At least two people are confident that Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi will bounce back from a tough outing.
“He’s going to have a great game in Game 3,” said Girardi’s frequent blue-liner partner, Ryan McDonagh, yesterday.
“He’ll play his best game,” added Rangers head coach John Tortorella today.
Girardi was on the ice for all five Boston goals during Sunday’s 5-2 loss to the Bruins.
NHL.com’s Dan Rosen has all the gory details:
He invaded Lundqvist’s line of sight with screens on goals by Torey Krug and Johnny Boychuk. Gregory Campbell scored after Krug’s shot from the point hit Girardi’s skate. Brad Marchand beat Girardi badly to gain inside position for a re-direct from the slot. Instead of staying on his feet to potentially clear the puck away, Girardi slid through the slot and right out of position on Milan Lucic’s goal.
Here’s the Marchand goal:
Girardi leads all Rangers in average ice time (26:01) in the playoffs. The 29-year-old is especially key to his team’s success given Marc Staal’s absence.
Game 3 of the Rangers-Bruins series (Boston leads, 2-0) goes tonight at Madison Square Garden.