Rangers Advance with 3-1 Win Over Canadiens; Mats Zuccarello Nets 2 Goals

The New York Rangers earned a trip to the 2017 Eastern Conference semifinals with a 3-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 6 of their NHL Stanley Cup playoff series on Saturday. 

After Alexei Emelin got the scoring started by putting Montreal up 1-0 six minutes and 19 seconds into the first period, the Rangers took over on the strength of goalie Henrik Lundqvist and Mats Zuccarello's two goals in the second period. 

Zuccarello's go-ahead goal was set up masterfully by quick passes from J.T. Miller and Kevin Hayes.

Social media shared some thoughts on Zuccarello's offensive heroics for the Rangers:

Even though Zuccarello did get his moment in the spotlight, this was Lundqvist's game. He stopped 27 of 28 shots and was a stone wall after getting beaten by Emelin.

After the Canadiens took a 2-1 series lead, Lundqvist locked in over the final three games. He was able to outperform Canadiens goalie Carey Price on the big stage to get the Rangers into the second round.

The Rangers were the first wild-card team in the Eastern Conference, but they weren't lucky to get in the postseason. Their 102-point finish was just one point shy of the Canadiens' haul during the regular season. The Metropolitan Division was loaded in 2016-17, as four teams finished with more than 100 points.

This was not the storybook ending the Canadiens wanted after winning their division for the third time in five years. They were coming off a disappointing sixth-place finish one year ago, when Price was limited to just 12 games. 

There is still a strong foundation in place for the Canadiens to be back next year.

The Rangers rose to the occasion thanks to their star goaltender and timely scoring. It's a great formula for success that has them eight wins away from playing for the Stanley Cup.