Goalie Louis Domingue made 31 saves for his 100th AHL victory. The 32-year-old has played all or parts of 10 seasons in the American Hockey League, including time with Portland, Springfield, Syracuse, Stockton, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Hartford.

In three seasons with the Wolf Pack, Domingue is 44-34-14, including 6-14-2 this season.

Sights from win 100 📸 pic.twitter.com/hsxXHzXz8y

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) February 9, 2025

Domingue also has 144 games of NHL experience with the Arizona Coyotes, Tampa Bay Lightning, New Jersey Devils, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Penguins and the Rangers. He’s made two starts — one this season and another in 2023-24 — with the Rangers and won each. On Jan. 5, he made 25 saves in a 6-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks when Igor Shesterkin was on injured reserve.

The Wolf Pack veteran stopped 12 of 13 shots in the first period Saturday and 14 of 15 in the second. He faced only five shots in the third period, and stopped each to preserve the milestone win.

Related: 3 Rangers takeaways from crucial 4-3 win against Blue Jackets

Brett Berard scores game-winner to help Wolf Pack end skid

Brett Berard — Photo courtesy Hartford Wolf Pack

Berard’s eventual game-winner snapped a 2-2 tie and came off Hartford’s rink-length rush. Berard accepted a long pass on left wing and burst into Lehigh Valley’s zone on a 2-on-1. He wired his ninth goal of the season past Keith Petruzzelli.

Number 9 on the season for number 9 👀 pic.twitter.com/RHv18AnfUs

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) February 9, 2025

The 22-year-old also assisted on Bo Groulx’s 15th goal, which tied the game 1-1 at 1:31 of the second. Berard returned to Hartford’s lineup Friday after missing several games with an upper-body injury. It was his second multiple-point game with Hartford since the Rangers returned him to the AHL in mid-January.

With the Rangers, Berard played 19 games and had seven points (three goals, four assists). Berard has 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in 24 games with Hartford this season.

Anton Blidh scored twice for the Wolf Pack, including his 15th goal into an empty net to seal the victory.

Not only did the Rangers rally in the third period to knock off the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3, but each team they’re battling in the Eastern Conference playoff race lost. So, in a whirlwind turn, the Rangers enter the 4 Nations Face-off break 11th in the conference, three points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the second wild card and four in arrears of the Ottawa Senators for the top wild card, with a game in hand.

Their victory also moved the Rangers a point ahead of the Islanders and three ahead of the sinking Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers and Penguins.

Even the only bad news in their sphere had a decent spin. Igor Shesterkin is out 1-2 weeks with an upper-body injury. But their next game is not for two weeks, thanks to the break in the schedule. With the right amount of luck here, Shesterkin won’t miss any game action since Jonathan Quick was in line to start against the Blue Jackets anyway.

It wasn’t perfect Saturday but it was a crucial two points gained. The Rangers surrendered 19 high-dangers scoring chances and had only 10 themselves, per Natural Stat Trick. Their xGF was a touch above 47 percent. But they won, and head into the break with three wins in their past four games.

Catch your breath these next two weeks — and hope no Rangers get hurt during the in-season tournament — then get set for a wild ride to the finish line in this crazy playoff race.

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New York Rangers news

Here are our three Rangers takeaways from a massively important win against the Blue Jackets, including another show of resilience by the Blueshirts.

As mentioned above, Shesterkin is sidelined for up to two weeks with an upper-body injury.

Louis Domingue earned his 100th AHL victory, helping the Hartford Wolf Pack end a seven-game slide with a 4-2 win against Lehigh Valley.

NHL news

Trade rumors are swirling around Scott Laughton, with the Philadelphia Flyers reportedly engaged in traded talks with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets for the forward.

Thatcher Demko is injured again. The Vancouver Canucks goalie left their game against the Maple Leafs on Saturday with an undisclosed injury. The oft-injured goalie missed the first two months this season with a knee issue.

Quinn Hughes remained out of the Canucks lineup and missed his fourth straight game with an unspecified injury. Though he skated on his own Saturday, the 25-year-old defenseman’s status to play for the United States at the 4 Nations Face-off remains unclear.

Despite the injury drama, the Canucks defeated the Maple Leafs 2-1.

Veteran Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty was added to Canada’s 4 Nations roster to replace Alex Pietrangelo.

The Detroit Red Wings had their seven-game winning streak end in a 6-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Ottawa Senators’ losing streak extended to three games with a 5-1 defeat at the hands of the Florida Panthers.

Brandon Montour sustained an upper-body injury for the Seattle Kraken and didn’t return to their game against the Calgary Flames. The Kraken still found a way to rally past the Flames with a 3-2 overtime victory.

Mathew Barzal had a minor procedure performed on his kneecap and should be out six weeks for the Islanders.

Then the Islanders allowed five straight goals and lost to the Minnesota Wild 6-3.

Jake Allen got back on his game, backstopping the New Jersey Devils to a 4-0 shutout win against the Montreal Canadiens.

The battle of the Keystone state went to the Flyers, who edged the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2.

Mixed results for the Wolf Pack continue as they are 3-2-0-0 in their past five games and 5-5-0-0 in their past 10. The two recent wins allowed Hartford to close the gap for fourth and fifth in the division, with Lehigh Valley and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton tied for fourth place. Each has a five-point cushion on the Wolf Pack.

Related: Brutal night for Rangers prospects in ugly loss to Devils farm team

Hartford Wolf Pack news-n-Notes

Photo courtesy Hartford Wolf Pack

Louis Domingue improves

Louis Domingue won two of his past four starts and allowed fewer than three goals in three of them. Furthermore, the 32-year-old goalie stopped 117 of 126 shots, a .929 save percentage. His improvement comes at a time when standings points are important for the Wolf Pack to maintain playoff positioning. The veteran began the season 1-4-1, allowing more than two goals in five of six games. Domingue is now 5-10-1 with a 3.43 goals-against average and .924 save percentage.

Domingue’s improved play gives Hartford two solid goalies, joining Dylan Garand, who will take part in the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic.

Hartford coach Grant Potulny likes to rotate his goalies, so it’s optimal if each is on top of his game. Garand has played in 20 games, Domingue 16.

Alex Belzile continues to lead Hartford’s offense

Belzile had a goal and two assists Saturday and leads the team with 36 points. The 33-year-old forward’s consistency on the score sheet has been hugely important because of the ups and downs of Hartford’s offensive production all season. Belzile recorded two hat tricks in a six-game span and has nine multi-point games. He is on pace to exceed last season’s point total (50) with 37 games remaining. He is seven goals from tying a career high (19, done twice) and needs seven assists to tie last season’s total (31).

Belzy’s team-leading 34th point 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Fp1ZTkEpBu

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) January 19, 2025

In addition, Belzile is tied for fifth in points (36) and tied for third in assists (24) in the AHL. His points per game is tied for 19th (1.03).

Belzy 🤝 Hilly
a multipoint game pic.twitter.com/5vc8JeghEx

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) January 19, 2025

Brett Berard’s re-adjustment to AHL

Returning to the minors after playing 19 games with the Rangers, Brett Berard is struggling to find his game with Hartford. The 22-year-old forward has two assists in four games and was minus-5 in the first two upon returning from Broadway.

Berard was better the past two games and more involved in all aspects of the game. He’s shown he can be a big-time AHL player, leading the Wolf Pack with 25 goals last season. His 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) is fourth on the Wolf Pack in just 20 games played. Once he regains his footing, Berard will be leaned on down the stretch to help Hartford return to the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Another snipe for Scans 💥 pic.twitter.com/knjnOisPKM

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) January 18, 2025

Notes

• Garand earned his third shutout of the season on Sunday. He improved to 12-6-2 with a 2.29 GAA and .924 save percentage.
• Benoit-Oliver Groulx has five points (four goals, one assist) in three games.
• Brandon Scanlin recorded his first multi-goal game in the pros on Saturday.

Upcoming Games

All games can be watched on AHLTV and heard on Mixlr.

Friday, January 24th vs Laval Rocket (Canadians) at 7 p.m., XL Center

• This is the second of four meetings in the season series. Hartford lost the first game 4-2 on Dec. 14. The last two meetings will be in Laval on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.
• Laval is 23-11-2-1 for 49 points, second in the North Division and third in the Eastern Conference. The Rocket are 6-3-1-0  in their past 10 games.
• Joshua Roy (14 goals, 13 assists)  and Alex Barre-Boulet (eight goals, 19 assists) lead the Rocket with 27 points apiece. Jared Davidson is next with 24 points (14 goals, 10 assists).

Saturday, January 25th vs Rochester Americans (Sabres) at 6 p.m., XL Center

• This is the second and final meeting this season. Hartford lost the first game 6-3 on Nov. 8.
• Rochester is 23-11-3-1 for 50 points, first in the North Division and second in the Eastern Conference. The Americans are 7-2-0-1 in their past 10 games.
• Isak Rosen leads the Americans with 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists). Brett Murray is next with 29 points (17 goals, 12 assists).

Sunday, January 26th vs Springfield Thunderbirds (Blues) at 3:05 p.m., MassMutual Center

• This is the eighth of 10 meetings in the season series. Hartford is 2-5-0-0 against Springfield.
• Springfield is 17-16-2-1 for 37 points, seventh in the Atlantic Division and 12th in the Eastern Conference. The Thunderbirds are 5-5-0-0 in their past 10.
• Matthew Peca (13 goals, 13 assists) and Matt Luff (11 goals, 15 assists) lead the Thunderbirds with 26 points apiece. Dalibor Dvorsky is next with 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists).

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.

After losing to the 32nd-place Blackhawks Dec. 9 and 32nd-place Nashville Predators Dec. 17, the Rangers finally got it right, exploding offensively for a 6-2 win at the United Center. After falling behind 1-0 early in the first period, the Rangers scored five unanswered goals, and eventually added a sixth tally in a game where 12 different Rangers skaters had at least one point.

They did so without veteran forward Chris Kreider, who was ruled out with an upper-body injury. Kreider missed time earlier this season with back spasms, but it is unknown if this absence is related to that injury.

Don’t look now, but the Rangers have now won two of their past three games, defeating the Boston Bruins on Jan. 2, and now the Blackhawks. Not to mention that loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday wasn’t entirely bad. They had an excellent first period, and were able to score four goals overall in the 7-4 loss. While by no means out of the hole they’re in, 10 goals in the past two games is certainly a step in the right direction.

RANGERS WIN!!! pic.twitter.com/JlbKTfHOIY

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

Filip Chytil led the way for the Rangers with two goals against Chicago. Jonny Brodzinski got things started for New York, scoring in his first game back in the lineup since Dec. 23. Reilly Smith and Vincent Trocheck each had a goal. And Will Borgen scored his second of the season, and first as a member of the Rangers.

Adam Fox and Brett Berard had two assists each, and Fox moved into sole possession of fourth all-time for assists by a Rangers defenseman with 284, passing Hall-of-Famer Brad Park. He also became the first defenseman in franchise history to reach the 30-point mark in each of his first six seasons.

Ryan Lindgren (2), Artemi Panarin, Alexis Lafreniere, Mika Zibanejad, and K’Andre Miller all registered assists as well. Zibanejad’s helper was his 400th NHL assist.

With Igor Shesterkin on injured reserve and Jonathan Quick playing Saturday, Louis Domingue got the call in goal for his first NHL game since Nov. 9, 2023. He had a very solid showing, making 25 saves on 27 shots.

Related: Frank Vatrano off trade market after ex-Rangers forward signs 3-year deal with Ducks

3 takeaways from Rangers 6-2 win over Blackhawks

Here are three takeaways from the game Sunday.

1. Next man up for New York

With Shesterkin and Kreider absent, both Domingue and Brodzinski stepped up in a big way. Despite allowing the game’s first goal early in the first period, Domingue played a very steady game in his first NHL action in over a year. The 32-year-old was calm throughout the contest, and was very active in playing the puck, which really helped the Rangers transition to offense.

Brodzinski scored a huge goal to tie the game at one late in the first period. It was not the start the Rangers wanted, being down 1-0 to the last-place team in the NHL once again, but when the puck landed on Brodzinski’s stick in the high slot, he made no mistake of firing it home through traffic in front for his third goal in 17 games this season.

JONNY FROM FAR OUT. pic.twitter.com/Gc1oLhnnUJ

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

The goal completely turned the momentum in favor of the Rangers, who scored another four straight after the Brodzinski tally. While he’s struggled to stay in the lineup, he may be making a case to slot in more often, even after Kreider returns, perhaps in the place of Jimmy Vesey on the fourth line.

2. Filip Chytil, Mika Zibanejad heating up on point streaks

If there was ever a time for players to get hot for the Rangers, it would be now. Fighting to get back into the playoff race, Chytil and Zibanejad find themselves heating up. Chytil has five points in a four-game point streak, four goals one assist. He continues to dominate with the puck on his stick, and has been playing some of his best hockey over the past several games. Zibanejad has three points in the past three games, two goals and one assist.

This is huge for both players, but especially for Zibanejad. He had gone eight games without a point before scoring against the Bruins. He added another goal in the loss to the Capitals, and logged a pretty assist on Smith’s goal against Chicago. Not only has he found the score sheet in three straight games, but he looked like a more confident skater against the Blackhawks. His commitment to defense was good, he was aggressive on pucks, and seemed to be all over the ice, rather than invisible. This is a good sign going forward, if he keeps it up.

3. Good things come from pucks on net

A valuable lesson can be learned from the majority of the goals scored on Sunday: get pucks and bodies to the net. This is something the Rangers have failed to do time and time again, often looking for the extra pass rather than firing a shot toward the cage. And usually without any traffic in front.

Against the Blackhawks, that mentality changed, and it paid dividends.

Brodzinski’s goal seemed to have eyes of it’s own, flying through heavy traffic and screens in front to get the Rangers on the board. Trocheck and Chytil each scored off of redirections, again from pucks that were sent on net from range. Even Borgen’s goal came after a flurry of shots, with the rebound popping out to the high slot where Borgen made no mistake of sending it right back toward the net and through a maze of bodies.

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

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

This is a brand of hockey that the Rangers need to continue playing. A shoot-first mentality, hounding the net, and cashing in on rebounds and deflections.

Of course, the reality is that, even with this win, the Rangers (18-20-1) are only nine points ahead of the Blackhawks, who reside in last place in the NHL standings. Plus, the Blackhawks skated to a 2-1 win against the Rangers on Dec. 9, so nothing was taken for granted here.

But coming off a sloppy 7-4 loss at the Washington Capitals on Saturday, the Rangers were far and away the better team in Chicago. Twelve different skaters recorded at least one point and the Rangers had five different goal-scorers.

Filip Chytil led the way with his second two-goal game of the season, and he extended his point streak to a season-high four games. Jonny Brodzinski, Will Borgen, Reilly Smith and Vincent Trocheck also scored for the Rangers, who’ve won two of their past three games.

CORNER = PICKED. pic.twitter.com/TIzdXq4QM4

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

Adam Fox, Ryan Lindgren and Brett Berard each had two assists. It was the first multi-point game for Berard in the NHL.

It was the third time the Rangers scored six or more goals in a game this season and was one shy of their season high of seven against the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 22. It was also their first victory with a margin of more than two goals since Nov. 9 against the Detroit Red Wings (4-0).

Louis Domingue, who was recalled earlier in the week from Hartford of the American Hockey League when Igor Shesterkin landed on IR with an upper-body issue, made 25 saves in his first start this season with the Rangers.

Arvid Soderblom made 28 saves for the Blackhawks, who lost for the sixth time in seven games. Tyler Bertuzzi and Wyatt Kaiser scored for the Blackhawks.

Related: Frank Vatrano off trade market, ex-Rangers forward inks 3-year deal with Ducks

New York Rangers 6 – Chicago Blackhawks 2

A largely dominating afternoon actually began with the Rangers coughing up the first goal early in the first period. That’s not news as it’s been a familiar story for the Rangers during a miserable 5-16-0 stretch coming into this game. The difference this time was that the Rangers answered with five straight goals of their own bridging the first and second periods.

The Blackhawks struck first after a hustling Connor Bedard beat Mika Zibanejad to a loose puck in the Rangers zone, skated to the right circle and sent a perfect backdoor feed to Bertuzzi at the far post. Bertuzzi potted his 14th goal — and ninth in 14 games — to put the Rangers in a 1-0 hole 5:37 into the game.

But the Rangers quickly turned the tide, owned the puck over the majority of the first period and were rewarded with two goals before the intermission. Brodzinski tied the game at 15:12. In the lineup because Chris Kreider was scratched with an upper-body injury, Brodzinski scored his third goal by sending a long-range shot through traffic and past Soderblom.

New York goal!

Scored by Jonny Brodzinski with 04:48 remaining in the 1st period.

Assisted by Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren.

Chicago: 1
New York: 1#NYRvsCHI #Blackhawks #NYR pic.twitter.com/95FZEVmMAI

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) January 5, 2025

Minutes before that goal, Brodzinski drove to the net and redirected a pass just off the top of the crossbar.

The Rangers took the lead at 18:22 when Borgen fired another shot through a maze of players and past Soderblom. It was the defenseman’s first goal in eight games with the Rangers and second of the season.

New York outshot Chicago 14-6 in the first period and out-chanced the Hawks 8-2, garnering an xGF of 0.76, per Natural Stat Trick.

The Rangers scored three straight goals in the second period to extend their lead to 5-1. The suddenly-hot Chytil zipped a shot from the right circle into the net at 3:28. His first goal of the afternoon came off a neat passing sequence between Berard and Fox.

Smith’s breakaway goal, completed with a sweet backhand finish at 9:54, made it 4-1. Fresh off the bench, Smith took a long perfect pass on his tape from Zibanejad for an all-around pretty play. The assist was Zibanejad’s 400th in the NHL and the goal was the eighth this season for Smith.

Mika with a heads-up play.

Smitty dekes + extends the lead with this beauty. pic.twitter.com/4GEVYIdank

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

That lead increased to 5-1 at 15:16 when Trocheck deflected an Artemi Panarin shot/pass with his back to the net. It was his 11th goal of the season.

Chicago did answer back before the period ended. It ended New York’s run of five consecutive goals when Kaiser, a defenseman, wired his first NHL goal off the rush past Domingue at the 18-minute mark.

The Blackhawks carried some momentum into the third period, taking the game to the Rangers for several minutes to start. Domingue denied Bertuzzi twice and had to make another awkward scrambling save in the first few minutes.

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

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

But Chytil restored order with his second goal of the game and fourth in the past four games at 8:36 to make it 6-2. The 25-year-old center was rewarded for going to the net when K’Andre Miller’s long-range shot hit Soderblom’s blocker and caromed off Chytil in front and into the net.

Domingue and the Rangers carried it home from there. And home is where the Rangers will play next, when they host the Dallas Stars on Tuesday.

Going from facing the top team in the Eastern Conference to the last-place team in the entire NHL seems like a soft landing spot for the reeling Rangers, who’ve lost 16 of their past 21 games (5-16-0). But remember, it was just last month that these very same Blackhawks handed the Rangers a 2-1 loss at Madison Square Garden.

Playing on consecutive days will lead to some lineup changes for the Rangers. Louis Domingue is expected to make his season debut for the Blueshirts in goal after Jonathan Quick surrendered six goals Saturday (the seventh landed into an empty net) and failed in his bid to earn his 400th NHL victory in place of the injured Igor Shesterkin.

Domingue is off to a rocky start with Hartford of the American Hockey League this season. The 32-year-old is 4-9-2 with a 3.64 goals-against average and .888 save percentage. In his one appearance with the Rangers last season, Domingue excelled with 26 saves in a 4-1 win against the Minnesota Wild on Nov. 9, 2023.

And, hey, the Rangers are playing the Blackhawks, who just lost five in a row before a 4-2 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Friday.

Also, there’s the chance that defenseman Zac Jones and/or forward Jonny Brodzinski will draw into the lineup Sunday.

With the Dallas Stars next ahead on the schedule, Tuesday at MSG, the Rangers need these two points against the Blackhawks in a major way.

New York Rangers news

Let’s start with three things to watch for when the Rangers play the Blackhawks, focusing on trying to sustain positive momentum within the game, something they failed to do against the Capitals.

Looking back, here are our three takeaways from the Rangers’ latest loss against the Capitals, including another special teams meltdown.

And how about Mark Messier blowing up the whole Rangers operation, speaking in between periods on ABC on Saturday?

Top Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault had a goal and assist to help the United States reach the Gold Medal game Sunday at the 2025 World Junior Championship with a 4-1 semifinals win against Czechia. The Americans play Finland, which defeated Sweden in overtime in the other semifinal.

NHL news

Elliotte Friedman went on Hockey Night in Canada and stated that trade talk is heating up with the listing Vancouver Canucks. Friedman believes either J.T. Miller or Elias Pettersson will be traded, though he dismissed talk of Miller being dealt to the Rangers.

Sounds like Buffalo Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin is sick and tired of his team’s shoddy play. The Sabres are 3-12-4 in their past 19 games, last in the Eastern Conference with 33 points (two points behind the Rangers) and Dahlin ripped into their performance following a 3-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.

Seattle Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson exited their 4-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers after the second period with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return.

The New Jersey Devils are “frustrated, pissed off” after their losing streak extended to four games and they were swept on a three-game California trip. They lost 3-2 to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.

Don’t look now but the Detroit Red Wings are rolling. They won their fourth game in a row, doubling up the Winnipeg Jets 4-2.

Ryan O’Reilly had a hat trick to lead the Nashville Predators to a 4-1 win against the Calgary Flames.

Watch Matthew Knies record his first NHL hat trick in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 6-4 win against the Boston Bruins.

Well, you very likely would’ve guessed correctly that the Blackhawks (13-24-2) would be in that position. They’re last in the NHL, one season removed from finishing next to last and two seasons from a 30th-place finish.

But the Rangers? The defending Presidents’ Trophy winners who were two wins shy of reaching the Stanley Cup Final last spring?

Well, yes, the Rangers are in the same league as the Blackhawks nearly halfway through the 2024-25 season after a 7-4 loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday dropped them to 17-20-1. They’ve lost five of six, nine of 11 and a whopping 16 of their past 21 games. They have a .226 points percentage in the past 21 games — representing a full quarter of their schedule — worst in the NHL.

The Rangers have shown signs of life in the past four games. Certainly, their compete level is better and, hey, they scored four goals Saturday for the first time since Dec. 8 against the Seattle Kraken. It should be noted that despite feeling better about their game recently, the Rangers still have lost three of those four. And that Kraken game? Yeah, they lost that one, too, 7-5.

And playing the last-place team in the entire League? Well, that hasn’t worked for the Rangers this season. They lost to the Blackhawks 2-1 on Dec. 9 at Madison Square Garden. Eight days later, the Rangers were shut out 2-0 by the Nashville Predators, after the Preds had dropped to the bottom of the NHL standings.

Related: Mark Messier rips Rangers core, says it’s ‘fractured’

3 things to watch for when Rangers visit Blackhawks

1. Louis, Louis

Igor Shesterkin is on IR with an upper-body issue. Jonathan Quick played the day before, and allowed six goals (the seventh was an empty-netter). Louis Domingue is the next goalie up.

The 32-year-old journeyman is expected to make his first NHL start of 2024-25 and second in three seasons after signing with the Rangers in the summer of 2022. He stepped in on Nov. 9, 2023 and made 26 saves in a 4-1 Rangers win against the Minnesota Wild. Other than that, Domingue has played with Hartford of the American Hockey League; he has a 4-9-2 record, a 3.64 goals-against average and .888 save percentage this season.

That’s not so inspiring. But Domingue does have 143 games of NHL experience and a .905 career save percentage. And maybe the Rangers, who put in a defensive no-show in DC on Saturday, could turn it up defensively knowing that neither Shesterkin nor Quick is between the pipes Sunday.

2. Bring Zac back?

Maybe Zac Jones was sticking pins in voodoo dolls representing the Rangers defenseman Saturday when he, again, sat in the press box watching. Wouldn’t put it past him after the 24-year-old lashed out about being a healthy scratch more often than not (four straight games, six of past seven) earlier in the week.

Well, it sure looked that way at least. The Rangers D corps turned in an ugly afternoon against the Capitals. But the two biggest offenders were probably Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren (a combined minus-5), who each was guilty of one egregious mistake after another. Thing is, they’re not coming out of the lineup — most certainly not Fox.

So, who comes out for Jones? K’Andre Miller? Urho Vaakanainen, who was plus-2 and had a long home-run pass on Filip Chytil’s third-period goal? Right-shots Braden Schneider or Will Borgen?

Let’s see how badly coach Peter Laviolette wants to shake things up — if at all — with the defense corps.

3. Sustainability

The Rangers have failed to sustain much of anything good during these past 21 games. Whether from goal to goal, period to period, shift to shift or game to game. They haven’t won consecutive games since a three-game winning streak from Nov. 14-19. Eleven times this season they followed a win with a loss.

Then on Saturday, three times the Rangers cut a two-goal deficit to one in the second and third periods. What did they do after scoring? They allowed the Capitals to regain the two-goal advantage within 1:47, 2:18 and 56 seconds. That’s how you lose games.

Perhaps they’ll be able to sustain their positive surges against the woeful Blackhawks on Sunday.

New York Rangers projected lineup

Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere

Kreider – Zibanejad – Smith

Cuylle – Chytil – Berard

Edstrom – Carrick – Vesey

Lindgren – Fox

Miller – Borgen

Vaakanainen – Schneider

Domingue

Quick

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

Who: New York Rangers vs. Chicago Blackhawks

When: Sunday, Jan. 5 at 3 p.m. ET

Where: United Center

How to watch: ABC

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

The Rangers haven’t officially announced Shesterkin’s injury designation, but it’s been reported by the New York Post and The Athletic, among other outlets. Domingue, though, was officially recalled.

Shesterkin made 21 saves in a 5-3 loss to the Florida Panthers on Monday. He played the entire game. However, he was in a major collision with Florida forward Sam Bennett in the third period when Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren checked him hard from behind accidentally into the Rangers No. 1 goalie. Shesterkin got up quickly but was shaking his head afterward.

It’s not known if that’s when he sustained an injury, or if he possibly has been playing hurt for a while.

Though spectacular at times, Shesterkin has struggled this season, often mirroring the Rangers woes as a team. Shesterkin, who turned 29 Monday, is 11-15-1 with a 3.10 goals-against average and .906 save percentage, the worst numbers of his stellar six-year NHL career. He’s allowed four or more goals in 10 of his 27 starts and was pulled in two of his past six starts.

It was just three weeks ago that Shesterkin signed the richest contract for a goalie in NHL history. Beginning next season, Shesterkin will earn $11.5 million annually on an eight-year, $92 million contract.

The news hits the Rangers at the worst possible time. They’ve lost four in a row, seven of eight and are 4-15-0 in their past 19 games. They reside in last place in the Metropolitan Division.

Related: Suggested New Year’s resolutions for Rangers turn around dismal season in 2025

What’s next after Igor Shesterkin lands on injured reserve for Rangers

Here’s the lay of the land now that the Rangers are without their No. 1 goaltender.

Early Igor Shesterkin timetable

By being placed on injured reserve, Shesterkin must miss a minimum of three games. So, that means he’ll be out at least through Sunday, missing games against the Boston Bruins on Thursday, Washington Capitals on Saturday and Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.

Perhaps coach Peter Laviolette will shed more light on the goalie’s timetable when the Rangers practice Wednesday. But that’s unlikely. He’ll likely play it close to the vest and state that Shesterkin is out the rest of the week. It’s not expected that the Rangers will announce the nature of Shesterkin’s injury, especially if it’s an issue with his head.

Beginning Thursday, the Rangers play five games in 10 days. They are scheduled to play 14 games in the month of January.

It’s Jonathan Quick time

If there’s any silver lining here, it’s that the Rangers have a three-time Stanley Cup champion as their No. 2 goalie. Jonathan Quick will step in with Shesterkin injured and receive the bulk of playing time. The 38-year-old is 5-4-0 in 12 games (nine starts) with a 2.69 GAA, .907 save percentage and two shutouts this season.

He was invaluable in 2023-24 when Shesterkin a had a minor injury early in the season and later needed time to re-set after a string of poor starts around the All-Star break. Quick won 18 games last season and posted a 2.62 GAA.

Quick brings a steadying, been-there-done-that presence to the Rangers net. He led the Kings to Stanley Cup championships in 2012 and 2014 (against the Rangers) and was a backup when the Vegas Golden Knights won it all in 2023.

The only question here is how much a workload he can handle at his age if Shesterkin is out for a stretch of time.

Louis Domingue recalled from Hartford

The Rangers opted to recall Domingue instead of 22-year-old Dylan Garand from Hartford to be the No. 2 goalie in Shesterkin’s absence. Garand’s been the better goalie this season (9-4-2 with a 2.25 GAA and .926 save percentage) but has never played an NHL game in three professional seasons.

Domingue, 32, was signed two years ago precisely for this situation. He’s the No. 3 goalie in the organization and has 143 games of NHL experience with seven teams, including one start (a win) with the Rangers last season.

He’s best remembered by the Rangers for his terrific fill-in play for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first-round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, when Domingue stepped in for the injured Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith and helped force a Game 7 before the Rangers took the series with a thrilling overtime win.

In particular, the defense corps responded after the addition of Victor Mancini, who scored against Charlotte Friday, after being assigned to Hartford by the Rangers.

However, Wolf Pack coach Grant Potulny continues to have work ahead of him because their power play is still in a massive drought, now 0-for-36, and the forward group was very quiet offensively. Matt Rempe scored their only goal by a forward this past weekend.

Gearing up for the week ahead, Hartford is third in the Atlantic Division, ninth in the Eastern Conference, and 15th in the AHL with a record of 7-5-1-1 (.571) for 16 points.

Related: First-hand look at Rangers defenseman prospect Drew Fortescue

Hartford Wolf Pack latest

Victor Mancini – photo courtesy of Hartford Wolf Pack

Defense corps steps up

Prior to Rempe’s goal against Providence on Saturday, the Wolf Pack had seven straight goals scored by defensemen. The offense was driven by Casey Fitzgerald and Connor Mackey, who each scored two goals this past weekend. In addition, Brandon Scanlin, Blake Hillman and Mancini chipped in with one apiece. Though Matthew Robertson was held without a goal, he did contribute a pair of assists. Case McCarthy (healthy scratch) and Ben Harpur (serving suspension) were out of the lineup and not part of the offensive breakthrough from the blue line.

The defense corps had 16 of Hartford’s 49 shots on goal in the past two games. Fitzgerald leads Wolf Pack defensemen with three goals and nine points this season.

SEVEN (7) GOALS IN A ROW FROM A DEFENSEMAN‼️ pic.twitter.com/zlvn3e6aAn

— Hartford Wolf Pack (@HWPHockey) November 17, 2024

Potulny on the goals from d-men: It’s funny, I was thinking about that the other day, we haven’t had a D goal in a little bit. Tonight, they get all of them. #NYR

— Keegan Jarvis (@TheKeeganJarvis) November 16, 2024

Shifting to defense, the Wolf Pack allowed four goals against in two games. This is an improvement since they allowed 10 goals against the prior weekend (in two games). The overall team defense helped goalies Louis Domingue and Dylan Garand by cutting down shots against, 23 shots by Charlotte and 34 by Providence.

In the past six games, Hartford held opponents to two goals or less four times, so it was good to see the Wolf Pack get back on track this past weekend.

Potulny: I thought that was the best game we played, best 60 minutes we played. To get the contributions from the blue line was the difference in the game. #NYR

— Keegan Jarvis (@TheKeeganJarvis) November 16, 2024

Too many penalties

Potulny must address the Wolf Pack’s undisciplined play. The Wolf Pack had 10 penalties called against them, five in each outing, taking away from their own positive momentum time and again. For instance, Hartford had a penalty in three straight calls in the first period against Charlotte resulting in the Checkers tying the game early. The Wolf Pack were unable to generate much offensively until in the late stages of that period, after things settled down with the penalties.

Against Providence, Hartford had four straight calls against them resulting in it being outshot 24-15 in the first two periods. Despite Hartford getting looks on the penalty kill, this is not sustainable. Through 14 games, Hartford was short-handed 57 times. That is the 11th highest amount in the league.

Louis Domingue’s turnaround

Louis Domingue — Photo courtesy of Hartford Wolf Pack

Earning his second win of the season and snapping a personal four-game losing streak, Domingue had a strong game against Charlotte, stopping 21 of 23 shots. After a rocky start to the season when he allowed three or more goals in each of his first four games, Domingue is beginning to find his game. In two of his past three starts, the veteran goalie surrendered only two goals and looked sharp.

The win against Charlotte is a confidence booster since the Checkers were 3-0-0-1 on the road and had two losses in regulation entering the game. Tying into the Wolf Pack’s penalty troubles, Domingue shined when the pressure was on. He was able to make saves when needed and handled continued pressure throughout the game. Domingue improved to 2-4-1 with a 3.84 goals-against average and .879 save percentage. Not great, but better.

News and notes

• Hartford released veteran Adam Erne from his Professional Tryout (PTO). The forward appeared in t10 games, recording one assist and eight penalty minutes.
• Brett Berard, Adam Sykora, and Ryder Korczak each recorded two assists over the weekend.
• Dylan Garand improved his record to 5-1-1 with a 2.52 goals-against average and .915 save percentage, allowing two goals in the win against Providence.

Upcoming Games

All games can be watched on AHLTV and listened on Mixlr.

Tuesday, November 19th vs Charlotte Checkers (Panthers) at 11am, XL Center

• This is the third of eight meetings in the season series, which is tied one win apiece. The clubs will meet again in Charlotte on January 18 and 19. 
• Entering the week, Charlotte is 7-4-0-1 for 15 points. The Checkers are fourth in the Atlantic Division and 10 in the Eastern Conference. They are on a two-game skid (0-2-0-0).
• Forward Kyle Criscuolo leads the Checkers with 14 points (six goals, eight assists). Aidan McDonough (nine goals, four assists) and Ryan McAllister (five goals, eight assists) are tied for the second most points with 13 apiece.

Saturday, November 23rd vs Springfield Thunderbirds (Blues) at 6pm, XL Center

• This is the third of 10 meetings in the season series, which is even through two games. Hartford’s next away game will be against Springfield on Nov. 30, when the Wolf Pack look for their first road win of the season.
• Entering the week, Springfield is 6-8-1-0 for 13 points. The Thunderbirds are seventh in the Atlantic Division and 13th in the Eastern Conference. They are on a three-game point streak (2-0-1-0) and have wins in three of their past five games.
• Dalibor Dvorsky and Marcus Sylvegard are tied for the Springfield lead in points with 11. Both forwards have six goals and five assists. Nikita Alexandrov is third with 10 points (five goals, five assists).

Sunday, November 24th vs Bridgeport Islanders (New York) at 4pm, XL Center

• This is the third of 10 meetings in the season series. The series is tied at one win apiece. The clubs meet again on Dec. 4 in Bridgeport.
• Entering the week, Bridgeport is 4-9-1-1 for 10 points. They are eighth in the Atlantic Division and 14th in the Eastern Conference. The Islanders won two straight, defeating the two-time defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears 6-1 and the solid Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 5-2.
• Brian Pinho leads the Islanders in points with 16 (10 goals, six assists). Chris Terry is second in scoring with 14 points (one goal, 13 assists).