NEW YORK—The N.Y. Rangers are likely more relieved than ecstatic now that they have outlasted the pesky Ottawa Senators.
It wasn’t easy, and after a home loss in Game 5, it almost wasn’t likely.

But the Eastern Conference’s top-seeded team gutted out a big road win, then made it count last night when the Rangers held off the Senators 2-1 in Game 7 to advance to the second round.
“You don’t want to relax too much,” noted forward Derek Stepan, who had three points in the Rangers’ Game 6 win and then helped set up the opening goal in the clincher.
“We have a big round ahead of us, and we have to make sure we stay focused and keep that emotion high,” he stressed.
Defencemen Marc Staal and Dan Girardi scored 4:18 apart in the second period, and Henrik Lundqvist made 26 saves, as the Rangers eliminated the eighth-seeded Senators—completing a rally from a 3-2 hole after losing Game 5.
“We were talking about it in Ottawa that if we could bring it back here, the fans would be behind us,” Girardi said.
“The way we play all year got us ready for games like this,” he added. “We came with a great effort [in Ottawa] and another one tonight.”
Staal broke the scoreless deadlock, then Girardi gave the Rangers a 2-0 lead with his first career NHL playoff goal.
Lundqvist allowed Daniel Alfredsson’s power-play goal in the second, but stood tall the rest of the way to send the Rangers into a second-round match-up with the seventh-seeded Washington Capitals.
The Rangers hadn’t hosted a Game 7 since their Stanley Cup victory over Vancouver in 1994, but they stayed perfect at home in deciding games—winning their fourth.
New York is 4-5 overall in Game 7s while the Senators dropped to 0-5.
“We knew they were going to come out strong,” said Senators’ goalie Craig Anderson, who made 27 saves.
“I just wanted to make sure that I gave my team an opportunity to win the hockey game—make the next save for the guys.”
Lundqvist withstood tons of pressure from the Senators, who spent most of the closing five minutes in the Rangers’ end.
The win wasn’t secure until Sergei Gonchar tripped Carl Hagelin as he skated towards the empty net with 36.2 seconds to go.
New York rallied from a 3-2 series deficit for just the second time, building off the momentum of its 3-2 victory in Ottawa on Monday night.
“It was a hard series against a very good team,” said Rangers’ coach John Tortorella.
“Sometimes the first round is the hardest round,” he added. “[But] we found a way. We were fortunate.”
Just like in Game 6, when the Rangers scored three goals in the second period, New York used the middle frame to take over.
Rookie Chris Kreider, whose first NHL goal was the winner Monday night, forced a turnover and got the puck into the Ottawa end.
Ryan Callahan nudged it ahead to Stepan, who sent a pass from the right circle to the left circle to Staal for his first goal of the series 4:46 into the second.
Staal, limited to 46 regular-season games because of the lingering effects of a concussion sustained last season, thrust his hands up in delight when his shot beat Anderson.
Staal had only two goals in the regular season.
It didn’t take all that long for Madison Square Garden to erupt in cheers again for another blueliner.
Rangers’ forward Brandon Prust had the puck knocked off his stick, but teammate Brandon Dubinsky was there to get it and smack it into the slot to Girardi, who wound up for a hard slapshot just a few feet from the crease and slammed it past Anderson at 9:04.
But just when the nervous towel-waving fans began to relax and feel confident that the Rangers would survive and move on to the second round, Alfredsson gave the Senators a big boost and brought back the tension.
Ottawa went on its second power play when Michael Del Zotto was called for cross-checking nemesis Chris Neil in front of the net.
Alfredsson, who missed three games in the series after an elbow from Hagelin in Game 2 gave him a concussion, made New York pay.
He took a pass above the left circle from Chris Phillips and one-timed a shot past Lundqvist with 8:26 left in the second to bring the Senators back within a goal.
Now the question remains if the 39-year-old Senators’ captain will retire after 16 NHL seasons—all with Ottawa.
“I’ll take some time and see how I feel physically and mentally after time off, but this year has been unbelievable,” said Alfredsson, who struggled this season with concussions.
“I had a lot of fun, and it’s been a great group of guys to be a part of.
“They’ve kept me upbeat and happy when I’m a grumpy old man at times,” he remarked.
In other Game 7 action last night, New Jersey nipped Florida 3-2 in double overtime to advance to the second round against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Second-round action in the Western Conference will feature second-seeded St. Louis versus eighth-ranked L.A. while third-seeded Phoenix takes on No. 4 Nashville.