Bantering Points: 4/1/17

In the absence of Ryan McDonagh, the New York Rangers did all they could to pull out a win, but the team fell just short as they lost 4-3 in a shootout. Despite coming back from a 3-1 deficit in the 3rd Period, New York’s comeback fell short. Here are today’s news and links:

Rangers News:

• Highlights: PIT 4, NYR 3 (4:23 Video via NHL.com)
• Game Recap: Late game heroics aren’t enough for the Ryan McDonagh-less Rangers to knock off Pittsburgh (CBS)
• Brett Cyrgalis remarks on the Blueshirts’ inability to win at Madison Square Garden heading into the playoffs (NY Post)
• Greg Slotnick argues that New York’s success this spring could be reminiscent of season’s past (Elite Sports NY)
• Brandon Cohen lists the x-factors that will determine how far the Rangers go in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Blue Line Station)
• David Bruce looks back on five games during the 16-17 season that earned the team a playoff spot (Blue Line Station)
• Postgame Notes: Chris Kreider has tied Michael Grabner for the team lead in goals and games with a goal (Official Team Site)
• Postgame Interviews: Alain Vigneault,(3:18) Henrik Lundqvist,(3:21) Rick Nash,(1:11) Derek Stepan,(1:39) and Dan Girardi (1:32) (Official Team Site)/

Around the NHL:

• Mike Johnston shares a video of Reid Duke and his Vegas Golden Knights teammates playing a round of pre-game soccer (Sportsnet)
• Greg Wyshynski exposes the hypocrisy of Florida Panthers forward Shawn Thornton's recent comments defending "The Code" (Puck Daddy)
• Scott Cullen comments on the top ten hockey storylines of the past week (TSN)
• Jared Clinton goes around the league and identifies which active players are in line for jersey retirement once their career's end (The Hockey News)/