Penguins at Rangers
The New York Rangers attempt to gain the upper hand in their Eastern Conference second-round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins as they conclude a grueling stretch by hosting Game 3 on Monday. The contest will be the sixth in nine days for New York, which opened the matchup with an overtime victory before dropping a 3-0 decision at Pittsburgh on Sunday. The Rangers will be playing on consecutive nights in different cities for the second time during their busy string, as they lost Game 6 of their first-round set in Philadelphia last Tuesday before edging the Flyers at home the following night.
New York kept Penguins captain Sidney Crosby off the scoresheet in Game 2 but was unable to contain defenseman Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin. Letang registered a goal and two assists while Malkin notched one of each in support of Marc-Andre Fleury, who made 22 saves en route to his franchise-record seventh career postseason shutout. Crosby has collected six assists in eight contests this postseason but has gone 13 straight playoff games without a goal.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, RDS
ABOUT THE PENGUINS: Defenseman Brooks Orpik missed his fourth consecutive game, but center Brian Gibbons returned from a five-game absence due to an undisclosed injury on Sunday and saw 10:14 of ice time. "I was able to stay in shape and I had fresh legs, so I felt good out there," Gibbons said. The goal and assist gave Malkin 107 career playoff points, moving him past Kevin Stevens for fourth place on the franchise list and putting him four behind Crosby for third. Fleury posted his 50th postseason victory, joining Tom Barrasso (56) as the only goaltenders in club history to reach the plateau.
ABOUT THE RANGERS: Despite the unfavorable schedule thus far this postseason, coach Alain Vigneault refuses to allow his team to use it as an excuse - citing Henrik Lundqvist as an example. "He wasn't tired," Vigneault said of his goaltender after Sunday's loss. "He's played every minute of these playoffs, so if he's not tired, no one else should be." New York continues to struggle on the power play as it went 0-for-4 in Game 2 and has failed on its last 29 overall opportunities. The club is 3-for-37 with the man advantage this postseason.
OVERTIME
1. Letang's goal was the 15th of his playoff career, tying him with Larry Murphy for the franchise lead among defensemen.
2. New York's NHL-record losing streak when holding a series lead reached 13 games on Sunday.
3. Pittsburgh has scored three or more goals in seven of its eight postseason contests.