In a Metropolitan Division “must win” (or “can’t lose”) game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the New York Rangers looked to bounce back after losing in overtime during Saturday’s game against the Ottawa Senators. Following 40 minutes, give or take, of quite some quit in New York, the Rangers fell 7-3, missing out on two critical points.
The first frame started with some dancing back and forth by each team with two foiled “breakaway” chances for the Rangers. New York displayed sustained pressure in the first few minutes, which saw a stuff in attempt by Braden Schneider thwarted by Blue Jackets’ goaltender, Daniil Tarasov. A giveaway by Will Cuylle to Zach Werenski gave Columbus a great chance up ice, allowing Juston Danforth a tip-in that got past Jonathan Quick.
Following the goal, the Rangers couldn’t get back in the offensive groove for a bit, but credit was due to Columbus’ blue line, which looked strong following the first five minutes. A hit by Kent Johnson on Brett Berard created some chaos (the door to the bench was open and the Rangers took issue with that) and led to the first power play of the game. Each team was 26th in the league on the power play and penalty kill, respectively.
The Rangers took a slow approach to the beginning of the advantage. A short handed chance by Werenski didn’t amount to much and the Rangers continued to look lazy on the power play. Adam Fantilli brought the puck back into the Rangers’ offensive zone to end the power play, with the Rangers having nothing to show for it. Despite a rather open neutral zone, the Rangers struggled to enter the offensive zone with dominance. Following an icing call, Alexis Lafreniere ripped it from the blue line and a gorgeous deflection by Artemi Panarin tied the game for the Rangers, with Panarin having goals in his last five games. Denton Mateychuk was called for interference to end the period.
The Blue Jackets’ clustered penalty kill, aided by a bouncy puck, was successful to start the second. An extremely clean break up the ice led to a three on two chance for Columbus, and a shot by Fantilli slotted into the net over Quick’s shoulder. Shortly after, a bad play behind the net allowed Fantilli to score again. The Rangers’ defense was lacking and was not looking playoff worthy in the first few minutes of the second. Will Borgen, however, was able to make a great defensive play after Quick was drawn out of the net to keep the deficit to two.
Cuylle would be called for holding just moments later, giving Columbus their first power play of the game. The Blue Jackets sat at 19th in the league on the advantage, whereas the Rangers sat at 3rd on the kill. Schneider got the puck up ice and ripped it over Tarasov’s shoulder, reducing the Blueshirts’ deficit to one. Mika Zibanejad was able to get a rush, just 30 seconds after Schneider’s tally, to give Chris Kreider another shorty with a stunner of a tic tac toe play.
With the game tied at three a piece, energy was infused back into the Garden. (With Kreider’s goal, the New York Rangers now lead the league in shorthanded goals, with 13.) Quick made save after save to keep the game tied at the halfway mark. With neither team producing great chances, the Rangers fell flat footed again: a defensive failure from the Rangers and a pass across from Werenski in front of Quick allowed Mathieu Olivier to tip the puck in the net. With Borgen (the only Ranger to end the night with a positive rating) acting as the only defenseman, as K’Andre Miller seemingly gave up, Dante Fabbro snapped the puck past Quick to give the Blue Jackets another two goal lead.
The Rangers needed a comeback in the third period but have struggled this season in the final frame. Neither team seemed too eager to score in the first three minutes of the third. Just under six minutes in, Ivan Provorov took a two minute minor for delay of game when he threw the puck into the netting. The Rangers’ power play looked disjointed and careless. While the Rangers’ net front presence was there, they were never in quite the right place for a tip in. Following the power play, the Rangers finally managed a few solid shots, but the cross bar was not their friend. A rush up the ice and a sloppy play by Zac Jones led to an own-goal, credited to Olivier, giving the Blue Jackets a three goal lead with just under ten minutes remaining in regulation.
Another terrible defensive failure left Quick diving, but the puck went in off Fantilli’s stick anyway, giving him a hat trick. Luke Kunin was scheduled to go off for a boarding penalty on Vincent Trocheck, but not before Borgen was able to get to him and get a few good punches in. Both received five minutes for fighting, but Kunin received his original two, giving the Rangers another power play opportunity. Quick was pulled from the net to start the power play at 7:19. The six on four was, yet again, “slow and methodical”. The Rangers narrowly avoided two empty net goals and Quick took his place back with 4:44 remaining. Despite being up four tallies, Tarasov continued to look strong through the end of the game.
Overall, the Rangers looked careless during five-on-five play, were continuously caught flat footed defensively, and could not maintain offensive pressure after the initial five minutes of the game.
The Rangers’ playoff chances look slimmer by the day. The New York Rangers will face the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday, March 11 at 8 p.m. EST.
