New York Rangers Daily: Good day takes bad turn; Canadiens’ wild OT win features Lane Hutson milestone
Tuesday was such a feel-good day for the New York Rangers. The arrival and first practice for 19-year-old Gabe Perreault, the organization’s top prospect. Coach Peter Laviolette dishing praise on Brennan Othmann, the 22-year-old forward considered to be right there along with Perreault on the Rangers prospects tree. Even the lingering after-effects of a 6-1 mauling of the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.
But a third straight night off for the Rangers actually threw a major damper on the whole day.
Since they were idle, it’s not like the Rangers went out and put up another no-show performance in their uneven “push” for a wild-cad berth in the Eastern Conference.
Nope, the Rangers were spectators Tuesday night. And what they saw wasn’t pretty as far as that East playoff race is concerned.
First, the Columbus Blue Jackets passed them in the standings with an 8-4 win at home against the Nashville Predators. The up-and-down Blue Jackets got big nights from their top forwards — Kirill Marchenko hat trick, Sean Monahan two goals and four points, Adam Fantilli two goals and three points — a reminder of how good they can be when fully healthy.
Then the real kick in the teeth. The Montreal Canadiens were less than 15 seconds away from wasting their game in hand on the Rangers, trailing the Florida Panthers 2-1. But in a span of 38 seconds on the game clock, their fortunes — and those of the Rangers — flipped.
So, what happened? Nick Suzuki happened.
The Canadiens captain tied the game with nine seconds remaining in regulation. His wraparound then beat Panthers goalie Vitek Vanecek 29 seconds into overtime for the win. In a bat of the eye, the Canadiens went from zero points to one to two — and the Rangers playoff chances took a massive hit.
That’s the type of win the Rangers haven’t been able to muster, pretty much all season. In fact, they’ve been on the losing end of those types of games more times than you care to remember, including the 5-4 OT loss to the Ducks in Anaheim just a week ago, when a two-goal third-period lead bit the dust before Mason McTavish’s OT goal finished it off.
The Rangers (35-32-7) get back at it Wednesday, now 10th in the Eastern Conference, two points behind the Canadiens and percentage points behind the Blue Jackets. Eight games to play. This thing is far from over, especially with no one pulling away from the pack.
Win Wednesday against the Wild, change the narrative for another day.
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New York Rangers news
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In that wild Canadiens win, defenseman Lane Hutson assisted on all three goals to give him 62 points on the season. He’s the 10th rookie defenseman in NHL history to reach 60 points, and first since Nicklas Lidstrom in 1991-92. Rangers Hall of Famer Brian Leetch is on that list (71 points; 1988-89).
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