This game was so important to Jesper Fast that he had it targeted on his calendar, just ahead of the schedule first assumed for the quadriceps injury he sustained Dec. 21.
But Fast was able to rejoin his Rangers for their dramatic 3-2 overtime win Monday over the Sabres in the 10th annual Winter Classic at Citi Field.
“It’s not always you get an opportunity to play a game like this,” Fast said after he collected an assist on Paul Carey’s game-opening goal, just 4:09 in. “Of course, they didn’t want to risk anything if I could get hurt again. But the docs told me everything was fine and I didn’t need to worry about anything. We made the decision in warm-up and it felt good.”
Fast had missed the previous three games, but that also included the three-day Christmas break. He took part in the team’s outdoor practice Sunday, but it didn’t look like he was going to play when he took the ice for warm-ups and was not involved in line rushes.
But he went into the locker room and said he felt ready to play, and coach Alain Vigneault decided to bump rookie Vinni Lettieri from the lineup after Lettieri had scored a goal in his NHL debut Friday in Detroit.
“They told me two-three weeks from the beginning, but this was my goal all along,” Fast said. “I think I had 10 days to get back, and during the break I did everything I could to make sure I was as healthy as possible.”
Fast slid into Lettieri’s spot on the right side of a line with Boo Nieves and Carey, and the trio was assertive from the drop of the puck. And better for the Rangers was that Fast said he felt fine during the game and afterward.
“It always a little tight with an injury like that,” he said. “I just tried to move it all the time.”
Henrik Lundqvist improved to 4-0-0 in outdoor games, with 1.98 goals-against average and .934 save percentage. No other goaltender has more than two wins in outdoor games. When asked why he was “perfect” outdoors, Lundqvist just laughed.
“I haven’t thought that much of it right now,” he said. “It’s more about this game, not so much about the past.”
Lundqvist also earned his 423rd career victory to tie Tony Esposito for eighth place in NHL history.
The game began with a high of 20.5 degrees and steadily sank throughout the afternoon, but most of the Rangers said the frigid temperatures didn’t bother them on the ice.
“Hopefully the fans dressed well,” Lundqvist said, “and didn’t feel too cold out there.”
The Rangers also didn’t complain too much about the ice, which was clearly choppy at times, but a surface that Lundqvist called “fast.”
“I thought the ice was pretty good,” said defenseman Brady Skjei. “Overall, I think they did a great job.”