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Rangers beat Lightning in Prague season opener
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-10-06 09:48 PRAGUE: The New York Rangers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 thanks to a late powerplay goal to get the season underway in the Czech capital on Saturday.
Rangers center Brandon Dubinsky secured victory with just under six minutes remaining having been caught in the face moments earlier by Lightning winger Gary Roberts, who was booked for high-sticking. The game, played in front of 17,085 fans at Prague's O2 Arena, was the first regular-season game played in continental Europe as the NHL continues its bid to reach a wider audience. The Rangers and Lightning are playing back-to-back games over the weekend in Prague while the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators also meet twice in Stockholm. The weekend set follows a successful opening to the season in London last year. Rangers newcomer Markus Naslund opened the scoring with 1:52 left in the second period before Lightning winger Martin St Louis countered four minutes into the third with a backhand goal. Dubinsky said victory was more important than him getting the winning goal. "The bottom line is we needed two points," he told reporters. "If it didn't come from me it was going to come from somewhere. It was our game to win." The Rangers, who outshot the Lightning 41-21, were eliminated by Stanley Cup runner-up Pittsburgh in last season's Eastern Conference semifinals and have brought in new players to fill the void left by Czech forward Jaromir Jagr, who signed for Russian club Omsk Vanguard in July. "We wanted to make sure we simplified our game this year," said Rangers coach Tom Renney. "A powerplay is a classic example of getting the puck to the net and taking what your opponent gives you." Pittsburgh 4, Ottawa 3 In Stockholm, the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Ottawa Senators 4-3 with an overtime goal by forward Tyler Kennedy. Kennedy, who also grabbed the opening goal, fired a wrist shot past goaltender Martin Gerber at 4:35 of overtime to hand the Penguins victory in Stockholm. "I've worked really hard in the summer and built a lot of confidence," Kennedy told reporters. The last two losing Stanley Cup finalists were playing back-to-back games in the Swedish capital over the weekend. Kennedy opened the scoring after 40 seconds by flicking the puck from a tight angle past Gerber. The first half was dominated by the Penguins but the Senators leveled at 9:13 through Shean Donovan. Forward Evgeni Malkin capitalized on sloppy play by the Senators to restore the lead for the Penguins at 3:18 in the second period. The Senators, though, hit back when Jason Spezza set up a goal for Dany Heatley before making it 3-2 himself at 17:55. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby then found defenseman Rob Scuderi who made it 3-3 at 3:56 in the third. "It's tough to lose when you're one goal ahead going into the third period," said Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson, the only Swede on the ice. "We had a five-on-three in the third period where we had the chance to put the game away." Earlier on Saturday, the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Prague. |
