You could see it from the opening shift. The Islanders were unafraid to start their big bruising fourth line against the Rangers top line. Normally, you would never do that, but Barry Trotz’ fourth line isn’t normal. Not only did they control the opening shift, Matt Martin while playing along the offensive boards stealthily nailed Mika Zibanejad with a hard elbow straight to his face.
The refs of course either missed it or opted not to call the infraction so early in the game. As Zibanejad drifted around in the zone while holding his face and eyes swelling with water, Martin effectively set the tone of the game.