Rangers vs Islanders: Islanders Defeat Rangers 4-2 To Close Out Preseason
The New York Rangers concluded their preseason schedule this evening as they were defeated 4-2 by the New York Islanders in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Rangers iced a very young lineup once again, as this was the last chance for the fringe players to take a run at some of the open roster spots. The Islanders, on the other hand, appeared to dress their entire starting roster in preparation for opening night.
Here is tonight’s goal breakdown.
Vladislav Namestnikov (2) - Lias Andersson (1) & Ryan Lindgren (1) - 12:54 2nd Period
Coming off of an impressive first period, the Rangers were finally rewarded for their efforts past the halfway mark of the second period. Lias Andersson did an excellent job of jumping on a loose puck, and quickly found Vladislav Namestnikov creeping into the high slot. Namestnikov immediately fired a low shot towards the net and beat Thomas Greiss through the legs.
Michael Dal Colle (1) - Nick Leddy (4) & Anders Lee (3) - 19:42 2nd Period
A couple of minutes after the Rangers opening goal, the Islanders tied back up the game with a power play goal from Michael Dal Colle. Nick Leddy created the entire goal with a great end-to-end rush from behind his own net and generated a rebound in front of Alexandar Georgiev. With no one back to clear the crease, Michael Dal Colle swatted at the loose puck and tied up the game at 1-1.
Josh Bailey (1) - Jordan Eberle (2) & Devon Toews (2) - 4:44 3rd Period
The Islanders continued their success on their power play early in the third period, and Josh Bailey’s marker gave the Isles their first lead of the evening. Alexandar Georgiev made a great leg save on the initial shot, but kicked the rebound right to Bailey on the far side. Bailey immediately fired a slap shot back towards the net and beat Georgiev over the shoulder.
Tony DeAngelo (1) - Greg McKegg (2) & Libor Hajek (1) - 5:36 3rd Period
A little under a minute later, the Rangers tied things up once again with Tony DeAngelo registering his first goal of the preseason. The Islanders started throwing their weight around, and the Rangers did a great job of fighting them off. Brendan Lemieux did pick up an assist on the goal but did all of the dirty work to create the chance.
Lemieux was able to fight off two hit attempts by the Islanders, and eventually worked the puck around to Greg McKegg. McKegg slipped the puck over to Tony DeAngelo cutting into the zone, and he wired a wrist shot past Thomas Greiss.
Mathew Barzal (2) - Ryan Pulock (2) & Jordan Eberle (3) - 17:40 3rd Period
Unfortunately for the Rangers, the Islanders experience kicked in at the end of the third period and Mathew Barzal scored the game winning goal. The Rangers were caught chasing in their own zone, and Ryan Pulock found a lapse in coverage at the left faceoff circle. Barzal was able to slip away from his defender, open up for a shot, and beat Georgiev through the legs to make it a 3-2 game.
Adam Pelech (1) - Johnny Boychuk (1) & Leo Komarov (1) - 19:37 3rd Period
The Islanders iced the game with under 30 seconds remaining, and added one final empty net goal to take home the win.
Following the conclusion of the preseason, the Rangers will have one final round of cuts to trim down to a 23-man roster. Following the cuts, the Rangers will open the regular season on Thursday night as they take on the Winnipeg Jets at Madison Square Garden.
