Some people were really handing the Rangers the cup after winning game 1 and the 2023 cup after going up 2-0.
To be fair to the Rangers, I think they played a pretty decent series, I think they deserved to win the first two games of this series. I don't think that was luck. This was definitely their worst game of the series, no doubt about that. They were out of gas tonight. They couldn't even get Igor out of the net when they wanted to because Tampa kept putting it back in their end. They got a little bit of life late in the 1st and a bit into the 2nd, before the first Stamkos goal just completely deflated them again. They didn't even show much life at all in the 3rd period. They did not look threatening at any point except for on that power play and the first power play in the 3rd they didn't do nothing on.
They even had some luck go against them like getting scored on with less than 2 minutes left in game 5. Game 3 they were outplayed badly (not as lifeless as tonight though), so they were a bit lucky that was scored with under a minute left in regulation and not in the 2nd period.
So, I thought they played not too bad in this round, but I do think if all things were fair, they probably go out in round one. I personally did not pick them to go out in round one to Pittsburgh before that series started, but I did have them dead and buried in game 5 and even early in game 6, which was foolish of me due to who was in net for Pittsburgh. And I do believe they were on the ropes in games 5 and 6 against Pittsburgh.
But that goal on Domingue that was the game winner in game 6, which was one time a late regulation goal worked in their favor in these playoffs, that just brought them back to life. That really shouldn't have happened, though I'm glad I can laugh about it now.
What I'm trying to say is the toll collectors really came for them this series. I don't think they lucked into being up 2-0 to start the series. They were the better team in those two games, but I think they might have gotten a little lucky with Louis Domingue being the best goalie Pittsburgh could ice for 80% (or whatever it was) of that series.
I still don't even understand how they lost 3 games to Domingue, especially 2 games that he played the entirety of. I don't think Igor allows that game winner Georgiev did. He allowed some stoppable goals that series, but not like the game winner on Georgiev in game 4. Maybe he allows that in this game (like the first Stamkos goal tonight) but not that early on in the playoffs when he hadn't yet played 21 games in 40 nights or whatever it was now.
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