Rangers continue troubling trend in win over Ducks

An optimist might refer to the New York Rangers' season as efficient. A pessimist, however, might consider it unsustainable.

The Blueshirts downed the Anaheim Ducks 4-1 on Tuesday, but the shot count was hardly as convincing as the final score. New York was outshot 44-20, yet escaped with a win, marking the league-leading 20th time - out of 34 wins - they've come away with a victory when beaten on the shot clock.

So, how do they make it work?

The Rangers are tied with the Washington Capitals for the NHL's second most goals for - 179 through 53 games. Per Corsica-Hockey, New York's team shooting percentage of 9.49 percent ranks third league-wide, led by Michael Grabner, the club's top goal scorer (25) and his 20.8 percent conversion clip.

Meeting the expected narrative, Grabner scored twice Tuesday.

Beyond timely scoring, the only way to win when allowing that many attempts is exceptional goaltending.

Enter The King.

In his last eight starts, Henrik Lundqvist has earned six wins, posting a .941 save percentage with a 1.88 goals-against average and one shutout. He's had peaks and valleys this season, and even with a huge workload, Lundqvist remains New York's best hope to win night in and night out.

The Rangers are comfortably slotted in the first wild-card seed with 69 points, so it's working, the question is just how long it can last.