Rangers Outlast the Flyers in the Shootout

Big third period and amazing penalty kill in overtime

New York, NY- The New York Rangers played a Saturday matinee at Madison Square Garden as the Philadelphia Flyers came to town. A big Metropolitan Division matchup and points were up for grabs to get into the wildcard position in the Eastern Conference. After an up-and-down, back-and-forth game, the Rangers would take the two points and win by a final score of five to four, winning the shootout two to nothing

Final Minute shot is in

It was a track meet between the Rangers and the Flyers in the opening period. It looked to be scoreless until the Flyers iced the puck, and the faceoff was at the far side. The Rangers lost the faceoff, but Mika Zibanejad quickly got to the far boards to seal the puck from being cleared. He saw Artemi Panarin all alone, made the pass, and Panarin snapped it hard off the near post and in at 19:23 of the first period.

A bad call leads to an explosion by the Flyers

As the Rangers were flying high with the lead, everything changed with one call that never came. As Noah Laba was skating to get control of the puck at the far corner inside the Flyers’ zone, he was hit from behind by Emil Andrae, which began a tussle from the Rangers. Will Cuylle received the only penalty from that melee, as somehow, referee Wes Macauley never sent Andrae to the penalty box to make it a four-on-four.

The Flyers scored three consecutive goals and scored two power-play goals within those moments. Matvei Michkov carried the puck to the far side of the Rangers’ zone, was defended at the far boards, but the loose puck was picked up by Denver Barkey. He saw Travis Sanheim wide open at the top of the slot. Sanheim shot it off Shesterkin and in at 6:42 of the second period on the power play.

Their next goal came very quickly while even strength when the Flyers were cycling inside the Rangers’ zone. Cam York had the puck and gave it to Barkey at the near point, who passed it toward Owen Tippett. When Tippet was just outside the near faceoff circle, he snapped his shot on net and beat Shesterkin to his blocker side at 7:05 of the second period. Two goals in 23 seconds.

Then the Flyers got a two-goal lead when they just won the faceoff on the power play. Noah Cates won the faceoff, got the puck toward Jamie Drysdale at the near point. Drysdale made the pass to Trever Zegras, and he ripped it on a one-timer past Shesterkin at 10:18 of the second period. Three goals in three minutes and 36 seconds apart.

Panarin steals and scores

As the Flyers were holding the two-goal lead, the Rangers were trying to get back into the game. That’s when Owen Tippett tried a blind backhand pass out of his zone, finding Panarin. He skated down the near side, and when Panarin was at a good angle, he snapped a shot that hit the inside of the far post and past the goal for his second of the game at 12:23 of the second period.

Gave up a shorty

The Rangers were on the power play after Nicolas Deslauries was called for boarding Brennan Othamann at the near boards, and both men dropped the gloves for a round. But that’s when the Flyers took advantage of the Rangers while down a man, killing the penalty. Scott Morrow gives his own blind backhand pass to Sanheim, and the Flyers have a rush.

Sanheim found Rodrigo Abols joining the rush inside the Rangers’ zone. Made the pass to Ablos, and he tried to stuff the puck in. Shesterkin tried to make the stop, but the puck went through his pads and slid in at 14:36 of the second period Short Handed. It might have looked like a kicking motion, but on the replay, it was a clean goal.

Pulled another one back

The Rangers found a way to cut the deficit to one again when they started to make a rush inside the Flyers’ zone. Gabe Perreault received the puck and entered over the blue line. He dropped it off to J.T. Miller, who skated down the far side. Made a nice backhand pass to Vincent Trocheck, taking the shot, but it was saved. He got the rebound on the backhand, but not enough on it, but somehow deflected off a Flyers skater and in at 9:13 of the third period.

Tied game late

The Rangers earned a power play late in the game, and they were looking to tie it up to force overtime. Will Cuylle at the far boards passed it to the far point at Scott Morrow. He skated across to the near point and found Mika Zibanejad. Both men played catch with the puck from the near faceoff circle to the near point. But on the final lob, Morrow put the puck where Zibanejad wanted it, and a hard one-timer tied the game at 17:26 of the third period.

Big penalty kills in overtime

The Rangers created two penalties in the start and toward the end of the overtime period. Panarin was called for a slash, then Morrow was called for tripping. But the Rangers’ penalty killing in the overtime session was brilliant. Not only were the penalty killers patient when the Flyers had the puck, but Shesterkin made several big saves to force the game into the shootout.

Rangers earned the extra point

Artemi Panarin went first and made a gorgeous move on the net. He skated down the near side, cut across, then made the deek to go toward his backhand and scored. Vincent Trocheck went second for the Rangers, and he smacked it home for the lead. But the Flyers had Trever Zegras out first, trying some trickery, but Sherseterkin was up for the task with the stop. Then Travis Konecny attempted to extend, but he hit the post and out. The Rangers earned the second point.

Big win but with some concern

This was a huge comeback victory for the Rangers to put themselves into Wild Card contention at this point. At the moment, there is concern for Captain, as J.T. Miller left in the middle of the third period when he took a hit to his right shoulder and went down hard. He skated with help toward the entrance to the locker room. But make no mistake, this was a much-needed win for the Rangers as they take their big road trip and head toward the Winter Classic in Miami for the new year.

“I just think it’s hockey, you know, it’s such a game of momentum. The second period wasn’t our best in a lot of ways. I give Philly credit; they played well in the second period, but what I loved was the response we had in the third and just the resilience to be able to dig in and find a way to get it within striking distance.

We talked about just getting the next goal, going out into the third period, and just having the ability to shrug it off and not allowing it to bleed into our game moving forward. I think that’s such a huge part of a team’s ability to have success, and it starts with a belief; we’ve got to believe we can do it. I thought the guys did a great job.

I couldn’t be more proud of them for how hard they played in the third and in overtime. You look at the way the game was played; our special teams, you might have seen it at its worst and at its best throughout the course of the game. Both sides, the penalty kill and the power play, the first part of the game, neither one was a semblance of what we would like, but yet when you look at the comeback, they’re both an integral part of the difference.

The power play gets the game tired, and the penalty kill, obviously, in overtime and the four-on-threes, was huge, and Chesty was a big part of that also. For me, that’s what I’m proud of with the group. Also, just the mental reset,” said head coach Mike Sullivan

COMEBACK WINNERS: The Rangers became the fifth team this season with multiple third-period, multi-goal comeback wins. They earned their second third-period, multi-goal comeback win of the season and have only had more in three other seasons: 2014-15, 2006-07, and 1941-42 (all were three).

RECENT HOME POINTS: New York has earned points in 10 of their last 14 games (8-4-2), and in five of their last seven games at The Garden (3-2-2).

EXTRA SESSION SUCCESS: The Blueshirts won their seventh game decided in either overtime or a shootout, tied for the fourth most in the NHL.

BACK-TO-BACK PLAYER TALLIES: Four different Rangers have notched points in back-to-back games: Will Cuylle (1G-1A), J.T. Miller (2G-1A), Gabe Perreault (1G-1A), and Vincent Trocheck (2A).

ARTEMI PANARIN: Recorded his second multi-goal game of the season and 30th as a Ranger. He reached the mark in 466 games, the ninth fastest in Rangers history.

MIKA ZIBANEJAD: Scored the game-tying, power play goal in the third period, his seventh power play goal of the season and his 115th as a Blueshirt. He sits one power-play goal away from tying the franchise record (116). He became the fifth player in Rangers history to score 50 game-tying goals.

New York Rangers News:

• Rangers Edge the Blues in Overtime
• Rangers honor their New Garden Era
• Rangers get unlucky against the Canucks

“Game Day. Done Right.”

When the Rangers hit the ice and celebrate their 100th Anniversary, you need a beer that matches your passion. Michelob Ultra – the superior light beer for superior fans. Low carbs, full flavor, pure game night energy.

Michelob Ultra. It’s Only Worth It.

Subscribe to our Premium Newsletter for insider analysis, locker room insights, and early access to our upcoming podcast featuring the voices that matter most in New York Sports.