Recap: Quick Leads NYR to Come-From-Behind, OT Win

What a way to kick off the final stretch of the regular season. The Rangers returned to action with an absolute goaltending showcase in what was a low scoring yet high offensive showing. Following a spirited, eventful opening period, the story of the night came down to goaltending but with the Rangers trailing for most of the night, the scene was set for an inspiring come-from-behind win which was encouraged by the incredible play of veteran goaltender Jonathan Quick.

1st Period:

Colorado wasted no time showcasing their offensive talents as they had a great chance right off their first rush of the night, moving the puck incredibly well and testing Jonathan Quick. As play went back and forth, the Rangers would quickly be at a disadvantage as just a minute and a half in, they were assigned the first penalty of the night. Erik Gustafsson would be called for holding against longtime Devil Zach Parise, who just recently signed with the Avalanche following the All-Star weekend.

Chris Kreider had a brilliant chance on the penalty kill as he beat Nathan Mackinnon to the puck in the neutral zone and slowed down enough to pull the puck around him, throwing a backhander on net that required a patient effort from Alexandar Georgiev. Teams returned to even strength following a strong penalty kill from the Blueshirts but it wouldn’t be long before they headed back to a disadvantage.

A tough break for Kaapo Kakko who couldn’t get enough on a loose puck on the wide open side of the net as he would go on to trip Samuel Girard to send Colorado right back to the power play. Not an ideal way to start the game but credit to the Rangers penalty killers as they matched up quite well to Colorado’s aggressive power play. This continued to lead to shorthanded scoring opportunities but none of them were good enough to beat Georgiev who always seems to show up against his former team.

Just over the midway point of the period, K’Andre Miller and Mikko Rantanen got tangled up in a battle on the side of the net. Miller, who typically isn’t one to engage in such activities, was quite riled up and rightfully so after taking a cross-check from behind and up high from Rantanen. This sent both players off for coincidental minors but gave Colorado an additional penalty for the cross-check.

It would be the Rangers first power play opportunity of the night although it wouldn’t be very effective let alone a full attempt. The top unit picked up right where they left off leading up to the break, passing the puck beautifully but failing to register any shots on goal. The second unit would take the ice but their shift would be cut short as Alexis Lafrenière was wrongfully called for tripping. Upon review, it was very clear that it was actually the stick of Josh Manson that had tripped up Miles Wood along the boards. Despite it looking like the officials briefly considered reversing the call, the team’s would skate 4-on-4 for 30 seconds before the Rangers had yet another Colorado man advantage to kill off.

With just under two minutes to go in the opening period, Nathan Mackinnon entered the Rangers zone with great Mackinnon-like speed and surprised Quick with a shot that may have deflected off the defending stick of Braden Schneider.

While the Rangers would head into the first intermission down a goal, they kept up the pressure in the shift that followed the goal and all things considered, played a fairly solid period. Especially factoring in how much of it they spent shorthanded. After twenty, Colorado had the advantage in shots 15-11 with shot attempts being 23-15. The teams split face-off wins with Colorado having much more time on attack with three power play chances. Was certainly an eventful start to the game with the Rangers holding their own despite being dominated a bit a 5-on-5.

2nd Period:

It was a much slower second period for both sides. So much so that neither team really saw much action through the first half of the period as the score remained the same and both sides managed to stay out of the box throughout the period. With under seven minutes to go, the Rangers saw one of their better chances of the period as Kreider had another good chance on a partial breakaway that was poked away by Georgiev from up close. Play really picked up in the final five minutes or so in the second but it was definitely becoming quite a goalies game.

The Rangers weren’t being outplayed terribly but there was a big difference in what Colorado’s top players were bringing to the table as opposed to the Rangers. There’s no question this game could have easily been 5-0 Colorado had it not been for the superb goaltending of Jonathan Quick but on top of that, the Rangers weren’t getting much out of their top players. Their best line was without question the third line of Cuylle – Brodzinski – Kakko as they were playing strong on the puck and maintained solid possession in Colorado’s end.

Through two periods of play, the Rangers continued to trail 1-0 on the scoreboard as Colorado continued to outshoot them 25-19. The Avalanche drastically had the advantage in shots, shot attempts, scoring chances as well as high danger chances. The Rangers were going to need to find a way to beat their former net-minder if they were going to make a game out of this goaltending showcase as Jonathan Quick was doing everything in his power to keep them in it.

3rd Period:

The Rangers opened the final period of regulation with a great shift where they were able to move the puck really well and generate a couple strong chances in the process. However, it was much of the same throughout the first half of the third. The Rangers were seeing a bigger share of the offense but neither team was able to beat the strong goaltending on either side.

Finally, with just under nine minutes to go in the third, Peter Laviolette put Artemiy Panarin out on the top line with Kreider and Zibanejad. Off the face-off, Panarin picked up the puck and skated all around the zone before letting a shot go from high in the slot that found the back of the net to tie the game up, 1-1.

With goals not being plentiful throughout the night, it was surely becoming a “next goal wins” type of outing. Both Georgiev and Quick were stellar through the final five minutes of regulation, coming up with crucial saves to keep the game tied. This would require extra time to determine the outcome of both teams first game back from the All-Star break as the score was locked 1-1. Final tally on shots through sixty minutes of regulation were 31-28 in favor of Colorado.

Overtime:

The Rangers lost the face-off which gave Colorado an early chance to end it as Cale Makar came in all alone and was turned away by Jonathan Quick. Colorado would have a pair of chances to follow as Quick came up with huge saves on both Mackinnon and Devon Toews to keep this thing alive. The Rangers won the defensive zone face-off and went the other way with it but ended up turning the puck over which brought it back to their zone.

Jonathan Quick would come out to play the puck and pass it ahead to Alexis Lafrenière. He would send it over to Zibanejad who dropped it back to Lafrenière who cut towards the net and let a hard wrist shot go that beat Georgiev to give the Rangers the extra point to win the game in overtime.

What a night this would become for the Rangers who came from behind to force overtime and take the extra point to beat the Avalanche 2-1. An incredible goaltending showcase between Alexandar Georgiev and Jonathan Quick who not only kept the puck out of the Rangers net to help them win the game, but picked up his first assist as a New York Ranger, making an incredible pass that directly led to the Lafrenière game-winning goal.

It wasn’t a perfect showing but the Rangers hung in there against one of the top teams in the West and found a way to come out with two points. An important win to pick up where they left off before the break in attempts to shake off that brutal stretch throughout the month of January. The Rangers will look to build a streak against another highly skilled opponent as they’re back at it Wednesday Night as they’ll host the Tampa Bay Lightning.