The Rangers came out strong and tested Ryan Miller early but the Buffalo netminder stood tall stopping all eight shots including his best stop on the game’s opening shift.

But a lack of discipline turned the period in the Sabres’ favor. It was pretty obvious who the officials are going to favor. Especially when they called a tacky penalty on Matt Cullen when he was the one being held behind the net. Oh btw rookie Ryan Callahan was high sticked during that play! And no call. Wouldn’t want to call that, right? Just keep programming these damn officials to call every hook, hold and slight tug!

Offensive zone penalties kill your momentum and are the worst kind you can take. The Rangers were guilty for three. And that just won’t work in this series against that high powered offense. Eventually, it will get them in trouble.

If not for Henrik Lundqvist robbing Tim Connolly point blank after he undressed Michal Rozsival and another denial on Chris Drury during a PP, the Rangers would be trailing. King Henrik finished with 15 saves with many coming late.

So what are my thoughts overall? I felt the Rangers backed up too much and reset. You can’t dilly dally around with the puck against an aggressive forechecking team like Buffalo. They’re dangerous. Just look how they got that unnecessary turnover in the final minute forcing rookie Dan Girardi into a holding penalty which was the fourth of the period. You have to be proactive. Get the puck out quickly. Make precision passes and attack.

A couple of quick hits. Karel Rachunek and Ryan Hollweg are back in the lineup for Thomas Pock and Colton Orr. Rachunek looked a little shaky while Hollweg was sharper.

That’s all for now. See ya later!