NEWARK, N.J. — In his latest playoff gem, Henrik Lundqvist had little time to do more than stop every breakaway or 2-on-1 attempt New Jersey shot his way. When he took a moment to breathe, Lundqvist had all the confidence his New York Rangers would bail him out with a goal or two.
“You know sooner or later it’s going to turn,” Lundqvist said. “It’s going to turn in our favor.”
Unlike those dozens of Devils shots, his feeling was right on the mark.
Lundqvist had 36 saves and Dan Girardi, Chris Kreider and Ryan Callahan scored third-period goals, leading the Rangers to a 3-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Saturday.
Girardi and Kreider scored only 1 minute, 57 seconds apart early in the third period to seize the momentum in a packed building with fans of both teams at a fever pitch, and give New York a 2-1 series lead. Indeed, it was a quick span the Devils may long regret — especially after they dominated long stretches of Game 3.
“We played a real good hockey game,” Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. “We lost. We have to find a way to score a goal.”
Lundqvist was busy from the opening faceoff en route to his second shutout of the series and third in the postseason. Callahan iced it with an empty-net goal late in the third period.
Playing on home ice, where it had won four straight, was not enough to help New Jersey. The Rangers have won every Game 1, lost each Game 2 and rebounded to win Game 3 in every round this postseason.
