton Orr and Derek Boogaard out there head hunting, I'm not going to sit around and watch. They were all over Abby (Rangers goaltender David Aebischer) all night and nothing was called."
"We always expect to win against them. The wins just haven't been there for us until tonight," said GM Sean Gaffney. Gaffney declined to comment in detail about what Savard had to say after the game. "We won the game, that's all I'm concerned about at this point."
The Rangers have started to show signs of life in their last few games. After a 1-5 start to the 2006-07 season, New York is 3-2-3 in their last 8 games. Rumors are also swirling that the team may be in preliminary discussions to strengthen the team on offense and defense. When asked about the rumors, GM Gaffney said, "We've had some preliminary discussions, but nothing is imminent. We're always looking to improve our team, that's all I have to say about that."
The Rangers have three games remaining against the Islanders, all at Madison Square Garden and not until the second half of the season. Next up on the schedule is a tough road matchup in Buffalo against the defending HFNHL Stanley Cup Champions.
