Recap: Rangers Blow Multiple Leads, Lose to Ducks 5-4 in Overtime

It’s beginning to feel like groundhog day as the Rangers continue to find themselves just a win or two away from the playoff picture despite the inconsistency in their own efforts. Nevertheless, there was an important pair of points up for grabs again tonight and this time, it was against some familiar faces.

Not only were the Rangers going up against Frank Vatrano and Ryan Strome, they would be playing against their former Captain Jacob Trouba for the first time since the dramatic trade back in December. Naturally, all three former friends would get the start for the Ducks in a game they would go on to win after the Rangers blew multiple leads, throwing away what should have been an easy win in embarrassing fashion.

1st Period: 

Another atrocious start for the Rangers as they nearly gave up a goal in the first minute again as a shot from Olen Zellweger deflected and went off the post. This was right after a missed call on Will Borgen as he was tripped below the goal line but the shift came to an end with Borgen being called for high sticking. This sent Anaheim to the power play which the Rangers were able to kill off despite a couple of close calls. 

As the team’s returned to even strength, the Rangers took advantage of Jackson LaCombe breaking his stick on a shot attempt at the point. Artemi Panarin went the other way with it and after shooting the puck wide of the net, Fox was able to backhand it in past Lukas Dostal to take an early 1-0 lead. 

The Ducks didn’t let the goal discourage them as they continued to create chances and put pressure on the Rangers. Through the first half of the period, they were out-shooting the Rangers 11-3, several of which required big saves from Igor Shesterkin. The tide turned a bit as the Ducks iced the puck several times in a row which left some of their guys out on the ice for close to three minutes but finally, a frozen puck by Dostal got them a whistle and a TV-timeout. 

Braden Schneider hit the post as we neared the final five minutes of the opening period and with roughly four and a half to go, K’Andre Miller was taken down to give the Rangers their first power play of the night. It would end up working against the Rangers favor as Leo Carlsson cleared the puck to send Alex Killorn on a breakaway. Shesterkin made the initial save but had no such luck on the rebound which tied the game up 1-1. That was just the fourth shorthanded goal of the season the Rangers had given up. 

Luckily, the Rangers were able to regain the lead soon after. A great rush out of the zone from K’Andre Miller moved the puck ahead for Alexis Lafrenière who dished it right over to Will Cuylle. Cuylle threw it towards the net before taking a big hit from Radko Gudas to set up J.T. Miller for a quick backhander that found the back of the net to make it a 2-1 game. 

Not the best period seeing as the Ducks controlled play for extended periods of time but the Rangers had the 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission. Shots after twenty were 16-10 in Anaheim’s favor as they also led in high danger chances and expected goals for.

2nd Period:

The Rangers got off to a great start in the second as it only took 14 seconds for them to find the back of the net. Simple dump and chase hockey resulted in J.T. Miller finding Lafrenière going hard to the net who ripped a wrister past Dostal to extend the lead to 3-1. 

That goal seemed to be just what the Rangers needed to get a spark as they controlled play from that point on. Nearing the midway point of the outing, the Rangers were out-shooting the Ducks 9-4 in the second period doing a really good job of limiting their opponents opportunities. 

With close to eight minutes to go in the period, the Rangers headed back to the penalty kill as Carson Soucy was called for cross-checking. It would be a short lived advantage as Trevor Zegras was called for interference just 21 seconds into the power play. A bit of a soft call but nonetheless, the teams were headed to a minute and a half of 4-on-4 hockey. 

Just as that came to an end, Urho Vaakanainen got called for holding as he took down LaCombe which resulted in the two colliding into Shesterkin. With 43 seconds left on that Anaheim power play, J.T. Miller was sent off for delay of game as he sent the puck into the crowd on a clearing attempt. A big save from Shesterkin helped the Rangers fight off the 5-on-3 and a strong effort from the penalty killers got them back to even strength unscathed. 

The Ducks nearly picked up a late period goal on a strong push from Cutter Gauthier’s line as Shesterkin had to come up with a couple of key saves. That would do it for the second as total shots were 26-22 Anaheim with the Rangers up in the game 3-1. With a solid lead established, the Rangers were in good standing to close things out in the third.

3rd Period:

Joe Micheletti was preaching risk free hockey as what he looked for here in the third. The Rangers did not heed that advice as they soon found themselves in some trouble. The constant battle regarding consistency with K’Andre Miller continued as he had a costly turnover that resulted in Leo Carlsson beating Shesterkin with a hard shot to bring the Ducks within one just two and a half minutes into the period, 3-2. 

Soon after, the Rangers were back to the power play as Ryan Strome was called for slashing. Another iffy call came as a huge opportunity for the Rangers to bounce back from the early goal and finally, they would convert. A quick one timer from Mika Zibanejad found the back of the net to regain the two goal lead but more notably… IT’S A POWER PLAY GOAL! Sadly, we need to cherish every one of those calls across these last ten games because pretty soon, it’ll be that too will last a lifetime. That also snapped a serious drought having gone 0 for their last 17. 

Shortly after, the Rangers were back to the power play as Troy Terry was called for tripping Will Borgen. That was soon extended into a 5-on-3 as the Ducks were caught with too many men on the ice. And just like that, they were cold again as the Rangers failed to not only convert but didn’t generate a single shot on goal throughout the advantage. 

The Rangers would get yet another power play chance with eight minutes to go as Zellweger sent the puck over the glass. The top unit had a couple of decent looks but it was right back to the struggle as they wouldn't convert this time around neither. To make matters worse, Gauthier picked up a rebound as play went the other way to bring Anaheim back within one. Another bad goal to give up that came as a result of a turnover, 4-3.

With four minutes to go, Brennan Othmann who despite limited ice time, was buzzing hard all night on the hunt for that first NHL goal; was thrown into the goal post by Gudas to send the Rangers back to the power play. The Rangers held the zone for most of those two minutes but again, failed to convert. Anaheim ended up with a 4-on-2 odd-man rush returning to even strength and sure enough, Zellweger found the back of the net to tie the game 4-4.

Another inexcusable effort from this Rangers team as they failed to play the game with any urgency and couldn't shut down one of the league's basement dwellers. As a result, the game was heading to overtime.

Overtime:

The Rangers lose the face-off, Anaheim dominates possession for 59 seconds. It almost looks as if Trocheck and Shesterkin collided with each other resulting in Shesterkin being slightly out of position. The three Rangers skaters stood around and watched as the Ducks moved the puck around, setting up Mason MacTavish in front to pick up the extra point. The Rangers blew multiple leads in this game, couldn't shutdown a bunch of kids and have another contender for worst loss of the season.

They say if you have nothing nice to say to not say anything at all so I'm going to go ahead and wrap this up here. The Rangers have no time to dwell in the misery as they are right back at it tomorrow night in San Jose.