The Rangers jumped out to a 3-0 lead 11:24 into the game. The Garden was rocking. Alexis Lafreniere scored his first two goals in 14 games, one off the rush and the other on an exciting breakaway. Vincent Trocheck went to the net after a long gritty shift and deflected a Will Borgen shot into the net. Three goals on five shots. Artemi Panarin assisted on each score. Jonathan Quick made some terrific early saves bidding for his 400th NHL win. The Rangers bench was alive.

First goal for #NYR Alexis Lafreniere in about a month and it’s an absolute beauty.

I will not overreact. pic.twitter.com/onxR8BIfUd

— Jonny Lazarus (@JLazzy23) January 8, 2025

Then it all caved in.

The Stars scored a lucky goal off Urho Vaakanainen’s stick on a back check. They added another on the power play. It was 3-2 before the first intermission arrived, the Garden was filled with 18,000 nervous fans and the Rangers were being run out of their own building despite holding the lead.

Their xGF was 0.33 in the first period, per Natural Stat Trick, even though the Rangers held the lead. They steadied themselves some in the second period, but were out-chanced 14-6 at 5v5 and allowed Jason Robertson to tie the game.

The Rangers played their best in the third period and Trocheck’s power-play deflection after a well-timed timeout by coach Peter Laviolette put the Rangers up 4-3 with 7:04 to play. But a K’Andre Miller turnover led to Thomas Harley’s game-tying goal at 17:21.

Panarin’s hooking penalty 25 seconds into overtime then set the Stars up to win the game, when Jamie Benn was alone in front to tip home a Robertson centering feed and that was that. A brutal 5-4 overtime loss. A loser’s point gained in the standings. But likely their most gut-wrenching loss of the season at a time when they’ve improved many facets of their game and been an improved team.

The latest loss leaves the Rangers six points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets — yes, the Columbus Blue Jackets — for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. The Rangers have six teams between them and that final playoff spot in the East as they upon the midway point of the season.

Related: Joining Rangers is ‘dream come true’ for Arthur Kaliyev

3 takeaways from Rangers 5-4 overtime loss to Stars

Here are three takeaways from the game Tuesday.

1. Concern for Filip Chytil

To make matters worse Tuesday, Filip Chytil didn’t play in the third period because of an upper-body injury. Laviolette said postgame that the 25-year-old center was being evaluated. So, of course, the speculation is that Chytil may have sustained another head injury. That is the default with him considering his history, though the hope is that is not the case here.

Chytil already missed seven games earlier in the season after a collision with Miller, though the team explained it was not a concussion. Perhaps, this is a reoccurrence of that same injury, or something different. But the first worry is about his head.

This latest injury comes when Chytil picked up his game considerably. He had a season-long four-game point streak, that included four goals, before Tuesday night. He looked confident, healthy and was a difference maker. Now we wait for the latest health update, which could come as early as Wednesday when the Rangers practice in Westchester.

2. Out-Foxed

It’s not often Adam Fox gets singled out in a negative way. His skill and effort are so rarely in question. And neither was an issue Tuesday. But it was not a good night for the Rangers top defenseman.

Fox generated nothing 5v5, when the Rangers were out-chanced 12-6 and had an XGF of 0.39 with him on the ice. He did have a power-play assist on Trocheck’s go-ahead goal in the third period, blocked a couple shots. But he managed one shot on goal and had three shot attempts overall.

Then on the game-winning goal, Fox was shoved away by Benn right in front of Quick. Fox stumbled to regain his footing and then was late to get back. Benn was all alone to tip in Robertson’s pass to seal Dallas’ night of comebacks. It simply can’t happen, but it did. And another Rangers loss was in the books.

BENN ENDS IT ⭐️

Jamie Benn scores in @Energizer overtime to give the @DallasStars the road victory! pic.twitter.com/9J1vEj4tDM

— NHL (@NHL) January 8, 2025

3. Vincent Trocheck line erupts

It was really good to see the entire Vincent Trocheck line break out together Tuesday. Lafreniere had six shots on goal and scored twice, ending a schneid that extended one month. His breakaway goal was a thing of beauty, including the feathered feed from Panarin.

We're on Alexis Lafrenière hatty watch, and we're not even 12 minutes into the game… 👀 pic.twitter.com/ioIGX268ni

— NHL (@NHL) January 8, 2025

Trocheck had his third three-point game of the season with two goals and an assist. He’s scored three goals in the past two games, each on a deflection in front of the goalie. He’s got nine points in his past nine games and 15 (seven goals, eight assists) in 16. He blamed himself for not picking up Harley on the late game-tying goal because he’s an accountable leader. He wouldn’t publicly accept that Miller’s giveaway on the play was the root of the problem.

Panarin had three assists but can’t quite get his shot on net often enough like last season, when he scored an NHL career-high 49 goals. The Breadman has some really good looks, but misfired several times. The passing, though? That remains elite.

Jamie Benn scored the game-winner with a power-play goal at 2:15 of overtime. Camped out in front of Jonathan Quick, Benn shoved Adam Fox away from him and then redirected a Jason Robertson pass into the net to hand the Rangers a brutal defeat.

JAMIE BENN PARKS RIGHT OUT FRONT AND WINS IT FOR THE STARS ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/5vIuDAGIhU

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) January 8, 2025

It’s just the latest blown opportunity for the Rangers to win consecutive games, something they haven’t done since Nov. 14-19, when they won three in a row. Six times since they’ve failed to follow up a win with another. The Rangers are 6-16-1 in their past 23 games.

“You come out of the gates, you’re up 3-0 at home and you don’t win the hockey game, you did enough wrong defensively to not be happy with it,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said.

Their offense continued its recent resurgence, though. The Rangers have scored 14 goals in their past three games, though winning just once.

Vincent Trocheck scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Rangers. His power-play goal at 12:56 of the third period gave the Rangers a 4-3 lead after they let a 3-0 advantage slip away. Thomas Harley tied it for the Stars with his sixth goal of the season at 17:21 of the third.

TRO. IN. FRONT. pic.twitter.com/1uVz5v4RDv

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 8, 2025

Alexis Lafreniere also scored twice for the Rangers and Artemi Panarin, who was in the penalty box when Benn scored the winner, had three assists. Jonathan Quick made 35 saves but remains stuck on 399 career wins.

To make matters worse for the Rangers, Filip Chytil left the game after the second period and didn’t return. The 25-year-old center was said to have an upper-body injury, and Laviolette said postgame that Chytil is being evaluated.

Jake Oettinger finished with 21 saves for the Stars after allowing three goals on the first five shots he faced in the first period. Harley had three points (one goal, two assists) and Robertson had a goal and assist. Matt Duchene and Evgenii Dadonov also scored for the Stars, who won their fifth game in a row and avenged a 3-1 home loss to the Rangers on Dec. 20.

“This one sucks, especially after our start,” Lafreniere said. “I feel like we were playing well, ‘Quickie’ made some big saves again — we can’t keep giving up good chances after good chances. Eventually it’s gonna go in.”

Related: Arthur Kaliyev says it’s a ‘dream come true’ to join Rangers

Dallas Stars 5 — New York Rangers 4 (OT)

Early on, it appeared the Rangers were well on their way to a second straight win and Quick would end the night with his 400th NHL victory. But a 3-0 lead just 11:24 into the game turned into a 3-3 tie before the second intermission arrived.

Despite the Stars owning a territorial edge to begin the game, it was the Rangers who exploded out of the gates with three goals on their first five shots to get the Garden party started. Lafreniere opened the scoring at 6:56, taking a drop pass off the rush from Panarin and zipping a left-wing shot past Oettinger short side to make it 1-0.

Alexis Lafreniere ends his goal slump on a wicked wrister 🎯 pic.twitter.com/AmNygw1Niv

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 8, 2025

Lafreniere got off an excellent shot, and was a bit fortunate, when the puck slightly deflected off the stick of Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist and changed direction just enough to fly past Oettinger. Lafreniere was happy to catch a break, considering that was his first goal since Dec. 8, a span of 14 games.

The Rangers were rewarded with a second goal at 9:55 after an extended shift in the offensive zone. Trocheck deflected Will Borgen’s shot into the net for his first goal of the game.

Lafreniere then scored his second of the period and 11th of the season on a clean breakaway at 11:24 to make it 3-0. The rejuvenated 23-year-old burst behind the Stars defense to take a perfect lead pass from Panarin, then slowed down as he approached Oettinger before beating him with a backhander between his pads.

SILKY SMOOTH. pic.twitter.com/ugoMONoCfu

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 8, 2025

The rout appeared to be on. But this wouldn’t be like their 6-2 runaway win against the overmatched Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday. Duchene got a lucky one back for the Stars at 12:57, when his centering pass for a cutting Benn instead hit the stick of Rangers defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and redirected past Quick to make it 3-1.

Before the first period ended, Dadonov buried the rebound of Mavrik Bourque’s power-play shot at 15:56 and the Rangers’ lead was cut to 3-2.

Though the Rangers had the lead, they were outshot 19-8 in the first period, and the scoring chances favored the Stars 16-8, including 9-5 in high-danger opportunities, per Natural Stat Trick.

Outside of the scoreboard, the game remained lopsided in favor of the Stars in the second period. They only outshot the Rangers 10-9, but the scoring chances were 15-9. Despite controlling play, the Stars were only able to score once in the second period, but did tie the game 3-3.

The tying goal came at 13:14, when Robertson’s spinning backhand shot sailed over Quick’s shoulder after Dallas had pinned New York in its own zone for an extended stretch.

The Rangers were fortunate it wasn’t worse than being tied at the second intermission. Robertson hit the far post off a left-wing rush just 17 seconds into the period, and Bourque rang a left-wing shot off iron at 11:53.

On the shift following Robertson’s tying goal, Mika Zibanejad had a clean breakaway after a pass from Jonny Brodzinski. But the Rangers center sent his backhand shot wide of the net. Four minutes later, Lafreniere saw his bid for the hat trick sail wide when he misfired on an in-tight backhand shot.

In a wild sequence early in the third period, each team missed an open net on a tip in front. First, it was Robertson left staring at the MSG ceiling in disbelief; at the other end, Trocheck also missed an open cage and the score remained tied.

But Trocheck had another goal in him. Handed a power play at 11:20 when Harley sent the puck over the glass for a delay of game minor, the Rangers had several good scoring chances. After a whistle late in the power play, Laviolette used his timeout to rest his top players and keep them out on the ice to finish the power play.

That paid off when Trocheck scored again on a deflection, this one on a straightaway shot by Zibanejad, to put the Rangers back up 4-3 with 7:04 to play in regulation.

However, the lead was short-lived. Harley made up for his ill-timed penalty by wiring a shot from the slot past Quick with 2:39 to play, tying the game 4-4. The goal was set up by a nice pass from Stars forward Sam Steel after K’Andre Miller turned the puck over in his own end.

That sent the game to overtime. And just 25 seconds in, Panarin was penalized for a hooking penalty while chasing his man to the net. The Rangers nearly killed off the penalty, but the Stars scored on their only shot on goal during the man advantage.

Following a day off to regroup, again, the Rangers host the New Jersey Devils at MSG on Thursday.

As good as the Rangers (18-20-1) were in their 6-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday afternoon, they’ll need to be that much better Tuesday. This time they won’t be playing the last-place team in the NHL. Instead, they face off against a Stars team that’s won four in a row and is 5-0-1 since their most recent regulation defeat — 3-1 in Dallas on Dec. 20 against, you guessed it, the Rangers.

In that road win, the Rangers relied on an awesome penalty kill, which was 7-for-7 and killed off a five-minute major to Matt Rempe. They also got a 41-save effort from Igor Shesterkin.

The Rangers won’t be able to rely on Shesterkin this time, since he remains on IR with an upper-body injury. Shesterkin did participate in the morning skate, but coach Peter Laviolette shook his head when asked after the morning skate if he had a return date for his No. 1 goalie. And they certainly don’t want to push their luck that much again with the Stars’ power play, even if it is ranked 28th in the NHL (15.5 percent) this season.

However, the Rangers will bring some swagger into this game, unlike that contest with the Stars a few weeks ago when they were mired in a brutal slide. The Rangers are playing better hockey in all facets of the game — particularly on offense where they’ve scored 10 goals the past two games.

“There’s still things we can do better,” Laviolette said. “There’s still plenty of room for improvement. But offensively we have been generating, and defensively we have been tighter.”

They’ll also have Jonathan Quick in goal, seeking his 400th NHL victory, though the 38-year-old allowed a six-spot in his most recent start Saturday, a 7-4 empty-net aided loss to the Washington Capitals.

Related: Rangers receive major boost of production, optimism from healthy Filip Chytil

3 things to watch for when Rangers host Stars

1. Recipe for success

The Rangers have done a much better job at generating consistent offense recently, and were rewarded with four goals in Washington and six in Chicago. They’ve been faster through the neutral zone, controlled the puck more in the offensive zone and gotten both bodies and pucks to the net.

NEVER LOOKED BACK.

Borgy with a rip. pic.twitter.com/x1kjFSLNhe

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 5, 2025

At least four of their goals against the Blackhawks were scored through traffic, including the final one, a fluky goal that was well deserved when the puck caromed into the net off Filip Chytil who was stationed at the top of the blue paint when a shot first hit Blackhawks goalie Arvid Soderblom.

Crash the net + good things happen. pic.twitter.com/WWOnTURTBn

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 5, 2025

They must remain committed to this style of play against the Stars, who are tied atop the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, allowing only 2.50 goals per game. Dallas doesn’t surrender many goals of any kind, much less the fancy ones. Hard work, dirty goals and special teams could decide this game.

2. Balancing special teams

Speaking of special teams, there’s a wide disparity on those of the Rangers. Their penalty kill is fourth in the NHL at 83.9 percent; but the Rangers power play is a miserable 17.1 percent (26th). New York has one power-play goal in its past 11 games and seven PPG since Nov. 14.

The Stars have a similar situation. Their PK is tops in the League (85.4 percent) but their power play is even worse than that of the Rangers, 29th overall at 15.5 percent.

One thing the Rangers don’t want to do is give the Stars 17 minutes of power-play time, as they did in the win at Dallas.

“I don’t want to think about going near the amount of minutes we had to kill the last time we played Dallas,” Laviolette said. “We need to stay out of the box.”

3. Streaking

Yet again, the Rangers will try and do a very simple thing that’s proven to be nearly impossible for two months. Win consecutive games. You know, create an actual winning streak.

The last time the Rangers won consecutive games was Nov. 14-19, a three-game winning streak. Five times since — and eight times this season — they followed a singular win with a loss. They’ve won four in a row once, three straight once and two in a row only one time this season.

“Every game will be a challenge,” Laviolette said. “We’ve got to win. It doesn’t matter who the opponent is. They’re certainly a good team. They’re capable, and they’re on a little bit of a run themselves. They’re playing well, but right now it’s about us and making sure we’re ready to play.

“We have to make sure we’re ready to play a good game against a good team.”

Speaking of streaks, Chytil is on a season-long four-game point streak (four goals, assist) and, yes, Mika Zibanejad has points in three straight games (two goals, assist). For the Stars, forward Wyatt Johnston, who got off to a slow start this season, enters play with a six-game point streak (three goals, seven assists).

New York Rangers projected lineup

Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere

Brodzinski– Zibanejad – Smith

Cuylle – Chytil – Berard

Edstrom – Carrick – Vesey

Lindgren – Fox

Miller – Borgen

Vaakanainen – Schneider

Quick

Domingue

Rangers vs. Stars: When, where, what time, how to watch

Who: New York Rangers vs. Dallas Stars

When: Tuesday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. ET

Where: Madison Square Garden

How to watch: MSG

Click here for New York Rangers complete 2024-25 schedule and game results

A 2-1 home win against the Boston Bruins at Madison Square Garden on Thursday and a 6-2 road win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday have spirits at MSG looking up as the Rangers prepare for three tough opponents in a five-day stretch this week. The wins sandwiched a sloppy 7-4 road loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday that saw the Rangers struggle badly in their own zone.

The two wins came in dramatically different ways.

Jonathan Quick’s heroics (32 saves) were enough to make two early goals stand up against the Bruins, ending a four-game losing streak. The offense, which showed signs of waking up in Washington, had its biggest game in more than two months against the lowly Blackhawks, who are last in the overall NHL standings but had beaten the Rangers 2-1 at MSG on Dec. 9. Twelve of the 18 skaters who dressed had at least one point, and the Rangers actually glided to victory after scoring five straight goals in the first and second periods.

Two out of three is also the makeup of this week’s schedule.

The Rangers have home games on Tuesday against the Dallas Stars and Thursday against the New Jersey Devils before beginning a three-game Western swing with a visit to the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. Despite the two wins last week, New York is still 14th in the Eastern Conference and four points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins, who hold the second wild card in the East. With eight teams separated by four points in the race for the last playoff spot, the Rangers need at least two out of three this week.

Related: Predicting Rangers quarter century team from 2000-2025

Who’s hot

Filip Chytil scored three goals in the two weekend games, including a beautiful breakaway tally in Washington on Saturday. He followed that with two goals on Sunday in Chicago, giving him 10 for the season. He has points in four straight games (four goals, one assist).

CORNER = PICKED. pic.twitter.com/TIzdXq4QM4

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 5, 2025

Louis Domingue has now played two games as a Ranger and won them both. The 32-year-old, who’s spent his career bouncing between the NHL and the AHL, made 25 saves Sunday in Chicago in his first NHL game this season after being recalled from Hartford when Igor Shesterkin went on the injured list with an upper-body injury. He won his only start (Nov. 9, 2023 against the Minnesota Wild) last season.

Who’s not

Alexis Lafreniere’s fast start is a distant memory. Lafreniere, who signed a mammoth seven-year contract in October, ended a stretch of eight games without a point with a secondary assist Sunday. But he’s gone 13 games without a goal since scoring against the Seattle Kraken, and his plus-minus total (minus-13) is worse than everyone else on the team except Mika Zibanejad (minus-19).

Rangers lookahead this week includes …

Two home games against tough opponents before beginning a nasty three-game Western trip against the team with the best points percentage in the NHL.

Related: 3 Rangers takeaways after dominating 6-2 win against last-place Blackhawks

Dallas Stars at Rangers (Jan. 7, 7 p.m. ET; MSG)

The Stars will be out for revenge when they arrive at the Garden for the start of a five-game road trip. The Rangers won four of their past five games against the Stars, including a 3-1 victory in Dallas on Dec. 20, when Shesterkin put on a show. He finished with 41 saves and stopped all 21 shots he faced during the Stars’ 17 minutes of power-play time.

Quick is likely to get the start against the Stars, a team he saw quite often during his time with the Los Angeles Kings. He is 18-12-5 lifetime against Dallas but has a solid 2.38 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. In contrast, Jake Oettinger, Dallas’ No. 1 goalie, has never beaten the Rangers. He is 0-2-1 in his career, including the loss in Dallas last month, with a 3.55 GAA and .878 save percentage in four career games against New York.

Artemi Panarin has just two goals in 22 career games against Dallas, his fewest against any team he’s faced at least 20 times.

New Jersey Devils at Rangers (Jan. 9, 7 p.m. MSG)

Speaking of revenge … the Rangers will be looking for some when the Devils come to town to complete a six-game road trip that has seen them lose the first four – including all three on a swing through California last week.

But they’ve had the Rangers’ number this season, winning both games against their cross-Hudson foes last month by a combined score of 10-1. The Devils embarrassed the Rangers 5-0 at Prudential Center on Dec. 23, three weeks after ripping them up in a 5-1 win at the Garden.

Devils center Jack Hughes has better career numbers against the Rangers than against any other team. In 22 games, he has 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists). That includes a pair of two-goal, one-assist performances in the two games this season. Jacob Markstrom got the win in each of the two games this season, improving his career numbers against New York to 11-4-2 with a 2.20 GAA and .922 save percentage.

Panarin has had good success in his career against the Devils, putting up 44 points (14 goals, 30 assists) in 35 games.

Rangers at Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m.; MSG)

The Rangers may have won the Presidents’ Trophy last season, but the Golden Knights blew them out twice in an eight-day span in mid-January, winning 5-1 in Las Vegas on Jan. 18, 2024, and 5-2 in New York eight days later. Overall, Vegas has won eight of its 12 games against the Rangers, going 4-2-0 each at T-Mobile Arena and MSG. The Rangers do have the only shutout by either team, a 5-0 win at Vegas on Dec. 8, 2019.

Quick was a member of the Golden Knights’ 2023 Stanley Cup championship team, but he’s had little success against Vegas, 5-9-1 with a 4.00 GAA and .881 save percentage. Adin Hill, who carried the goaltending load when the Golden Knights won the Cup, has lost four of six career decisions against the Rangers despite a 2.49 GAA and .922 save percentage.

Chris Kreider has found the net with regularity against Vegas, scoring six goals in 11 games.

The 22-year-old forward was originally penalized for his hit on Heiskanen at 7:13 of the third period during New York’s 3-1 road victory on Friday. The hit, which resulted in a major penalty and game misconduct for elbowing, was Rempe’s fourth ejection in just 22 career games, a rate of 18 percent.

NY Rangers’ Matt Rempe has been suspended for eight games for boarding/elbowing Dallas’ Miro Heiskanen. https://t.co/vzQPkU3JOg

— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) December 22, 2024

As a repeat offender, Rempe was offered an in-person hearing by Department of Player Safety, though the actual hearing was held by Zoom call. His repeat status allowed the League to suspend him more than five games. He also will forfeit $80,000 in salary.

Rempe returned to the Rangers lineup Friday after spending nearly a month playing with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League, where he earned big minutes and played in all situations. In his return to NHL action, he logged 5:32 TOI, had five hits, one shot on goal, and drew three penalties.

Related: Rangers waste Igor Shesterkin gem in 3-1 home loss to Hurricanes

Matt Rempe suspended by NHL, can return to Rangers on Jan. 9

It was a great return for Rempe, who was able to have a big impact on the game albeit with little ice time. Everything was trending in the right direction until his hit on Heiskanen, which was up high, from behind, and leading with the elbow. The hit left Heiskanen shaken up, and sent him to the Dallas dressing room for some time. He eventually returned to finish the game.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette recognized the impact that Rempe had in the much-needed win for New York.

“I thought he had a big impact on the game,” Laviolette said postgame. “I’d like to stay away from the five-minute major, but he’s doing his best to hit bodies and make a difference in the game. Our guys really rallied around that at the end.”

Rempe last received a game misconduct for taking part in a line brawl between the Rangers and New Jersey Devils on April 3. That came after he was assessed a major penalty — and an eventual four-game suspension — for elbowing Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler on March 11. In the previous Rangers-Devils game on Feb. 22, Rempe received a match penalty for a hit on Nathan Bastian.

With Rempe being ejected from games at this rate, the NHL had no choice but to lengthen the suspension, hopefully teaching the towering forward a valuable lesson. Oftentimes, Rempe is let off the hook because of his 6-foot-9 frame, which makes it difficult to hit shorter players in the center of their body. This time, however, his recklessness cost him.

If Rempe plans to stick in the NHL, he’ll need to find a way to squash this concerning habit. An ejection in 18 percent of his career games is not something that will help make him a trusted player on the Rangers roster. That being said, the Rangers have a terrific record of 16-4-2 when Rempe is in the lineup over the past two seasons.

It seems to be a bit of an anomaly, since Rempe’s career-high single game TOI is just 11:08, which came last season on March 9 against the St. Louis Blues. However, his career average is just 5:46. For some reason, the Rangers seem to come to play when Rempe is out there with them.

Rempe is eligible to return Jan. 9, when the Rangers host the Devils.

It’s not that it was a perfect game. The Rangers took seven penalties, including a five-minute major in the third period of a one-goal game by Matt Rempe. They allowed 42 shots. They allowed the first goal for the 10th time in the past 15 games.

But the Rangers competed against a very good opponent, on the road, and found a path to snag a gritty victory.

Igor Shesterkin was the backbone of the win, and the penalty killers — including Reilly Smith, who scored short-handed — were excellent. And the Rangers were better 5v5, though they overall metrics in the game were skewed heavily in the Stars because of all their power-play time.

Nonetheless, good win for the Rangers (16-15-1), who are three points out of the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. They’ll practice Saturday in Westchester and play two important matinee games Sunday (against the Carolina Hurricanes) and Monday (at the New Jersey Devils) before taking off for the NHL holiday break.

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New York Rangers news

Here are three takeaways from the Rangers’ 3-1 win against the Stars, including the good and bad from Matt Rempe’s return to the lineup.

Artemi Panarin returned to the Rangers lineup after missing two games with an upper-body injury. In our pregame story, Panarin discussed how they’re are too many hot dogs in the press box, and that’s dangerous for him! There were also pregame quotes from Rempe about his return from the minors.

Before the game, we provided a breakdown on what the Rangers’ newest defenseman, Will Borgen, brings to the lineup.

We also had a breakdown of Kaapo Kakko’s first game with the Seattle Kraken, a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday.

NHL news

The Washington Capitals decided to not rush Alex Ovechkin back from his fractured fibula. So, the Capitals captain won’t play until after the NHL holiday break, though he’s been cleared for contact.

Logan Stanley is also out until after the holiday break. The Winnipeg Jets defenseman blocked a shot in a game Wednesday and sustained an unspecified injury. He did not practice Friday.

John Tavares is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and is having a terrific season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, with 31 points in 32 games. But the veteran forward reiterated Friday that he has no interest in testing the market as a free agent and wants to re-sign with his hometown Maple Leafs.

The Maple Leafs then went out and defeated the Buffalo Sabres 6-3. Goalie Matt Murray played his first NHL game in two seasons, following hip surgeries and time in the minors, and made 27 saves in the emotional win.

Aleksander Barkov did it all on his game-winning goal in overtime that lifted the Florida Panthers to a 2-1 win against the St. Louis Blues.

You’ve got to watch this incredible save by Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren in their 3-1 win against the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday.

There were smiles that hadn’t been in evidence during the past month, as if a dark cloud was lifted from over a team that’s gone from being two wins from a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in June to one that began the night 12th in the Eastern Conference.

Not only did the Rangers end a three-game losing streak that had dropped them to 15-15-1 for the season and 3-11-0 in their previous 14 games, they did it by showing the kind of grit and determination that had mostly been missing for the past month. Despite having to kill off 17 minutes of power-play time for the Stars, the Rangers never backed down against one of the League’s best teams – one that had been 13-4-0 in its own building.

The NHL-best penalty kill not only was 7-for-7, it also produced the goal that turned the game around – Reilly Smith’s shorthanded goal midway through the first period tied the game 1-1 after the Rangers had surrendered the game-opening goal less than two minutes after the opening face-off.

“That was really big at the time,” coach Peter Laviolette said postgame. “The bench really fueled up after that.”

Of course, no penalty-killing unit is complete without a top-level goaltender, and the Rangers have one in Igor Shesterkin. After Dallas scored 1:46 into game, Shesterkin refused to be beaten again. He finished with 41 saves, 21 of them during Dallas’ seven power plays, and for the last 58 minutes had the look of a goalie who wouldn’t let a marble get past him.

The Rangers will need more of these performances in the next couple of weeks. They play two of the Metropolitan Division’s top teams, the Carolina Hurricanes at home on Sunday afternoon and the New Jersey Devils in Newark 24 hours later. Then it’s a two-game swing through Florida, a home game against the Boston Bruins on Jan. 2 and a visit to the division-leading Washington Capitals two days after that.

“We needed it,” Smith said of the win. “We have another two games coming up right before the (Christmas) break, and we have to make sure (we have) that next-game mindset. We have to try to pick up as many points as we can before the break, and then we’ll assess after that. But right now, we have to try to make up for lost time.” 

Related:

3 takeaways from Rangers 3-1 win against Stars

Here are three takeaways from the Rangers win on Friday.

1. Igor the Magnificent

This was Shesterkin’s best performance of the season. He moved like a gazelle, his glove alone prevented a half-dozen goals and his positioning was virtually flawless. It was the kind of performance a team needs to get out of a losing streak.

Shesterkin seems to thrive on lots of action. When he’s made 40 or more saves in a game during his career, the Rangers are now 14-2-1. Since the beginning of last season, he’s allowed one or fewer goals 23 times, first among all NHL goaltenders.

“Great saves by ‘Shesty,’ and everyone just battled,” said defenseman Adam Fox, who set up what proved to be the game-winning goal by Vincent Trocheck at 15:20 of the first period. “Any PK needs a great goalie, and when there’s a breakdown, he’s there to back us up.”

2. Penalty-killers do the job – and then some

The Rangers are tops in the NHL on the penalty kill at 88.0 percent (12 goals allowed in 100 attempts, including 17-for-17 in their past six games). Their 7-for-7 performance against Dallas was the first time since Nov. 30, 2019, against New Jersey that the Rangers were perfect on the penalty kill when they were shorthanded at least seven times.

“We ended up having to kill more penalties than we would have liked to,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “The penalty kill was awesome. Shesty was great but the penalty-killers were fantastic.”

That included newcomer Will Borgen, who played 4:31 on the PK and 17:17 overall in his Rangers debut. He had two hits, a takeaway and a blocked shot.

In all, the Rangers used 13 players on the penalty kill, including all six defensemen.

“Seventeen minutes on the PK is pretty gritty,” Trocheck said. “We can get a lot of momentum from our PK when it’s playing like it did tonight.”

3. Rempe’s return a mixed bag

Matt Rempe was recalled from Hartford of the American Hockey League after Kaapo Kakko was traded to the Seattle Kraken. The Rangers sent him to Hartford to work on the non-physical aspects of his game, and for two-plus periods he showed he can be more than just a physical force.

The Rangers had three power plays in the second period, all on penalties drawn by Rempe. He also found an opening in the Stars’ defense late in the period and got in alone, forcing goaltender Jake Oettinger to make an excellent save.

“I thought he had a big impact in the game,” Laviolette said. “Our guys really rallied around that as well.”

But Rempe showed he still has a ways to go. He gave the Stars a five-minute power play at 7:13 of the third period when he was assessed a major penalty for elbowing and a game misconduct. The Rangers killed it off, but not before Shesterkin had to make eight saves. He’s been offered an in-person hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety, which undoubtedly will result in a suspension.

Overall, however, the coach said after the game (but before the announcement of the hearing) that was pleased with what he saw.

“We’d like to stay away from the five-minute major,” Laviolette said, “but he’s doing his best to hit bodies and make a difference in the game.”

The Stars had seven power plays, including a five-minute advantage in the third period after Matt Rempe was assessed a major penalty for elbowing Dallas defenseman Miro Heiskanen in the head. The Stars had 21 shots on goal during their 17:00 of power-play time, and Shesterkin stopped them all. He finished the night with 41 saves.

The penalty-killers not only combined with Shesterkin to keep Dallas’ power play off the scoreboard, they also produced a game-tying shorthanded goal by Reilly Smith midway through the first period after the Stars had taken an early 1-0 lead.

Vincent Trocheck scored what proved to be the game-winner at 15:20 of the opening period. Artemi Panarin, who returned after missing two games with an upper-body injury, had the secondary assist.

After all the heroics by Shesterkin and the PK, Chris Kreider ended a seven-game goal-scoring drought by hitting the empty net with 2:06 remaining, setting off a massive sigh of relief for a team that entered the game 3-11-0 in its previous 14 games. Despite all the penalties, the Rangers competed harder than they had for most of the past month, a good sign as they try to put the wheels back on after a bad four-week stretch.

“It’s huge,” defenseman Adam Fox said. “It’s obviously no secret. We haven’t liked our game the past month, call it. We’ve talked as a group. We know we have this in us. It takes everyone to do it. It’s not one guy here and there. It takes everyone.”

Defenseman Will Borgen, who came to New York from Seattle on Wednesday in the trade that sent Kaapo Kakko to the Kraken, played 17:17 in his Rangers debut — including 4:31 on the penalty kill. Rempe, who returned from Hartford of the AHL after the Kakko trade, drew three penalties and nearly scored in the second period before taking the elbowing major and game misconduct in the third.

Coach Peter Laviolette was happy with Rempe’s play, except for the major penalty.

“I thought he had a big impact in the game,” he said. “I would like to stay away from the five-minute major, but he’s doing his best to hit bodies and make a difference in the game. Our guys really rallied around that, as well.”

New York Rangers 3, Dallas Stars 1

The Stars came out flying and put the puck in the net twice in a span of 31 seconds before the game was two minutes old. Luckily for the Rangers, only one of them counted.

Jamie Benn made Mika Zibanejad look like a lamp post as he raced past him to pick up his own missed shot and stuff the puck past Shesterkin 1:09 after the opening face-off. However, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette challenged, saying the play was offside, and the goal was waved off after a video review.

But the Rangers weren’t so lucky 37 seconds later. Shesterkin made a blocker save on a right-point shot from former Rangers defenseman Nils Lundkvist, but the puck landed in the slot where an unchecked Roope Hintz quickly rifled it into the net for a 1-0 lead. It was the 10th time in the past 15 games that the Rangers have allowed the first goal.

The Stars kept pushing the tempo and had the Rangers on their heels until the middle of the period, when New York turned things around after Zibanejad took a slashing penalty at 9:19.

But not only did the Rangers’ league-leading penalty kill hold Dallas without a shot, New York tied the game 1-1 at 10:44. Stars defenseman Thomas Harley misplayed the puck at the right point, Smith grabbed it and raced down the wing and into the left circle before beating Jake Oettinger between the legs.

That goal sparked the Rangers, who began to take over the play and went ahead 2-1 less than five minutes later. Fox carried behind the net and got the puck to Trocheck at the top of the left circle. He stepped into a slap shot and blew it past Oettinger to give the Rangers their first lead since the final buzzer went off in their 3-2 road win against the Buffalo Sabres nine days ago.

After allowing five of the first six shots, the Rangers ended up outshooting the Stars 14-9 – and going 17-3 in the face-off circle.

The second period belonged to the penalty killers and goaltenders. Each team had three power plays; neither one scored as Shesterkin and Oettinger played “can you top this” with brilliant save after brilliant save. Shesterkin’s 18 saves included a terrific glove stop on Wyatt Johnston with less than seven minutes left and saves on Johnston and Matt Duchene in the final minute during the Stars’ fifth power play. Oettinger robbed Filip Chytil as a power play was ending and denied Borgen and Rempe after each slipped behind the defense and came in alone.

Shesterkin put on a show in the third period, especially after Rempe took a five-minute major for elbowing Heiskanen head-first into the glass at 7:13. The Stars were credited with eight shots on goal during the extended power play; Shesterkin stopped them all, including a rocket by Logan Stankoven in the final few seconds.

“I thought he let off a little bit at the end,” Laviolette said. “He’s just such a big guy. We killed the five and we’re moving on.”

Kreider’s empty-netter assured that the Rangers (16-15-1) would go home over .500 again. But they’ve got two more tough opponents before the Christmas break – the Carolina Hurricanes come to Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon, and the Rangers go to Newark on Monday for a matinee against the New Jersey Devils.

The desperate Rangers (15-15-1) are trying to end a three-game losing streak and salvage the finale of this three-game road trip. They followed a 5-1 home loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday with a 3-2 defeat in St. Louis against the Blues on Sunday and a 2-0 shutout loss at the Nashville Predators on Tuesday.

All told, the Rangers have lost 11 of their past 14 games, and in that span traded two regulars from their lineup. First, captain Jacob Trouba was shipped to the Anaheim Ducks two weeks ago for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a draft pick. And then forward Kaapo Kakko was traded to the Seattle Kraken for defenseman Will Borgen and two draft picks on Wednesday.

Perhaps only the NHL roster freeze at midnight Thursday stopped even more of a shakeup to the Rangers roster.

Now, after largely failing against against second-tier teams recently, the Rangers take a step up in competition this weekend. The Stars (19-12-0) are third in the Central Division and considered a top Stanley Cup contender. The Rangers then play two of the top three teams in the Metropolitan Division on consecutive days when they skate against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday and New Jersey Devils on Monday.

Happy Holidays indeed.

Related: Rangers trade grades after Kaapo Kakko dealt to Kraken for Will Borgen

3 things to watch for when Rangers visit Stars

1. Lightening the mood

There’s been a heaviness and malaise that’s surrounded the Rangers for several weeks now. Losing will do that to you. So will constant trade rumors. It really hasn’t looked like the Rangers enjoy going to work anymore.

Perhaps that changed Thursday. General manager Chris Drury met with the team after the Kakko trade, and then there was a spirited practice in Texas, one that featured coach Peter Laviolette taking part in a shootout against goalies Jonathan Quick and Igor Shesterkin. The players hooted and hollered when Laviolette ended practice by beating Shesterkin one-on-one, even if the $11.5 million goalie likely allowed it to happen.

Peter Laviolette beats Shesterkin and the players go crazy pic.twitter.com/VbTae1HKK8

— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) December 19, 2024

It’s a small thing, but for at least one day the heaviness lifted and the Rangers had some fun. Let’s see if that carries over at all into what should be a difficult game Friday night.

2. Borgen bombs

Borgen doesn’t have the resume of Trouba. But the newest Rangers defenseman will be expected to fill a similar role as the departed captain. Like Trouba, Borgen is big (6-foot-3, 204 pounds), physical and can play an angry game in his own end of the rink. The 28-year-old is not flashy, but he understands his role and will play a hard game night-in and night-out. He hasn’t missed a game in two-plus seasons.

Borgen makes his Rangers debut Friday and you can expect him to throw a bomb or two on the ice, perhaps even a punch or two. Again, he’s not Trouba, but there are similarities.

Will Borgen drops the gloves with Brandon Duhaime with 23 seconds left in the game.

Good sportsmanship from Borgen making sure Duhaime was ok after falling with no helmet. pic.twitter.com/udnuUnzGJE

— Emerald City Hockey (@EmeraldCityHky) February 25, 2024

He’s also not Victor Mancini. The 22-year-old rookie looked more and more overmatched at the NHL level and will benefit greatly by gaining valuable experience at Hartford in the American Hockey League. Borgen is an NHL defensemen, suited for third-pair duty, which should be his role in New York.

3. Texas tough

The Stars, to put it succinctly, are Texas tough. They are not only difficult to score against, but even just getting shots through against them is a war. The Stars have the third-best team goals-against average in the NHL (2.58) and surrender the fifth-fewest shots on goal per game (26.6).

An interesting note, though, is that Stars goalie Jake Oettinger has a .909 save percentage, just a tick better than Shesterkin (.908), even though he’s second in the NHL with 16 wins and has a GAA more than a half goal better than the Rangers goalie.

What Oettinger has is a better defense corps in front of him and a more committed team defensive structure than Shesterkin. The Rangers must be ready to work to get their scoring chances Friday.

New York Rangers projected lineup

Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere

Kreider – Chytil – Cuylle

Berard – Zibanejad – Smith

Edstrom – Carrick – Vesey

Lindgren – Fox

Jones – Schneider

Vaakanainen – Borgen

Shesterkin

Quick

Rangers vs. Stars: When, where, what time, how to watch

Who: New York Rangers vs. Dallas Stars

When: Friday, Dec. 20 at 8 p.m. ET

Where: American Airlines Center

How to watch: MSG

Click here for New York Rangers complete 2024-25 schedule and game results

But Tuesday was anything but, as the Rangers picked up where it left off at MetLife Stadium with a 3-1 victory over the Dallas Stars at Madison Square Garden to extend their win streak to eight. This is now the longest winning streak since the 2015-16 season.

Kaapo Kakko’s goal 8:23 through the second period held up as the game-winner, and Igor Shesterkin turned in arguably his best performance of the season, as two the NHL’s best but on a show over 60 scintillating minutes.

After an underwhelming game Sunday, Shesterkin — who finished with 41 saves — looked like his 2022 Vezina self against Dallas, especially in the third period when he turned in a possible Save of the Year candidate.

“I just tried to play to the end,” Shesterkin explained. “I was lucky tonight. The guys did a great job boxing people out. When the goalie sees the puck it’s easier. I want to say thank you guys.”

Seguin was alone with the puck at the top of the crease staring at what looked like an open net. Shesterkin, though, stretched his stick to stop the puck on the goal line to preserve the lead with 4:18 left in the contest.

Unreal 🤯 pic.twitter.com/XTAFua1hmb

— Rangers Videos (@SNYRangers) February 21, 2024

New York Rangers 3 vs Dallas Stars 1

New York grabbed the lead just 7:46 into the contest on Adam Fox’s ninth goal of the season. After a scramble around the Dallas net, Artemi Panarin scooped up the puck behind the net and fed Fox in the slot for the 1-0 lead.

“I thought we battled hard,” Fox said. “It helps to start with a lead. I thought we played well, 5-on-5 especially.”

Scramble in front + Foxy capitalizes. 😤 pic.twitter.com/MaeF4ySEnB

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 21, 2024

Kakko’s seventh of the season doubled the advantage. His wrist shot from the bottom of the circle beat Scott Wedgewood over the shoulder to extend his point streak to five, and in the process led head coach Peter Laviolette to move him to the top line.

“It’s been awhile that I’ve been playing 4-on-4,” Kakko noted. “It was a good lane, I just tried to shoot.”

Quite the snipe from Kaapooooo Kakko. pic.twitter.com/SeX0BBBJPf

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 21, 2024

Dallas answered back just 47 seconds later on a goal from Miro Heiskanen to make it a one-goal game again. But the NHL’s highest-scoring offense was put to bed from that point on, and Vincent Trocheck closed out the scoring with an empty-net goal, his 19th of the year.

Shesterkin is now 7-2-1 in his last 10 games and is finding his groove as the season enters is final quarter.

New York likely felt it deserved more than just two goals, but Wedegwood turned in a strong performance of his own to keep the game tight. The Rangers finished with 26 shots.

With his name getting bandied about in trade rumors as the deadline approaches, the goal — as well as his overall game — could help put an end to Kakko being on the move out of New York.

Sunday was an all-time classic that the Rangers no doubt enjoyed. But it was back to business on Tuesday, and for the Rangers, it continues to be business as usual.

“Our best guy was Shesty in net tonight,” coach Peter Laviolette remarked. “He did what he had to do, and we got the win.”

The Rangers will be back in action on Thursday when they face the New Jersey Devils on the road.