"Garbage pass," Kreider said.
Stepan didn't blast a one-timer from the left circle.
"I toed it," Stepan said.
But the puck fluttered into the top right corner of the net as Detroit Red Wings goaltender Petr Mrazek did the splits sliding across, and that's all that mattered. The drought was over.
Stepan bent over at the waist, clenched his fists and let out a primal scream. He curled into the left-wing corner and got a bear hug from Kreider. He received pats on the head and fist-bumps and, of course, ribbing.
"Oh, you really got all of that one," someone told him.
It was an ugly goal at the end of a
4-1 win at Joe Louis Arena
on Sunday, but man, to Stepan, to the Rangers, it was beautiful.
Stepan had never endured a drought like that in his previous six NHL seasons. Not even close. He said the longest he had experienced before was 15 games.
He scored 22 goals in 72 games last season. He had 12 goals through his first 45 games this season, on pace for 21 goals over 82 games.
He scored twice against the Dallas Stars on Jan. 17, giving him three goals in two games. And then he didn't score for a few games. And then he didn't score for a few more games. And then he didn't score for a few more games.
A blip became a slump, and slump became a drought, and he couldn't help but wonder what the heck was going on.
"It was tough," Stepan said. "It's not an easy thing to go through. Guys do it. You go through it in your career. You've just got to find a way to keep that mindset of, 'This is just the way it is right now. Keep playing the right way.'"
He talked to coaches. He talked to teammates. Before the Rangers left to play the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 6, he called former teammate Martin St. Louis.