NEW YORK – Before Wednesday night’s Metropolitan Division matchup between the Penguins and Rangers (7-8-0), there was talk from the Pens locker room of trying to bury a team that stood ten points behind them in the standings when the puck was dropped.
Don’t start shoving dirt on the Rangers. Behind two points from Brian Boyle, a much-needed goal from defenseman Ryan McDonagh, and 28 saves from Henrik Lundqvist, the Rangers put Pittsburgh’s talk to bed with a 5-1 thrashing at the Garden.
“It’s a little early to be watching the standings,†Penguins defenseman Matt Niskanen said before the game, according to The Record’s (N.J.) Andrew Gross. “But, we have an opportunity to bury some of these teams beneath us. If we keep winning, it could get some of those teams in the bottom of the standings out of our hair.â€