Rangers HC Gerard Gallant calls out Hurricanes’ ‘cheap shot’ in Game 3
from Victor Barbosa, with YardBarker.com/www.yardbarker.com
Gerard Gallant’s New York Rangers picked up a 3-1 home win over the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday in a near must-win situation. They still trail in the best-of-seven set 2-1, but they’ll have a good chance to even up the series if they can hold home ice in Game 4 on Tuesday.
Despite their big victory, Gallant wasn’t happy about how his team’s opponents conducted themselves on the ice immediately following the bout. The Rangers head coach didn’t mince words when discussing the matter with reporters.
“I wasn’t happy with the bulls— at the end of the game that they initiated,” Gallant said, per ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski. “We didn’t do that when the games were close. They put their guys out. That’s fine. If they want to play like that, we’ve got the guys that can match them.”
When the horn sounded at the end of regulation, Hurricanes forward Maxi Domi cross-checked Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren in New York’s zone. Lindgren followed by slashing Domi, which brought all the players on the ice and ended with Lindgren wrestling Domi to the ice in a headlock.
According to Wyshynski, at this time, “at the benches, Gallant could be seen angrily yelling at Hurricanes defenseman Tony DeAngelo as the players left the ice. DeAngelo, whose contract was bought out by the Rangers last summer after a series of behavioral issues, was booed by the Madison Square Garden fans and targeted with derogatory chants throughout the game.”
In response to the extracurricular activities following the final buzzer, Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour said he “didn’t really see what happened” so he could not comment on the situation.