Recap: New Jersey vs. NY Rangers
Sports Network | November 12, 2008
Newark, NJ (Sports Network) - Nikolai Zherdev scored twice and Lauri Korpikoski picked up his first NHL goal as the New York Rangers humbled the New Jersey Devils, 5-2, at the Prudential Center.
Michal Rozsival and Chris Drury also lit the lamp for the Rangers, who won for just the second time in their last six contests.
Henrik Lundqvist stopped 30 shots to earn his 10th win of the season.
Travis Zajac and Jamie Langenbrunner scored for the Devils, who have dropped three in a row and seven of nine.
Kevin Weekes started the game and allowed four goals on 25 shots through 40 minutes. Scott Clemmensen finished the contest by stopping 16-of-17 shots.
Langenbrunner's power-play tap-in 4:19 into the third brought New Jersey within 4-2, but Zherdev's second of the contest restored the Rangers' three- goal lead just before the midway point of the period.
New York unloaded 17 shots on Clemmensen for the final 20 minutes of action but although the backup was solid after Zherdev's tally, the Devils could not best Lundqvist the rest of the way.
Zajac's tap-in from the right side off a Mike Mottau left-point shot put the Devils on the board a little over seven minutes into the game.
New York used a four-goal blitz on 20 shots in the second period to assume control of the contest.
The Blueshirts tallied first on a 5-on-3 with 7:45 played in the second, as a shot from Rozsival got through a screen and past Weekes. The visitors assumed a 2-1 lead at 9:24 when Drury blasted a shot home from the bottom of the right circle, then went up by a pair when Korpikoski buried a one-timer from the slot 29 seconds later.
Zherdev netted another two-man advantage goal for a 4-1 Rangers lead with 4:10 remaining in the second and took the three-goal margin to the third.
The Rangers have won nine of the last 10 meetings and both this season...New York center Scott Gomez missed the game due to a leg injury...Devils forward Dainius Zubrus picked up a game misconduct after a fight with the Rangers' Brandon Dubinsky in the final 20 seconds of the second period...New Jersey defenseman Anssi Salmela registered his first career point -- an assist -- on Langenbrunner's tally.
