Rangers vs. Canadiens: It's Miller Time
A night that should’ve spiraled turned into a comeback clinic, with Laba, Cuylle, Robertson, and J.T. Miller dragging the Rangers back from the brink.
- As I seem to keep saying with this Jekyll and Hyde New York Rangers team, these types of games are in there. Only this time it's on the positive side. This was a game where the Rangers were down 3-0 and 4-2. That's an easy game to quit, especially coming off the gross 3-0 loss in Chicago. The Rangers had given up three goals on seven shots in the first, there was no life in the building, and it felt like the walls were coming down ... again.
- But the Rangers pulled themselves up and fought. I said on the podcast this week that I think we're truly seeing how good of a coach Mike Sullivan is by the simple fact that this team has not imploded this season, even if things aren't great.
- We have also talked a lot about J.T. Miller playing through whatever this mysterious preseason injury was, and how much it's hurting the team that he is forcing himself to play at a lesser level because he is not fully healthy. Despite that, we have still seen these flashes of the guy the Rangers have there, even at his age. This was another one of those, "yes, please, more of this" games.
- Miller had two goals in this one, and I think you can argue aside from the Artemi Panarin penalty shot his two goals were the most important goals of the game. Obviously the game winner was a highlight, but tying the game at 4-4- just 35 seconds after making it 4-3 was a huge momentum push.
