The New York Rangers came to town and handed us our third loss in four games. It was a bitter pill to swallow, especially since we'd only been able to score two goals in two back-to-back defeats. It felt like a sobering wake-up call, almost as though we'd taken the league by storm in October, but since the calendar flipped to November, we were no longer catching anyone by surprise. Word had gotten out, and everyone was prepping their 'A' game when they saw us coming.
On the Ranger bench, Mark Messier and Brian Leetch both played exceptionally strong defensive games, with DGR ratings of 99 and 90 respectively. Leetch in particular was so good in his own zone that Pavel Bure had a tough time getting open throughout the evening. And for the second time in as many games, another hot goalie (this time named Mike Richter), took great glee in slamming the door on our league leading offense.
VIDEO: Gartner from Messier!
Player in the Spotlight: Mike Richter | GR 91 | SA 40 | GA 1 | SV 39 | SV% 975 | 3rd Star