Rangers relaxed and ready to go
Rangers celebrate after Marian Gaborik #10 scored the game winning goal in the third overtime period. (May 3, 2012) Credit: Getty Images
WASHINGTON -- Some Rangers went to Arlington National Cemetery for a bit of perspective. Some went to see "The Hunger Games."
All of them tried to find a place away from the postseason Thursday after their three-overtime victory in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Capitals, which ended early Thursday morning.
Physically, everyone seemed well-rested after going through a solid 45-minute practice at Verizon Center on Friday in preparation for Saturday's Game 4. "Our team's fine," John Tortorella said when asked about conditioning and recovery.
Tortorella has praised his team's mental toughness often during these playoffs, and he has few worries that his team can put the Game 3 epic behind it and focus on Saturday.
"This is fun," Brian Boyle said. "This is the playoffs -- there's no mental anything. We're having a great time."
Henrik Lundqvist was on the ice for the full 114:41 on Wednesday/Thursday, and he seemed as drained as anyone after the win.
But he was refreshed Friday (Lundqvist went the movie route) and ready to get back into a game.
"It was just a nice day off," Lundqvist said. "It's good to get away from the game a little bit . . . But you have to put [Game 3] behind you. It doesn't matter now. We're happy to be up 2-1, but we have a lot of work ahead of us to get where we want to be."
Boyle and Ryan McDonagh, who stayed on the ice Friday until the very last Rangers were done after his 53:17 of ice time in Game 3, were among the handful of players and team staff who went to Arlington.
"It's quite a scene there," McDonagh said. "You talk about war and the battle it was and then you go out and see something like that, it really hits home for you."
Tortorella rarely talks about things outside of the game, but he said about his players' trip to Arlington: "They [the men and women of the armed forces] cast a shadow over us, what they do . . . I've even tried to change my language in the locker room because I think [using 'war' and 'battle'] is wrong."
Whether it was a solemn trip or a bit of more mindless fare, the Rangers rested after their marathon. On Friday, they turned back to a series that's still up for grabs.
"It's not hard for this group to understand that,'' McDonagh said. "This is only one step in the right direction for us."
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