From the start, the pace was too fast and the ice too open. Then the game, and maybe the whole first-round series, spun awry during a 10-second span in the first period with the Rangers set to score the tying goal.

Henrik Lundqvist made 36 saves did all he could to keep the Caps at bay, kicking out his legs, sprawling on his stomach and back and diving post to post. But the Capitals’ beat the Rangers, 4-0, and narrowed the series to 2-1.

The numbers are on the Rangers’ side as their playoff series shifts to Madison Square Garden. They hold a 2-0 series lead on the Capitals, and only 37 of 291 teams have ever recovered from such a deficit to win a best-of-seven series.

In a playoff series that few had picked them to win, the Rangers suddenly are coming home with a two-games-to-none lead on the Washington Capitals, and you can point to one simple reason: their best player is coming up bigger than the other guys’ best player.

Chris Drury returned to the Rangers’ lineup after missing the previous two games, including the playoff opener, with an undisclosed injury - though that injury now looks more like a hand issue.

After the 54-year drought, fifteen years may not seem that long since the Rangers won their last Stanley Cup. To goalie Mike Richter, who backstopped the ‘94 run, the memories are still as fresh as they are for the most nostalgic of fans.

John Tortorella’s theme during the Rangers’ two off-days this week has been the importance of momentum, or “surges,” in playoff series, and how crucial it is to keep it when you have it.

If the playoffs truly present the Rangers with a chance to wipe the slate clean and start a new season, then Wade Redden must love the playoffs. Redden offered no reason to complain in his Blueshirt playoff debut.

Whatever is actually ailing Chris Drury, it must be bad, because it forced the Rangers to begin the playoffs Wednesday night without their captain.

Brandon Dubinsky beat goalie Jose Theodore inside the near post with 8:17 remaining, lifting the Rangers to a 4-3 victory over Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference series.