Kyle Ross-Imagn ImagesChris Drury either scared the crap out of the Rangers or his well-publicized open letter to fans inspired his players to play hockey the right way for a change.
Either way, Drury’s mystery missive worked to the tune of a 6-3 victory in Philadelphia with all the Rangers' roulette balls falling into the right holes. Here are a few:
GOALTENDING: Forgotten third-string Blueshirt goalie Spencer Martin stopped 25 of 28 Philly shots and is worth another try Monday night in Anaheim.
SCORING: The howitzers – led by Mika Zibanejad and Breadman Panarin – replaced the pop guns and scored big. Meanwhile, Brennan Othmann scored his first goal in his 34th game. (Will this lead to a Brennan Barrage or the next goal in Game 68? Time will tell.)
OPPONENT: After stinking out the World's Most Famous Arena, the Blueshirts let the Broad Streeters do it to themselves. Philly, having lost six in a row, was just the proper patsy for coach Mike Sullivan's sextet. (In that span the Flyers have been outscored 31-12.)
But joy is so unbound in the New Yorkers' clubhouse that in a brief, ecstatic, moment, Sully blurted this about his captain Miller: "J.T. has had a really good year for us." (Next, the Great Orator coach will tell us that Chicken Little was right about the sky falling.)
Speaking of playing "Chicken," I saw nothing in the Post today about the Rangers being "gutless" – as I did after the loss to Ottawa the other night.
Overnight the Beloved Blueshirts have metamorphosed from "gutless" to guilest robust warriors with a rainbow 'round their shoulders.
Next up for Sully's sextet will be the sitting Ducks (3-6-1) in Anaheim.
Forget another expensive letter Chris; a mere postcard from your MSG office will do for your surging stickhandlers.
Just beware of the "Postage Due!"