Lundqvist Breaks Another Record in a Key Win

NEWARK - Two great goalies based on each side of the Hudson River, Martin Brodeur and Henrik Lundqvist, met for probably the last time Saturday night, and once again Lundqvist skated away the winner.

It was another classic goaltending duel, but this time, the consequences were especially large. With the 2-0 victory over the Devils, the Rangers remained in control of a playoff spot with 10 games left on the schedule and more or less crushed any remaining hope the Devils had.

To top it off, Lundqvist recorded his 50th career shutout, breaking the Rangers' record, set by Ed Giacomin, a goalie in the 1960s and '70s. Giacomin was expected to attend the Rangers' next game, at Madison Square Garden on Monday night.

'It's a great feeling,' said Lundqvist, who broke the Rangers' career victory record on Tuesday. 'This was such an important game.'

The Rangers outshot the Devils by 27-21 and improved their road record to 23-13. Rick Nash scored midway through regulation - the game's only goal until Derek Stepan put the puck in an empty net with eight seconds left.

The Rangers smothered the Devils at every turn, blocking 14 shot attempts and forcing the Devils to shoot wide or high another 13 times.

'We played a smart road game,' Lundqvist said. 'It didn't seem like halfway through the game I only faced 11 shots, but it felt like a lot more. They missed the net a lot.'

On Friday, the Rangers won an emotional game, 3-1, at Columbus, one of their closest rivals in the playoff race. That game was the first in Columbus for Nash, who starred for the Blue Jackets for nearly a decade, since he was traded to the Rangers in 2012.

On Saturday, Brodeur and the Devils were undone by Nash's 23rd goal of the season, which broke a scoreless deadlock at 10 minutes 33 seconds of the second period.

The play started with Stepan trying to feed Chris Kreider, who was cutting into the crease as Devils defenseman Mark Fayne gave chase. Kreider missed the pass but was pushed into Brodeur by Fayne, who became tangled up with his goalie.

As Brodeur was trying to right himself amid the confusion, the puck slid to Nash, who was standing along the left-wing boards. Nash wristed the puck toward the net and found the open side as Brodeur was still trying to get square. All Brodeur could do as the Rangers celebrated was hang his head and accept the consolation of his teammates.

'I took a peek first, and I saw he wasn't back yet,' Nash said. 'He's a great goaltender, difficult to score on, so you have to shoot everything at the net.'

Brodeur said: 'I can't tell you if it was interference or not, but Kreider was going hard to the net. That's what they're paid to do. It was a little fluky because I lost my bearing after I kind of got tangled up with him.'

The Devils got one of their few clear chances on Lundqvist with 39 seconds left in regulation and the score still 1-0. With the Devils using an extra attacker, Lundqvist lay down to keep the puck out as Jaromir Jagr, Travis Zajac and Adam Henrique hacked away, futilely trying to push it in.

Stepan scored into an empty net soon after.

Brodeur, 41 and a free agent at the end of the season, has suggested in the last couple of months that he will not be back with the Devils next season. The Devils, 6 points out of a playoff position with 11 games left, are unlikely to make the postseason.

If Brodeur is not with the Devils next season, his career record with the team against Lundqvist will end at 15-21-5. But his career mark as a Devil against the Rangers would be 49-32-5, with 15 ties, and Brodeur has three Stanley Cups in his two-decade career, the Rangers just one during that span.

'It was a big game,' said Brodeur, who made many superb stops in one of his best outings of a disappointing season. 'The coach gives me the confidence of putting me in the net in this game, and I really wanted to be the difference, and I wasn't tonight.'

What did he think of the chance to add another game to the Devils-Rangers rivalry?

'They're fun,' he said. 'But right now it's not about having fun.'

SLAP SHOTS

The hybrid icing rule, installed this season, may have saved Devils defenseman Mark Fayne from serious injury Saturday night. On the opening shift of the second period, Fayne raced full speed to the Devils' end with Rangers forward Chris Kreider, who was trying to nullify icing. Fayne fell as he reached the face-off dots, but he regained his feet just before slamming into the end boards. Had the traditional icing rule been in effect, Fayne would have been racing not to the face-off dots, 31 feet from the end boards, but to the goal line, 20 feet closer to a potential injury.

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