Ilya Kovalchuk, as usual, was the story. The Russian star, out since Oct. 24 when the Thrashers captain broke his right foot when struck by a puck, had a goal and two assists in leading his team. Kovalchuk had missed seven games in a row until tonight, but it looked like he hadn’t missed any time at all. He and his linemates had a big night. The victory was sealed when he and former Rangers forward Nik Antropov set up Maxim Afinogenov’s empty-netter in the closing seconds.

“Our line was clicking real well,” he said. “We all speak Russian, so it’s kind of cheating because they can’t understand what we’re saying.”

Kovalchuk also helped set up Rich Peverley’s power-play goal in the second period and then put Atlanta back in front after the Rangers tied it a second time.

Thrashers rookie Evander Kane, questionable because of a foot injury, chipped in with a goal and assist. Johan Hedberg stopped 33 shots while playing in his third straight for Atlanta, which won for the fourth time in six games. Colby Armstrong also scored.

Atlanta was 3-3 without Kovalchuk.

“It is pretty surprising to see a guy come back like that after being off for about three weeks,” Armstrong said. “To come back and be as smooth and as solid as he was is pretty incredible. The guy is a natural. He’s our leader, and he played well for us.”

Despite outshooting the Thrashers decisively (36-27), including an 18-5 advantage in the third period, the Rangers lost this game because they couldn’t seem to stay out of the penalty box and they couldn’t stop the Thrashers when they were a man short. Atlanta scored on two of five power plays, tonight.

The Rangers went into this game slumping and missing two of their most important players, Chris Drury and Brandon Dubinsky. Drury was out with a concussion and Dubinsky will be gone for several weeks more with a broken bone in his right hand he sustained blocking a Jay Bouwmeester shot early in the second period of the Rangers’ game against Calgary.

As a result, the thinnest position on the roster and in the organization has taken on a look of decided weakness. Vinny Prospal will shift back to center the first line. As of the moment, Artem Anisimov would be the second-line pivot. It looks like Brian Boyle will man the third-line center slot.

Ranger goalie, Henrik Lundquist returned from an eight day injury tonight and showed the quick reflexes and instincts he’s known for. He had to, as the Thrashers tested him throughout the first two periods.

“Of course I feel that I haven’t played in a while and to start the game giving up a goal right away was tough,” said Lundqvist. “The whole night was a big battle. They didn’t have that many shots but they got pretty big scoring chances. It was tough to play but I tried to stay in there and tried to play my game. I could feel some technical mistakes. I was happy with the way we played in the third.”

“We get a good start and they put it in the net,” Lundqvist added. “After that, we regrouped pretty well. It is tough to let in a goal like that right away, you get on your heels. We were 1-1 after the first. What killed us was five minutes of the second period. We played a great third period. The guys played really hard. We hit the post a couple of times. It was close, but it just wasn’t enough tonight.”

During the latter part of the second, the Rangers started to take the play to the Thrashers, peppering their goalie, Johann Hedberg with a variety of shots.

Marion Gabarik tied the game on a power play goal, his 13^th of the season, when he took a pass from Michael Del Zotto, and he one-timed it inside the post to beat Hedberg. Gabarik now has six power play goals, tied for the league lead.

Almost a minute later. Kolvochuk put the Thrashers ahead with a powerful wrister from the right circle at 17:41. His shot was one only a world class hockey player could have pulled off.

Just 25 seconds later, at 18:06 of the period, Evander Kane, the Thrashers 18-year old rookie, put the next goal behind Lundqvist to break open the game, 4-2.

Atlanta were dominating play at this stage. The Rangers looked like they were stationery as the Thrashers were coming at Lundqvist in waves and getting shots on goal that looked like the Rangers had no chance of stopping.

The familiar sound of boos in Madison Square Garden rained down on the Rangers as the period buzzer sounded. The Knicks now have nothing on the Rangers as far as fan disappointment is concerned.

Artem Anisimov and Marian Gaborik erased one-goal deficits for the Rangers, and Lundqvist, who missed two games made 22 saves. Brian Boyle brought New York within 4-3 when he slammed in a rebound of Ales Kotalik’s shot 6:18 into the third.

The Rangers couldn’t tie it again despite two power plays and an 18-5 shots advantage. Kotalik ripped a drive from the blue line that was deflected before hitting the goal post with 8:47 remaining.

“We are not getting the results right now,” forward Vinny Prospal said. “The third period really showed how effective we can be playing 5-on-5 … we just can’t seem to stay out of the box.”

For Rangers head coach John Tortorella, his charge was to get his young team to tighten up defensively in the third period. The Rangers, playing without Dubinsky and Drury were weary and thinned-out, personnel-wise.

“We were bad defensively, I thought we were slow,” said Tortorella. “The first shift of the game, it’s two on two, both skaters skate right by our defense. You come off our road trip, and everyone goes through it, you end up trying to find your game early on in the game. It is hard. I thought we prepared, I thought we traveled correctly coming back from the West, I thought we practiced correctly. But, we were slow through the first half of the game.”

“As far as lineup changes, I am not sure what we are going to do. It is hard. The other games are spread out. Am I interested in playing guys 27, 28 minutes a game. No, I don’t think that’s a great situation. I am hoping other guys step up so they get the minutes. We will talk about it tomorrow and see where we go with it.”

“Obviously, Brandon and Drury are big players for our PK (penalty kills),” said Ryan Callahan. “Some of our guys stepped up and did a good job on the PK but we have to stay out of the penalty box.”

At 6:18 of the third, Brian Boyle, the Rangers 6’7” 250 pound center rebounded a slap shot from Alex Kotalik into the net behind Hedberg to bring the Rangers within one, 4-3. It was his second goal of the season.

Jimmy Bubnick – RW – (6-2/194)
CS: # 55NA —– THN: # 68 —– McK: # 85
ISS: # 86 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 51 (Michael Ryder or Trent Hunter)
ISS: “Bubnick has great offensive vision and natural scoring ability. His skating ability is not pretty, but he does get to where he needs to be. His big question is his grit and willingness to pay the price at times. Did battle the inconsistency bug. With adding a physical dimension, he will create more room and put up better numbers.
McK: “Bubnick was one of the most highly-touted prospects coming out of bantam after playing on a line with Brayden Schenn and carter Ashton. His time in Kamloops has been frustrating due to very inconsistent play. He has a goal scorer’s instincts and will attack the net with his stick ready for a pass.
RLR: “Has the body and strength to be effective physically down low, but changed to a more finesse style this season. Has a very quick release and accurate touch. Needs to put together the finesse skills from this season with the grinding style from last season.
2008/2009 – Kamloops (WHL) – 72-25-32-57-41

Anton Burdasov– RW – (6-3/202)
CS: # 20E —– THN: # 56 —– McK: # 118
ISS: # 48 (Erik Cole) —– RLR: # 70 (Ryan Malone)
ISS: “Good hands and vision with the puck. Powerful and quick skater. Burdasov is very strong on [the] puck and once he gets his feet moving he scares opposing defenders with his great blend of speed and intensity with the puck. The biggest knock on Burdasov is that he follows the team, if the team is playing bad, so does Burdasov and if the team is playing well so is Burdasov.
McK: No scouting report available.
RLR: “Bit of an enigma with all the physical tools to become a good one, but we expected more. Big winger has great size and is a smooth skater with fine physical tools. Good puck skills and controls the puck well down low with long reach. Shows fine touch around net, where he can bury his chances. Initiates contact, finishes checks, and competes for loose pucks along the boards. However, he’s inconsistent and effort level can be spotty.
2008/2009 – Traktor Chelyabinsk 2 (Russia) – Statistics not available.

Alex Chiasson – RW – (6-4/187)
CS: # 34NA —– THN: # 76 —– McK: 47
ISS: # 85 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 67 (Jochen Hecht)
ISS: “Chiasson has all of the tools to become a productive prototypical power forward. He will accumulate points through hard work, crashing the net and paying the price. A very good skater for his size who can finish with flash or grit.
McK: Chiasson embodies all the attributes of a prototypical power forward. A feared checker with strength to run through his opposition, Chiasson often took the frustration of a losing season out on opposing defencemen. He uses his speed on the forecheck and is becoming a nightmare for defencemen as he finishes his checks with considerable force. Chiasson is committed to Boston University [and has] the most upside of any USHL prospect forward in the 2009 Draft.”
RLR: “Huge winger with fine offensive tools. Still shows some inconsistency in his game, but has improved in a lot of departments since his prep season last year. “Has good knack around the net and will outmuscle defenders for space around the crease. Good puckhandler with exceptionally long reach – uses his body to shield the puck. Not the quickest skater in terms of lateral movement and change of direction, but effort and straight line power are there.
2008/2009 Des Moines (USHL) – 56-17-33-50-101

Jerry D’Amigo – RW – (5-11/196)
CS: # 67NA —– THN: # Not Rated in Top 100 —– McK: # 84
ISS: # 40 (T.J. Oshie) —– RLR: # 36 (Alex Burrows)
ISS: “he has great speed and great offensive anticipation and wins most races for pucks. With his scoring touch, he will be a top-two-line player with his skill. His outstanding play in the International scene coupled with the fact he kept elevating his game throughout the year has secured his ranking here at ISS. He makes good smart, quick plays, takes contact well and drives the net without hesitation. Has great leadership traits that should translate very well at the next level.
McK: “A multi-purpose forward that can do many things well. He enjoys playing in traffic and can make uncanny plays with limited space. He is the type of player who will make his living in the dirty area [and] plays a similar game to Ryan Smyth.
RLR: “Lacks top end speed, but shows good burst in short areas. Works very intelligently down low on the PP where he stations himself beside the net and makes some power moves out front showing strength and balance. Not a pure finisher, but he generates offense with effort and desire.”
2008/2009 – USA U-18 (NTDP) – 44-19-24-43-53. Will play at RPI next season.

Kenny Ryan – RW – (6-0/204)
CS: # 56NA —– THN: # 66 —– McK: 29
ISS: # 59 (Brooks Laich) —– RLR: # 47 (Andrew Ladd)
ISS: “Honest two-way player who is not going to hurt you when he is on the ice. An agile two-way skater, Ryan is another U.S. forward who must keeps his feet moving all the time. Plays [to] his size and physical style very well. Ryan is a very good skater with good anticipation to break to open ice. He plays very hard and intense and makes good decisions with the puck. Has verballed to Boston College.
McK: “Ryan may not be the flashiest player but is a gifted natural goal scorer with a sniper’s instinct. His skating is average but complemented well by his non-stop motor. Ryan will need to add strength to be more effective physically but it’s already encouraging how much he engages in traffic.
RLR: “Strong on the puck and tough to separate from it. Has a hard, heavy shot but must work on getting it on net more consistently. Likes to initiate contact and will lay on the body. Average hockey sense, gets by on his natural tools rather than taking a cerebral approach. Does have the tools to be a top power winger, but only flashes them occasionally.
2008/2009 – USA U-18 (NTDP) – 53-21-20-41-44

While the first round selection was a difficult one, the second round selection is an empty net goal. Alex Chiasson has the tools to be a second round steal – much like Brandon Dubinsky was. Ranking the rest of the potential second round picks is not as easy.

Jimmy Bubnick and Anton Burdasov represent high-risk/high-reward players. Normally I don’t mind taking that type of player in the second round, but this time I would suggest going with the safer picks.

My alternate second round choices, in order, are: Jerry D’Amigo, Kenny Ryan, Burdasov, and Bubnick.

Glen Sather, Gordie Clark and the rest of the front office and scouts must concentrate their efforts, at least in the first couple of rounds, on trying to add speed and scoring punch – two qualities that are lacking in the organization. If all things fall just right for the Rangers, there might good value among forwards with offensive ability and speed in the first two rounds.

Before we look ahead at potential Rangers’ targets in the first round, let’s take a look at the team’s history with the 19th overall selection.

The Rangers have made the 19th overall selection three times in their history.

In 1968, the Blueshirts drafted defenseman Bruce Buchanan with the 19th overall pick – which was the final selection of the second round that year. Buchanan never played a game in the NHL and his post-Junior career highlight was being a part of the 1968-69 Clinton Comets who won the EHL’s regular season title. The 5-9/160 blueliner was the Rangers lone pick among 24 selections.

Back in 1968, the only players eligible for the Draft were those 17 and older who were not being sponsored by an NHL team. The next year, the NHL changed the eligibility requirements and opened the Draft up to any amateur player under the age of 20.

The Rangers next exercised the 19th overall selection in 1997 when they drafted RW Stefan Cherneski in the first round. Cherneski was one of three players from that draft to never play in the NHL. However, unlike Hugh Jessiman, Cherneski can’t be classified a bust because his professional career was derailed on November 13, 1998 when he suffered a fractured right patella while playing for the Hartford Wolf Pack. While he made a couple of attempts at a comeback, he finally retired in 2001. For comparison’s sake, the Dallas Stars drafted Brendan Morrow 25th overall.

In 2004, the Rangers drafted Lauri Korpikoski with their second selection of the first round (Al Montoya was drafted 6th overall). The next two picks were Travis Zajac (New Jersey) and Wojtek Wolski (Colorado). Washington drafted high scoring defenseman Mike Green 29th overall.

As we look to the first round of the 2009 Draft, the Rangers need to select a player who has to bring scoring, size, speed, or a combination of the three. The Blueshirts should also be looking at wingers rather than centers given the depth they have with Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, Derek Stepan and Evgeny Grachev (who will eventually be moved to wing). As a result, I have targeted four players who bring the three “S” needs. Each player’s statistics include Games Played-Goals-Assists-Points-PIM.

CARTER ASHTON – LW – (6-3/205)
CS: # 12NA —– THN: # 20 —– McK: # 22
ISS: # 33 (Bill Guerin) —– RLR: # 22 (Dustin Penner)
TSN: # 20 (Bill Guerin)
2008/2009 – Lethbridge (WHL) – 70-30-20-50-93
ISS: “A great skater who can drive the net. Has a good scoring touch and a good shot. A prototypical power forward who has a nose for the net and does not shy away from the dirty work. He is a very strong skater that will go to the net hard. Is not scared to drop the gloves.” They also pointed out that he had a poor playoff run scoring a goal and 2 assists with a Minus-8 rating as he did struggle defensively.
McK: “Ashton is already a dominant force physically in front of the net in the WHL and possesses soft hands with a sniper’s touch in close. He scored a lot of his goals from cross-crease tap-ins or by bulling his way to the net looking for rebounds.”
RLR: “Tantalizing combination of a huge frame, good skating stride, and goal scoring hands. Is very tough to handle along the boards and in front. Wide balanced stride with good foot speed and agility, but lacks some first step and acceleration. At best when paired with a creative, playmaking centre. Doesn’t go looking for trouble, but when he drops the mitts [he] is a devastating fighter who throws with both hands.”

LANDON FERRARO – RW – (5-11/165)
CS: # 18NA—– THN: # 28—– McK: # 32
ISS: # 17 (Patrick Sharp) —– RLR: # 38 (Devin Setoguchi)
TSN: # 26 (Patrick Sharp)
ISS: “A pure goal scorer who can find the net. Has a great shot and release. Will also score garbage goals. A leader on a young team [named Red Deer’s MVP]; he displayed his positive influence on a nightly basis. He did battle with consistency, but effort was always there. Has quickness and is a tremendous skater, and strong defensively, as well as being an offensive threat. Played for Canada’s U-18 team.”
McK: “Ferraro is blessed with imagination and sports tremendously skilled hands. He is blessed with the patience and confidence of a goal scorer. Although he will need to add some weight, he showed signs of maturity physically as he doesn’t shy away from making or taking contact to make the play.
RLR: “Has the ability to score in a variety of ways – off the rush with a solo effort, near the circles with a one-timer, or jumping on rebounds in the crease. Excellent hockey sense allows him to be in the right place for goals. Did not play with as much grit and physical intensity this season.
2008/2009 Red Deer (WHL) – 68-37-18-55-90.

CHRIS KREIDER – LW/C – (6-2/201)
CS: # 14NA—– THN: # 24—– McK: # 31
ISS: # 24 (Eric Staal) —– RLR: # 27 (Jeff Carter)
TSN: # 19 (Alexander Mogilny)
ISS: “An excellent skater with explosive speed and acceleration. Despite playing in the New England Prep league, Kreider has still emerged as a bona fide first round pick. Great mix of size, strength and skill. Has very good offensive skills and can be dangerous one-on-one. He can be hard to play against down low when he plays physical. He’s not a big hitter, but he doesn’t shy away from contact. Tremendous upside and he should be a top player at higher levels.”
McK: His vision of the ice makes him a valuable playmaker as his passes are crisp and accurate. His shot is quick and accurate as he also possesses strong finishing abilities. Kreider’s top-end speed and acceleration are impressive, but underlined by his ability to handle the puck at top gear. He doesn’t finish with consistency and his defensive play needs work, but Kreider is a promising draft prospect with great speed and pure talent.
RLR: “Terrific natural athlete has all the tools to be special with fine size and strength, and fabulous skating ability. One of the top three pre skaters in the draft at any position. Very raw talent. Makes legitimate defensive effort, but understanding of game situations needs work.
2008/2009 – Andover High School (MA) – 26-33-23-56-10.

JEREMY MORIN – LW/C
CS: # 33NA—– THN: # 21—– McK: # 37
ISS: # 27 (Zach Parise) —– RLR: # 15 (Dany Heatley)
TSN #: 31 (Ray Sheppard)
ISS: “A highly skilled goal scorer [who] has good offensive tools; great touch-very quick and soft hands. A dynamic goal scorer, few players have the one timing ability of Morin. [His] shot is deadly accurate and very hard. Morin is one of the best pure goal scorers available in the draft and could go early in the first round.
McK: “Morin is one of the most perplexing players in this year’s draft. A gifted and natural scorer with some of the softest hands in the draft, Morin sometimes will fall prey to a lack of passion while rumoured character flaws have also run rampant in the scouting community. Morin has average speed and an awkward skating stride, but is, surprisingly, quicker with the puck on his blade than without. Morin’s offensive abilities are among the best in this year’s draft class.
RLR: “If not for Tavares, he’d be the most coveted pure sniper in this draft. Deadly from the circles in with a lightning quick release on an accurate shot. Comes up with timely, important goals and wants the puck with the game on the line. Outstanding puck skills and terrific hands – both gives and receives passes very well. Will never be confused with a shutdown winger, but is a passable defensive player.
2008/2009 – USA U-18 (NTDP) – 46-26-22-48-99

Each of these players would bring much-needed offense on the wings for the goal scoring starved Rangers. The final decision comes down to individual preferences. If the 19th pick were mine to make, Carter Aston would be my first choice. Carter the son of former NHLer Brent Ashton, brings a combination of size, speed and scoring with the added bonus of Ashton being someone who can fight and fight well.

Putting the remaining players in order is difficult. Both Kreider (Boston College) and Morin (Kingston – OHL) are stepping up in competition so next season will go a long way to cementing their place in the NHL. Ferraro might be the closest to stepping into the Rangers lineup, but does lack the size you would want. Then again, the last time the Rangers passed on the son of a former Islander, they drafted Hugh Jessiman instead of Zach Parise.

I would place the remaining players in this order: Kreider, Morin and then Ferraro.

After commanding the Washington Capitals in their series, 3-1, just five days ago, the Rangers now go home early after Sergei Fedorov scored late in the third to give the Caps a 2-1 win in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

“[Fedorov] came down the wing and beat me with a good shot,” said Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist, who rebounded from two awful games . “It’s tough when you’re that close. I think we were trying harder than they were for the first two periods.”

Actually the whole team rebounded and played a very spirited first two periods. The Rangers had their chances against Simeon Varlamov, especially in the beginning of the game, but could only muster one goal.

That came at 5:35 of the first after Sean Avery, who played extremely well, fought for the puck in the corner and managed a off-angle pass to Nik Antropov, who fed it out to Brandon Dubinsky. Varlamov was able to poke check the shot, but Antropov came in and knocked it home.

That was it for the Ranger offense, which controlled the puck throughout the game, but gave in during the third when Washington pushed the Blueshirts to the edge.

“For most of the game I thought we did a really job in keeping the puck, but we couldn’t develop enough scoring chances,” he said. “In the third period, they turned it up a notch, we ended up backing up a bit, but it was still a game to be had. It was who makes the next big play. They did, we didn’t.”

And didn’t get the scoring chances they needed, thanks to Varlamov, and despite outshooting the Capitals 8-2 in the first, the Rangers went into the dressing room tied at 1, thanks to a Alexander Semin goal at 15:34, which was deflected by Ryan Callahan and Dan Girardi, changing the direction on Lundqvist.

Even with the goals, Lundqvist played great, making some spectacular saves, like one Vikor Kozlov early in the second, and he survived the onslaught on shots in the third, until Fedorov was able to nail it shut at with 4:59 left.

“I didn’t think too much about it,” said Fedorov to reporters. “Just entering the zone I wanted to make sure the puck went deep. The D gave me some room, so I stopped and chose to shoot. I knew the D was giving me short side. Henrik went down and I shot it top shelf short side. It’s pretty standard for what we practice.

“It was a big deal for us because we really wanted to win and not experience last year.”

Now the Rangers go searching for answers in the offseason. Players like Antropov, Derek Morris, and Paul Mara probably have played their last games for the Blueshirts, and the team will also make some other changes as Tortorella will revamp the club in his image for the 2009-10 season.

Notes: This is the first time the Rangers blew a 3-1 lead. They were 11-0 before this series….They are still winless in Game 7s on the road, now 0-5….With the Devils losing, the Capitals now get the dream matchup of the Pittsburgh Penguins, while the Bruins will play the Hurricanes.

Brandon Dubinsky’s remarkable tiebreaking goal with 8:17 left held up as the winner making a winner of Henrik Lundqvist, who was very strong stopping all 13 of Ovechkin’s shots on his way to 32 saves in easily outperforming a shaky Jose Theodore, who permitted four goals on just 21 shots.

Somehow, the Rangers won despite not having the puck for large portions with a relentless Caps attack coming at them in waves. They prevailed even though the dangerous host had seven power plays converting twice including Alexander Semin’s tying marker 1:42 into the third that rallied Washington back from a 3-1 deficit.

If John Tortorella’s club was one of the lowest scoring offenses entering the 16-team tournament, it never showed as they instead persevered by getting the kind of opportunist goalscoring needed to pull the upset. While the Blueshirts got big nights from Scott Gomez (goal, 2 assists), Nik Antropov (PPG, A), penalty prone Markus Naslund (PPG, A, 3 minor penalties), Dubinsky and constant Ryan Callahan (2 SOG, 2 goalposts, game best 7 hits, 1 huge blocked shot), their meal ticket Lundqvist made big save after big save keeping the Caps off the board early in spite of seeing 14 of 18 shots in the first. His steady play allowed the Rangers to settle down and get the all important first game earning home ice.

Still, Lundqvist’s team trailed when Ovechkin and Mike Green worked a textbook give-and-go before the league’s leading finisher fired a low shot which Tomas Fleishmann redirected home for his first of the postseason 6:40 into the second period. They took advantage of the first of three penalties on Naslund, who took a needless trip in the offensive zone. The veteran also lost his discipline in the third but his teammates bailed him out. Offensively speaking, the former Canuck all-time scoring leader wasn’t bad scoring a huge power play goal that followed an Antropov PPG meaning that the NHL’s second worst man-advantage actually wasn’t powerless.

The Rangers seized control thanks to a pair of Cap minors including a John Erskine high stick on Sean Avery near the boards. It was on the team’s second power play that something odd occurred in the form of a PPG with Antropov taking a Gomez pass at the right circle before walking in and beating Theodore top shelf for his first at 16:49. Paul Mara added a secondary helper by working the puck down to Gomez.

They were then aided by a rare gaffe from proven playoff performer Sergei Fedorov, who accidentally fired the puck out of play while still inside his blueline. It took Naslund only 67 seconds to capitalize thanks to a poor line change by the Caps. Picking it up right away, a speeding Gomez gained the zone before dropping for Naslund, who skated into the slot untouched before firing past Theodore suddenly making it 3-1 with 1:32 left.

If ever a player needed to step up, it was Gomez, who finished the season with just four points (all assists) in the club’s final eight games. Just like he did Spring, the playmaking pivot elevated his game notching three points including a momentum changing tying marker unassisted in response to Fleishmann’s series opener silencing a boisterous Washington crowd all dressed in red. The fluky play came out of nowhere when a Michal Rozsival dump took a weird hop right to Gomez, who turned on the jets following a weird collision between Avery and Green that saw the Washington defenseman fall down. Suddenly with room, Gomez surprised an out of position Theodore with a soft wrister tying it 1:09 later.

The goal proved huge giving the Rangers condidence. It looked like they were in decent shape leading by two late. However, the Caps benefited from a missed Green elbow on Freddy Sjostrom that should’ve meant a third consecutive Ranger power play. Somehow, referees Mike Leggo and Tim Peel missed the blatant infraction that had Sjostrom down for a couple of minutes. Instead, the clubs remained at even strength and the home club quickly struck when Nicklas Backstrom setup Viktor Kozlov backdoor after he beat Marc Staal cutting it to 3-2 with 49 ticks remaining.

It almost became a game changer because a great steal by Ovechkin on the third period’s first shift forced Dan Girardi to haul him down. Less than a minute later, a sharp angle Ovechkin backhand from behind the net was kicked out by Lundqvist with Brooks Laich fishing for the rebound. The loose puck eventually came to a wide open Semin, who made sure he buried it tying the game 3-3 with 18:18 left.

With momentum, the Caps searched for the go-ahead tally but couldn’t beat Lundqvist. Even their potent power play couldn’t break through with Naslund in the box for a foolish hold in the offensive zone. Instead, a weary top rated Ranger PK got the job done thanks to the grit of Callahan, whose clean hit of Ovechkin at center ice allowed his team to kill off the big chance. That’s when Cally’s solid defensive work evolved into a game changer.

After Ovechkin changed, the Caps tried to get one more shot on Lundqvist but Antropov blocked it and then moved the puck to Naslund, who had just come out of the box. He then dished off for a streaking Dubinsky on left wing. It was the second-year center who did the rest completely turning Washington D Jeff Schultz inside out before finishing off the amazing individual effort with a perfect wrister shortside. On the great play, Green who played the entire power play got caught out and was worn out allowing Dubinsky to take the shot that broke the Caps’ back.

Despite another bad penalty to Naslund, the Rangers killed it off. They withstood a lot of pressure from a relentless Washington club who finally pulled Theodore for an extra skater in the final minute. But one last great hustle play from who else but Callahan prevented any last second heroics when he made a diving block of an Ovechkin one-timer snapping his stick in half.

With a few seconds to go, the Rangers cleared the puck allowing them to breathe a huge sigh of relief. By then, it didn’t matter how they won. They stole the show.

Three Stars:

3rd Star-Brandon Dubinsky, NYR (GW goal w/8:17 left in regulation, 2 hits, +1 in 16:52)

2nd Star-Ryan Callahan, NYR (2 SOG, 2 posts, 7 hits, blocked shot, +1 in 20:42)

1st Star-Alex Ovechkin, Wsh (2 assists, game high 13 SOG, 5 MS, 6 hits, 3 takeaways, +1 in 26:07)

Notes: If there was one noticeable area where the Rangers missed Drury, it was in the faceoff circle as they got annihilated by the Caps 46-20 with Backstrom (13-5) and Fedorov (14-6) doing most of the damage. Laich chipped in going 8-3 and Boyd Gordon was 4-1. Gomez was the Rangers’ most effective finishing 9-14 while Dubinsky struggled losing eight of 14 draws. Blair Betts also was an uncharacteristic 5-12 and rookie Lauri Korpikoski who shifted back to center dropped all six.

… The game was physical with both teams finishing checks including some bone crushers from Ovechkin and crunchers from Callahan. Still, it was Matt Bradley who got the best hit catching Mara with a clean shoulder. The Rangers won the physical battle outhitting the Caps 35-27 with five registering three and at least 11 getting two. Even Wade Redden delivered three playing a solid 31 shifts (27:35) going plus-one while partner Rozsival had a pair logging the second most minutes (28:15). Predictably, Green paced all skaters with 30:47 including nearly 11:30 of PP time. He also had three hits. Ovechkin led the Caps with half a dozen while Erskine added five.

… One area the Rangers had a decided edge was in blocked shots sacrificing their bodies to get in the path of 21 Washington shots. The Caps only had 10 blocks or as many as PK leader Betts and Marc Staal had with each totaling five. Rozsival also blocked three. On the Washington side, Schultz and Shaone Morrisonn each had a pair. … With Drury out, Aaron Voros again suited up only getting six shifts (3:50) registering a hit and getting called for a bogus interference. … Tortorella alleviated more responsibilities to Korpikoski (18 shifts, 11:21, 2:45 SH), Betts (17 shifts, 12:20, 7:41 SH) and Sjostrom (22 shifts, 15:20, 6:25 SH) with each outstanding. … If there was one downer, it was that Russian enigma Nikolai Zherdev was a non-factor in 17 shifts (11:44) registering only one shot.

… F Donald Brashear was a scratch due to a knee sprain. … The teams now get the next two days off before the series resumes Saturday afternoon in the nation’s cap with faceoff scheduled for 1:05 on NBC.

Just like they did in the midweek victory over the New York Islanders, the new players made their impact felt. Antropov had a goal and an assist and Avery and Morris chipped in with one assist each. But it was old hand Nikolai Zherdev who got the game winner at 13:38 of the third period, after the Bruins twice came back to tie the game-once from a two goal deficit at the start of the final period.

The game was Avery’s first at Madison Square Garden since being reacquired early in the week and the Garden faithful gave him a warm welcome on his first shift back on home ice. “It felt good, certainly,” Avery said of the reception. “It felt like playing at home and when the fans show their appreciation it just makes you want to play even harder. It was nice.”

Asked if he was a different hockey player, Avery said “no.” A different human being? “Maybe.”

The goal he assisted was vintage Avery, who threw his body into producing a turnover behind the Bruins net before passing it to Ryan Callahan for the score. “Me, Korpi [Lauri Korpikoski] and Cally [Callahan], that’s just going to be our game down low,” he said. “Cally was in a good spot. I’ve played with him before and he kinda knows where I like him to be.”

The Rangers held on for the win in some frantic final minutes. Avery was sent to the penalty box for interference at 18:38 and the Bruins pulled Fernandez for the extra skater. Henrik Lundqvist made some key saves in the Rangers net and the Blueshirts were able to hold on for the win.

“I’m happy with the way the guys found their way and tried to regain some composure,” said head coach John Tortorella. “Hopefully this will be a learning situation for us as far as the momentum shifts in games.”

Momentum was clearly on the Rangers side at the end of the second period. After Callahan scored his 15^th goal of the season at 16:26 giving the hosts a 3-1 lead. To that point the game was frankly not as close as indicated by the score. The Rangers dominated the Bruins through aggressive forechecking and had many opportunities-especially in the first period-to light up Manny Fernandez’ net. Still, the 3-1 lead seemed commanding.

Then Chris Drury and Dan Girardi picked up a pair of double minors in the closing minute of the second period, giving the Bruins nearly four powerplay minutes to start the third. “It ended up being costly because that’s when most of the goals were scored,” said Tortorella. Boston took advantage, with Zdeno Chara and Michael Ryder scoring goals in quick succession to tie the game at 3-3. The momentum had shifted in Boston’s favor.

“We got a little tentative,” admitted Tortorella.”You knew sooner or later they were going to make a push. It happened. We were tentative but we still found a way to win.”

The Rangers caught a break on the winning goal when Fernandez misplayed a puck that went off the boards behind his goal and Zherdev was there to take advantage. “Luck’s a big part of winning in this game-in any sport-but I also believe you need to work for your luck,” said Tortorella, who reminded reporters that the Rangers are hardly the first team to benefit from good fortune to win hockey games this season. “The teams that are rock solid in the playoffs right now, I’m sure they’ve gotten a few bounces along the way to get there,” he said.

But one day after shipping Bill Guerin to Pittsburgh at the trade deadline, the Isles played through the leadership void, putting forth a spirited effort before falling short in a 4-2 loss to the Blueshirts in front of a sell-out crowd.

Coach Scott Gordon did not name the 12th captain in team history following Guerin’s departure to the playoff-contending Penguins. Instead, Richard Park, Brendan Witt and Trent Hunter were also designated as assistant captains, though Park spent Thursday night watching from the Nassau Coliseum press box as he recovers from broken ribs and Witt continues to serve his five-game NHL suspension for elbowing Toronto forward Niklas Hagman in the head.

Injuries and the trades that shipped out Guerin and Mike Comrie forced the roster’s young players to take increased roles. Blake Comeau relished the opportunity, logging his second two-point game of the season with a goal and an assist. The 23-year-old now has three points in the past two games, giving Islanders fan at least something to cheer about as the Isles fell to 20-37-7 and claim a NHL-low 47 points.

“It’s an opportunity for the young guys to step up and prove that they can play here,” Comeau said. “It’s not the easiest thing to get opportunity in this league but when you do, you want to be ready and you want to make the most of it.”

Comeau scored his fourth goal of the season, driving to the net and sending the puck underneath goalie Henrik Lundqvist’s pads 5:37 into the second period, answering Nikolai Zherdev’s game-opening tally to knot the score at 1. Chris Drury put the Rangers ahead again almost three minutes later, deflecting new acquisition Nik Antropov’s pass past goalie Yann Danis to put the Blueshirts ahead 2-1.

Then the Rangers registered the put-away goal that served as a microcosm of the Isles play: tireless and hard working but not enough to finish strong. Dean McAmmond raced into the Rangers zone before colliding with a teammate near the blue line. The aggressive mistake facilitated a two-on-chance the other way, culminating in Zherdev’s one-time pass to Scott Gomez’s stick blade. Gomez easily pushed the shot past a sprawling Danis for a 3-1 edge.

Gordon said he was pleased with the effort of a team that could easily be mistaken for AHL Bridgeport. Call-ups like Jesse Joensuu, Andre MacDonald, Joe Callahan and Joel Rechlicz have turned the Islanders dressing room into a Sound Tiger reunion because of injuries and front office transactions.

“The guys played with tremendous energy and all the guys that came up from Bridgeport played well,” Gordon said. It was a great environment to be a part of.

“There wasn’t anybody who had an off-night tonight. From top to bottom, we were pretty solid. They [the Rangers] had some bounces but in saying that, I think we gave ourselves a pretty good chance to come back in the game but it wasn’t meant to be tonight.”

At 35, Dean McAmmond joins the injured Doug Weight as the Islanders elder statesmen. Acquired in last month’s trade with Ottawa, McAmmond said he empathizes with the call-ups trying to prove themselves, relating their experiences to his situation as 19-year-old with the Oilers in the 1993-94 season.

“When I was a young guy in Edmonton starting out, I thought I was a pretty good player and was looking to prove myself,” McAmmond said. “It’s a great opportunity for these [young] guys to come in, work hard and play against a team like that. This is an important game for then. They came out hard and I think we adjusted pretty good. A couple of breaks and it could have been different.”

Jack Hillen, another Isles’ youth movement member, made things interesting by scoring his first NHL goal at an opportune time. The 23-year-old blue liner brought the Isles within a goal of tying it with a hard shot that skipped past Lundqvist 3:44 into the final period. The Rangers added a power play goal with 6:36 remaining, securing the win to end the Isles modest two-game winning streak and three-game point streak.

“Dean made a great pass to me off the wall and I went wide and waited for some support,” Hillen said about his goal. “When the opportunity presents itself, I’m definitely going to try and jump up in the play because that’s a part of my game and that’s part of what [Gordon] wants me to do.”

There were just a couple of solid trades designed to make the Blueshirts a better team, and ones that allow the club a chance compete in the playoffs.

“What we were really trying to do was get some scoring, size, grit and and speed,” said Ranger general manager Glen Sather. “I think we did that. We’ll see how the cards play out in the future. (Coach John Tortorella) likes them. He thinks we’ve helped our team immensely.”

Two separate deals right before the deadline brought the Rangers big right wing Nik Antropov from the Maple Leafs for a conditional second round draft pick, and rugged defenseman Derek Morris from the Coyotes for Dimitri Kalinin, Nigel Dawes and Petr Prucha.

Both deals were made to sure up the team’s deficiencies, with Antropov becoming the finisher the Rangers sought all season, while Morris becomes that power play quarterback, a role Wade Redden just seemed to forget how to play.

“Antropov is a big winger, centerman,” Sather said. “He’ll help us in the goal scoring department. Morris is a good, solid defenseman, he’ll give us a little more bite in the back end. He can play a little bit of everything, offense, defense.’

Just by the virtue of making the trade, Antropov becomes the Rangers leading scorer with 21 goals and 25 assists this season for a terrible Toronto team, while Morris has struggled with the numbers this season with just 5 goals and 7 assists, but has averaged between 25 and 30 points a season in the past.

Couple their arrivals with coach John Tortorella’s hiring and Sean Avery’s much awaited return, the Rangers have gained a lot in personality over the past week. And now have the personnel that can help the Rangers on the power play, which ranks 29^th in the league

“Antropov is certainly a guy with a lot of power play time,” Sather said. “He’s a goal scorer, a big body. Morris is a smart player with a history of playing on the power play.”

The price for all of these moves looks high on paper. The conditional second round pick could hurt the team in the future, but losing Kalinin, Dawes, and Prucha doesn’t sting as much because they all became expendable after the deals were made.

Although he does have a scoring touch, Dawes seemed a little undersized for the NHL. Good on the third line, the 24 year-old struggled when he moved up in the lineup. And Prucha may have needed a change in scenery, since he was buried by former coach Tom Renney the last two seasons, after scoring 52 goals his first two years.

“Since we’ve gotten Avery here, we did have a surplus of forwards,” Sather said. “And adding Antropov takes another position. It makes sense to put those two forwards in the deal and give them the opportunity to play.
“I like Prucha. If you look at Antropov coming in here, we needed to get some size in front of the net on the power play and he’s going to solve that for us. We wanted to give Petr the opportunity to play.”

Kalinin is a unrestricted free agent this summer and probably wouldn’t have been re-signed because of his disappointing first season as a Ranger.

Antropov and Morris also can walk away over the summer, which is why these deals are somewhat risky for the Rangers.

But even if they do move on, the trades also allows Sather some cap space on the club, which is another reason why yesterday a such a sold day for the club.