Igor Shesterkin was terrific yet again and the Rangers got early goals from three players who aren’t exactly brand-name scorers – Braden Schneider, Adam Edstrom and K’Andre Miller – en route to a 6-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers scored three times in the third period on goals by Filip Chytil, an empty-net, a shorthanded goal by Adam Fox and a late tally by Reilly Smith.
Here are the takeaways…
-The Rangers have earned points in each of their last 10 games, their longest point streak of the season and their longest since Jan. 27-Feb. 24 of last year. The Blueshirts have won six of eight games.
Since Jan. 2, the Rangers have 19 points – they entered the night tied for the most points in the NHL over that span. They certainly look like a different team than the one that limped through the early portion of the season.
The Flyers, who had entered the game hot, too, saw their six-game point streak end.
-Shesterkin was coming off back-to-back shutouts and he carried a shutout streak of 164:03 into the game. That streak did not live long, but his run of terrific netminding did, though the Flyers gave the goalie a lot of work. Shesterkin made 35 saves and improved to 6-0-1 in his last seven starts. He’s allowed two or fewer goals in five of his last seven. Overall, he’s given up two or fewer goals in 11 of his last 16 starts, dating back to Dec. 6.
-Shesterkin’s shutout streak was gone just 85 seconds into the game when Owen Tippett deflected a pass in front past the goalie for a 1-0 Flyers lead. It was Tippett’s 14th goal of the season.
-The Rangers started sluggishly in the first period and much of the early play was in their defensive zone. But they straightened themselves out and began getting offensive end time, too, wresting the lead away with two goals in a span of 2:24 midway through the period. With 11:00 left, Schneider put the puck in front of the net from the left of goalie Samuel Ersson. It bounced past the goalie off a Flyers’ stick, knotting the score at 1 and giving Schneider his third goal this season. Shortly afterward, Ryan Lindgren flipped a shot toward a traffic jam in front of the net and Edstrom tipped it past Ersson. It was Edstrom’s fifth goal.
-In the second period, Miller gave the Rangers a two-goal cushion with 15:16 left, snapping a wrist shot into traffic with Vincent Trocheck in front potentially providing a screen. Miller’s goal, his third of the season, was assisted by Will Borgen and Artemi Panarin.
-Chytil scored his 11th goal of the season on a deflection with 14:45 left in the third period to give the Rangers a three-goal lead. Chytil is one of seven Rangers who have scored double-digit goals this season. Smith added a sixth Ranger goal with 1:45 left, his 10th.
-The Rangers, who entered the game ranked fourth in the NHL in penalty-kill percentage, squashed three Philadelphia power plays. They have a perfect penalty kill in six of their last eight outings. Fox scored his shortie during the final Philly power play, his third goal of the season.
Game MVP: Igor Shesterkin
Despite losing his shutout streak in a game that featured six goals by the Blueshirts, Shesterkin still deserves the honor for his 35 saves and continued excellence in net for New York.
Highlights
What’s next
The Rangers continue their four-game homestand and look for another win on Sunday against the Colorado Avalanche at 1 p.m.
