1983 CLARENCE CAMPBELL CONFERENCE QUARTER FINAL #1

Brooklyn Harbor Rats

vs.

CapJack Rangers

Who will be hot now that it really counts?…..

In the 2nd, Smith takes advantage of a Rangers penalty to Shutt as he gets a PP goal to put Brooklyn up 2-1 – again scoring early in the period (5 minutes in). Once again the Rangers tie it up when Cloutier pops one past Mio with 7 to go in the period. Then with 4 to go, Smith wins the faceoff in the Ranger’s end, Lewis grabs it, back to Gustafsson at the point – slap shot – GOAL and the Rats are up 3-2! And that’s how it ends after 2.

We go to the 3rd – Rangers fans looking for a big finish but the Rats defense is holding tight. But as the game approaches the midpoint in the 3rd, Maloney moves the puck into the Rats end, Cloutier gets it, over to Robinson, back to Cloutier, Rats are all over him, so he shoots and it’s a goal, man he worked hard for that one, and the game is tied 3-3! However, that was all the scoring for the 3rd and game 1 goes to sudden death overtime… how long will it go?

OT Period 1 – Trottier gets to the opening face-off and the Rangers move to end the game quickly and they maneuver for a quick scoring chance, but it goes wide. Rats move it back up ice, but get nowhere and the Rangers are back in the Rats zone for another scoring chance in the opening minute, it doesn’t make it, but the Rangers try again – but Shutt loses the puck. Then play settles in and both teams keep breaking up the other’s chances. 5 minutes into the period and Crowder is breaking out the puck but Johnson shoves him into the boards and Brooklyn takes charge in the Rangers zone. They work the puck to Stastny – he shoots but Garrett picks it up and makes a glove save. Rangers win the faceoff, but as they enter the Rats zone, Cloutier loses the puck, Smith gets the puck and enters the Rangers end, gives it off to Gartner who shots, and BLAM – it beats Garrett and the RATS WIN IT in OT!! 4-3 Brooklyn and they are off and running (skating).
Most stats were pretty even but the Rangers had a 44-36 edge in SOG while the Rats had a 39-28 edge in scoring chances, but the big difference was 4 goals to 3!
STARS:
1. CAP Cloutier 2 goals
2. BRO Smith 1 goal, 2 assists
3. BRO Gartner 1 goal (big one) and 1 assist

Mio makes 41 saves!

So game one goes to the road team in sudden death, and as their season numbers suggest, the scoring will be close as the Rats take the lead 1-0 and a 1 goal advantage.

Both teams feature different goalies in this one as Hayward starts for the Rats and Resch for the Rangers…

The Rangers are definitely playing with more intensity after the game 1 loss – both offensively and defensively. They limit the Rats to 5 shots on goal in the first while doubling up on them with 10. But again, it’s the Rats who draw first blood when Rambo (I mean Housley) takes a pass from game 1 hero Gartner and pops one past Resch. 1-0 Rats 8 1/2 to go in the 1st. At this point, the Rangers again find themselves playing catch up – they haven’t had a lead yet – but with 4 to go, Cloutier scores his 3rd goal of the series to tie it up. And the 1st period ends 1-1.

Again the 2nd period starts slow and the Rangers play tight again and for the 2nd straight period, they hold Brooklyn to just 5 SOGs. However, Daoust goes off for interference 6 minutes in and Stastny (1) and the Rats make the Rangers pay with a PP goal for a 2-1 lead. Again the Rangers are having to look up at the Rats. However, Daoust makes up for his sin and scores less than a minute after leaving the penalty box and he ties the game 2-2. Then the next 12 1/2 minutes of the 2nd goes scoreless so it’s 2-2 as the 3rd starts. Again a tie going into the 3rd period.

Period 3 – the tie is short-lived as Lundholm scores for CapJack 59 seconds into the 3rd and the Rangers have their 1st lead in the series at 3-2. 5 minutes later Robinson scores for the Rangers and it’s the first 2 goal lead in the series as CapJack is up 4-2. But there are still 14 minutes left in regulation. Well as 4 of those minutes tick off, Shutt puts one past Hayward for a 3 goal Rangers lead, 5-2! 10 minutes left.
Then Dore gets sent to the penalty box for elbowing and again the Rats take advantage as Sutter scores making it 5-3 Rangers. But the Rangers clamp down and put a chokehold on the Rats as the clock reaches 2 to go. Minute 1/2 left and Hayward leaves and Gartner comes in for the extra attacker. Rats in full control in the offensive zone – but the Rangers are making it difficult. Twice the Rats take it back to their end to set up. As they come back on the 2nd attempt with a fresh line, Sutter takes it into the zone, to Housely and he shoves it to Osborne who shoots and SCORES! His 2nd goal of the series and now the Rats are within 1 (5-4) with 51 seconds left to go for the equalizer. And the Rats win the faceoff and literally control the puck for the rest of the game but they only get off 1 shot – and DeBlois blocks it and the Rangers prevail to hold on and win game 2, 5-4!! So the series is tied at 1-1.
STARS: (all CAP)
1. Daoust 1 goal, 2 assists
2. Robinson 1 goal, 1 assist
3. Cloutier 1 goal, 1 assist
Rangers pretty much won all the stat categories except faceoffs where it was close and PP where Brooklyn scored on 2 for 3 and the Rangers were blanked in 3 attempts.

Rangers win it 5-4. Again a tight contest and there is little doubt that that’s how this series will play out. The series moves to Brooklyn for games 3 and 4 all tied up 1-1.

But Cap Jack did not win this division for no reason and they come hard in the 2nd period, firing 17 shots at Mio in those 20 minutes and getting on the board just 4 minutes on Bryan Trottier’s first of the series, to cut the lead in half. On a rare offensive zone faceoff, just past the halfway point, Johnson scores his second of the night to re-establish the Rats 2 goal lead. And that would be all in the second.

Down a pair with 20 minutes remaining, the Rangers again come out firing away and Brooklyn is trying to hang onto that lead for the first 8 minutes. Then an explosion. Bobby Smith makes it 4-1 at the 8-minute mark, just 1:25 later Johnson steals a pass in the Cap Jack zone and feeds Stastny to make it 5-1 and 90 seconds later Johnson finishes off his hat trick to send the crowd into a frenzy! 3 goals in less than 3 minutes for Brooklyn, who takes game 3 by a final score of 6-2.

Mark Johnson’s hat trick was the first in Harbor Rats playoff history and he finished with 3-1-4. First overall draft selection Phil Housley had a 3 assist game. And Eddie Mio makes 37 saves, that’s coming off a 41 save performance in game one.

Tomorrow is game 4, also in Brooklyn, with the Harbor Rats holding a 2-1 series lead over the Rangers.

Johnson’s hat trick cost the Nathan’s Hot Dog franchise who offered free hot dogs to all in attendance if any Rat got a hat trick before the game.

Just 4:47 into the game Real Cloutier nets his 4th of the series to put CapJack on top but Mark Johnson buries his 4th of the series just :80 seconds later to even the score. Just past the 10-minute mark Dave Christian scores his first of the playoffs to put Brooklyn in front but with 2:35 left before the horn, Larry Robinson blasts one through from the point to once again even the score. After one we’re tied 2-2.
Bengt Lundholm puts the Rangers in front 8 minutes into the second period but once again, the Rats get the tying goal, this one from Bobby Smith, and after 2 periods of play we’re tied 3-3.
Just 6 minutes into the 3rd period Dave Christian scores his second of the night and Brooklyn has a lead that they are clinging to as the Rangers fire shot after shot in the final 13 minutes. CapJack pulls the goalie and with the extra attacker on blueliner Phil Russell scores the tying goal for the visitors sending this game to overtime, the second OT game of the series.
Both teams get good scoring chances in the overtime and Darryl Sutter rings one off the crossbar less than 7 minutes in, but soon after Bengt Gustafsson is whistled off for hooking handing the Rangers their 5th power play of the game. And this time they convert when Don Daoust buries a fat rebound to win it for CapJack and even the series 2-2!!

3 of the 4 games one-goal contests, 2 of them over time, this series is certainly entertaining for the CapJack and Brooklyn fans!!!

But as the 2nd period starts, Robinson is nailed for a 5-minute charging penalty and the Rats are in serious business! However, the Rangers kill off the major penalty – Brooklyn got off 1 shot and it was blocked before it got to the net. Rangers seem lit up after the penalty kill and are skating with greater authority. And then as the clock crosses the 8-minute mark, Trottier gains the zone, sets up, slaps one and Crowder deflects it and Mio had no chance as the Rangers score 1st in the big game. Play continues to be tight, but the Rangers are really keeping the Rats in check, and then with 5 to go, they come into the Rats end and Ray Allison and Lundholm connect on a great play and Allison put it past Mio for another Rangers goal and a big 2-0 lead. A bit later on, Wilson goes off for 2 minutes for interference (with 2:06 left in the period). Ray Allison moves it over center and into the zone where Robinson picks it up, he feeds Cloutier, to Daoust in the high slot – winds up, shoots, and scores for a big PP goal and a 3-0 Rangers lead. Still, a minute 20 to go in the 2nd. Wilson out of the box, face-off center ice Rangers win it and skate up ice, and Wilson is whistled again for an interference penalty with just under a minute left in the period. But the Rats hold off the Rangers but will start the 3rd shorthanded for 1:08 and down 3-0. Again the Rangers dominated play in the 2nd – shutting down the 5-minute major was a huge lift. They hold Brooklyn to 3 shots on goal while taking 12 themselves.

We move to the 3rd – Brooklyn kills off the penalty to start the period and then the Rangers give them a power-play chance 4 1/2 minutes in when Maloney goes off for high sticking – and it’s a 4-minute call! Rangers are certainly not helping their cause. But like the 5-minute penalty in the 2nd period, the Rangers once again kill off this 4-minute penalty and they fashion 2 scoring chances, the first shot didn’t make it to the goalie, the 2nd chance the shot went high over the net. Again, Resch didn’t touch the puck. But the Rangers were again very tough and in fact, they didn’t worry about mounting any offense as they were outshot by Brooklyn 3 to 2 in the 3rd (that’s not a misprint – 3 shots on goal for Brooklyn, 2 for CapJack) – and no goals were scored. Rangers win the game 3-0! Brooklyn was held to 9 SOG in the game, Rangers had 21. Just a tough hard-fought game!
STARS – All CAP and 1st time I’ve seen a shutout where the goalie wasn’t awarded a star or even mentioned as a notable – and that tells you how tough the team played defense in front of Resch.
1. Daoust 1 goal
2. Crowder 1 goal
3. Ray Allison 1 goal

Phil Russell opens the scoring for CapJack halfway through the first but Mark Johnson scores his 5th of the series, a power-play goal, in the final minute of the period and after one it’s a 1-1 game. It’s a tentative game with the visitors leading in shots 9-7.

The second period sees both teams open things up as the teams combine for 34 SOG. Lucien DeBlois and Don Maloney each net their first of the playoffs to open a 2 goal lead for the Rangers. Darryl Sutter makes it a one-goal game with his 3rd of the postseason. Dave Hannan’s first of the playoffs puts CapJack back up 2, but Mike Gartner scores off the ensuing faceoff to again draw the Rats within a goal. In the final minute of the period Bobby Smith gets Brooklyn even and we go to the intermission tied 4-4.

Both teams return to tentative play for the first half of the final period and then Behn Wilson is sent to the box for cross-checking, giving the Rangers their first man advantage of the game. And Brooklyn kills off almost all 2 minutes, almost. But Larry Robinson buries the power-play goal that puts CapJack in front with just over 5 minutes remaining.
A fight in stands delays play for a few minutes as some rowdy Rangers fans who crossed the river and managed to secure seats to the contest are escorted from the arena to the delight of the home crowd. But time is winding down on the Rats season and they begin taking chances and somehow Bobby Smith buries his second goal of the game to tie the score again and nearly blow the roof off the arena!!! Two games in this series have already been to overtime and as we enter the final minute it looks like we’re headed for a third but DeBlois has other ideas and he scores his second of the night with :45 seconds left to silence the crowd.

With the net empty and the extra attacker on Brooklyn fires away and Chico Resch makes 3 more clutch saves to send the CapJack Rangers on to the Campbell Conference Finals. Resch made 31 saves in the win and ran his playoff record to 4-0 in the series.