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Rangers vs. Flyers: Kakko, Panarin Score In The Shootout To Push Rangers Past Flyers

The New York Rangers finally snapped their four-game losing streak this evening as they were able to top the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in the shootout. It wouldn’t be the 2021 season if the Rangers didn’t find a way to blow a late lead, but thankfully this time around, they were able to come out on top. Alexandar Georgiev got the nod in goal for New York tonight and made several key saves late in the game with the Flyers pressing.

1st Period

Nicolas Aube-Kubel (2) - Michael Raffl (4) & Kevin Hayes (6) - 0:59

After not appearing in a game since Super Bowl Sunday, the Flyers wasted no time jumping out to an early lead in this game. Philadelphia was able to cause chaos in front of the Rangers’ net following a deflection, and after a quick net-front scramble, Nicolas Aube-Kubel was able to shovel home the loose puck. Or, so we thought. The replay wound up showing Adam Fox’s right leg deflecting the puck under Georgiev’s right leg, and Philadelphia took an early 1-0 lead.

2nd Period

Colin Blackwell (3) - Pavel Buchnevich (6) & Anthony Bitetto (1) PPG - 3:24

Colin Blackwell is becoming quite the story for the Rangers, and he picked up his third goal of the season to pull the Rangers even in this game. After some solid puck movement on the power play, the puck eventually made its way to Pavel Buchnevich, who flicked a quick shot through traffic. Colin Blackwell was able to open up, turn his body and deflect the puck under Carter Hart to make it a 1-1 game. Blackwell is quickly proving that he can do it all for the Rangers whether it be on the power play or the penalty kill.

3rd Period

Brendan Smith (1) - Artemiy Panarin (11) & Ryan Strome (3) - 8:21

Following a long break in the scoring, the Rangers finally got the bounce that they were looking for in the offensive zone. A forced turnover in the offensive zone led to the Rangers having numbers up ice, and Ryan Strome was able to shovel a shot towards the goal. Rather than shooting the rebound, Artemiy Panarin elected to change the angle with a quick pass back across the crease. Brendan Smith was waiting right on the doorstep for the loose puck, and he gave the Rangers their first lead of the evening.

Joel Farabee (7) - Kevin Hayes (7) & Sean Couturier (3) - 18:46

The Rangers had been playing well defensively all throughout the game, but a last minute chance wound up tying the game for Philadelphia. The Flyers did a great job of putting everyone to the front of the net with the goalie pulled, and it paid off on the scoreboard. Joel Farabee was able to slip in undetected from up top, and just barely tapped the puck over the goal line. Alexandar Georgiev made a great sprawling effort to keep the puck out of the net, but just couldn’t stretch far enough.

Shootout

The overtime period ended with the game still deadlocked at 2-2, and we headed to the shootout to decide a winner. Kaapo Kakko lead off for the Rangers and beat Carter Hart with  a nifty snap shot from the top of the crease. Sean Couturier was up next for the Flyers, and knotted up the game with a ridiculous cut back move to his forehand. David Quinn continued to reward his top players tonight, and sent out Artemiy Panarin with a chance to put the Rangers back on top.

In a similar fashion to Kakko’s goal, Panarin was able to hesitate enough to freeze Carter Hart, and snapped a quick shot under his right leg pad. Alexandar Georgiev was tasked with shutting down James van Riemsdyk in the third round, and he was able to seal the two points for the Rangers.

Despite the offensive struggles still ongoing for New York, they played a much better game defensively tonight. They did blow another lead late in the game, but they found a way to regroup and collect the win in the shootout. Following tonight’s win, the Rangers will have an off day tomorrow before returning to action on Saturday afternoon against the Washington Capitals.

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