The Rangers lamented their inability to get in the face of Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury after splitting the first two games against the Penguins at Madison Square Garden.
But when the first-round series shifted to Pittsburgh, the Rangers found ways to score goals in playofflike fashion, resulting in 2-1 victories in Games 3 and 4. Three of their four goals were generated near Fleury’s cage. In Game 4 on Wednesday, both Derick Brassard’s game-tying goal and Kevin Hayes’s game-winner in overtime came off net-mouth scrums.
“Both goals we scored were on the doorstep due to jamming and getting in the paint,” said Chris Kreider, whose eventual winning goal in Game 3 came at the side of Fleury’s net after Marc Staal’s shot hit the backboard.