New York. The Devils are the undisputed masters of the New York area.
They won a crackdown derby against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden last night and so took a resounding 14 points against arch-rivals.
– Shit fun. “It looks like we’ve caught up to them,” Swedish striker Jesper Bokvist told Sportbladet after the 5-3 win.
At first, it looked like the New York Rangers had decided that under no circumstances would they lose the first round of the season in the “Battle of the Hudson River.”
They got off to a great start with two goals in the space of three minutes, including Mika Zibanejad’s eleventh goal of the season.
But the guests from across the river didn’t even blink. They have chosen their usual Formula 1 pace and have completely distanced themselves from the home team. Even before the first half ended, they managed to tie the game and in the second they took a 4-2 lead. Then they started to rack up loads of dismissals in the last 20 minutes, after which the Baluchirs managed to reduce the goal difference – but in the end Jur Sharanjović managed to make it 5-3 into an empty net.
– It’s like we keep moving even when we find ourselves at a disadvantage, never straying too far from our game too much. When we next meet him, Jesper Boqvist says, we’re safe.
– That was really fun. After the Rangers being so inferior for a few years, it feels like we’ve caught up to them now.
You’ve gone around, haven’t you?
– Yeah, it’s kind of like that instead. It means a little bit of winning these games, and it’s good to show we can push ourselves higher.
The 24-year-old Diamond, who, like his brother Adam, played for the Brinas before moving across the Atlantic for the 2019-20 season, after a few years on the brink of a permanent place in the Devils squad, has proven himself right this fall and has played every Match since the end of October.
– Yes, that’s the feeling. I worked for him, he says.
– Of course, I would like to produce more, because I feel that I have it. But I’m working on it and it would be fun to show it.
At The Garden last night, it was Bratt’s name who entered protocol with another help – just like Fabian Zetterlund.
The Devils have now won three in a row – and the Rangers have lost that many.
“My mistake,” thinks last year’s Vezina Cup winner Igor Sistyorkin.
– Yes, the goalkeeper had another bad game … I’m ashamed, he says.