Winners, losers from thrilling Rangers overtime win against Wild, including Artemi Panarin

Like a thoroughbred thundering down the homestretch at the Kentucky Derby, Artemi Panarin is on a serious heater to close out the 2024-25 NHL regular season. After scoring 10 goals and finishing with 20 points in 15 games during the month of March, Panarin scored a breakaway goal and added two assists — including a beauty on the game-winner in overtime — to open up the April schedule.

Let’s be honest, Vincent Trocheck was trending toward the Losers category for much of the night before he reversed course and scored the fourth overtime goal of his career. His weak clearing attempt turned into a terrible turnover that led directly to Minnesota’s first goal on the power play in the first period. Then in the second period, he was stripped of the puck in the neutral zone with New York on the power play, and Minnesota turned it into a short-handed goal that tied the score 3-3. But Trocheck shook it all off, played hard, won all 13 of his face-offs (!) and then went to the net to get a stick on Panarin’s pass to give the Rangers the extra point the sorely needed.

This might be a harsh take because Filip Gustavsson made 34 saves, 17 in the first period when his team was nearly run out of the building yet had a 2-1 lead. But he should have had K’Andre Miller’s sharp-angle goal to start the second period and Gustavsson appeared to misplay Panarin’s pass, letting it go under his pad to find Trocheck’s stick on the game-deciding goal.

The whole K’Andre Miller experience was on display Wednesday at MSG. His decision to exit the defensive zone to get a new stick from the bench, leaving the Rangers short another man and vulnerable down low on the PK lowlighted Minnesota’s first goal. His blind giveaway in the opening-minute of the third period led directly to Marco Rossi’s game-tying goal. But he snuck that left-circle shot past Gustavsson to open the second period and got the puck to Panarin to assist on the OT game-winner. Plus he logged more than 22 minutes TOI, had 11 shot attempts (though only two on goal), three hits and two blocks. This is It’s what makes him such a tantalizing and polarizing player all at the same time.

Declan Chisholm certainly made the least of his 8:31 TOI for the Wild, who had a 40 percent expected goal share, per Natural Stat Trick, and were outscored 2-0 with the 25-year-old defenseman on the ice. Most egregious was his second-period turnover in front of his own net — without any pressure from the Rangers, it should be noted. He just lost the puck, fumbled it off Gustavsson’s pads before Chris Kreider swooped in and swept it into the net for a 3-2 Rangers lead at the time.

Dropped to the fourth line, Chris Kreider didn’t sulk. Instead, he scored. The 33-year-old was alert to hop on Chisholm’s turnover in the paint and quickly turn it into his 20th goal, third most on the Rangers this season, though only the second in his past 11 games. It’s the 10th time in 13 seasons Kreider’s scored at least 20 goals. Only Rod Gilbert (12) has more 20-goal seasons with the Rangers.

The special teams continue to be a big problem for the Rangers down the stretch. Their power play was 0-for-4, including a failed brief 5-on-3 with the score tied in the third period and another fail with 4:08 to play in regulation. They allowed a short-handed goal by Marcus Johansson in the second period, and nearly another to Matt Boldy late in the third. The penalty kill was 1-for-2, allowing a wide-open 2-on-0 power-play goal after the gaffes by Trocheck and Miller just nine minutes into the game.

In front of an expectant sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd, his parents and siblings and some of his buddies from the Boston College men’s hockey team, Gabe Perreault made his highly-anticipated NHL debut for the Rangers. The 19-year-old forward didn’t look out of place at all, skating on a line with J.T. Miller and Alexis Lafreniere, and getting some run on the second power-play unit. Perreault, who finished with three shots on goal, had a quick snap shot at the end of one power play, and nearly scored the game-winner with seven seconds left on the clock, but his open right-wing look was denied by Gustavsson.

Mats Zuccarello appeared to score a goal in the second period but it was waved off because teammate Ryan Hartman initiated contact with Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin. But that’s not why Zuccarello was a winner. The popular former Rangers forward skated in warmups with a special No. 40 sweater, with the name “Rosen” stitched on the back to honor Blueshirts broadcaster Sam Rosen, who’s retiring after 40 years behind the mic at the end of the season. Classy heartfelt gesture.