The Rangers kept pushing and pushing, hoping the Flyers would break. It just never happened.
So the goal that Oskar Lindholm scored just 100 seconds into the first period stood as the game-winner on the back of a terrific shutout by unheralded goalie Anthony Stolarz, giving Philadelphia a 1-0 victory over the Rangers on Tuesday night at the Garden.
The Rangers (21-21-7) had won three in a row and four of their previous five going into the just-completed 10-day break, which encompassed the bye week and the All-Star Game. It enabled them to rest a little bit and recoup after what had been a tumultuous time starting at Thanksgiving, when their optimistic hopes of the postseason dimmed significantly.