Mika Zibanejad scores in overtime to lift Rangers past Islanders
In their first really important, post-trade deadline game in three years, the Rangers had newly signed Chris Kreider in the lineup, but not Pavel Buchnevich or goaltender Igor Shesterkin, who were involved in a car accident Sunday night that shook up Buchnevich and knocked Shesterkin out for at least a couple weeks with a broken rib.
So Alexandar Georgiev started in goal against the Islanders in a game full of playoff implications, and he made 42 saves to keep his team in it until Mika Zibanejad’s goal, 28 seconds into overtime, gave the Rangers a 4-3 win that inched them closer to a playoff spot.
“In the last couple years, this is the most meaningful game we’ve played,’’ Marc Staal said. “So to have that kind of energy before the game, that nervous excitement, I missed it. And I think we were real excited to play, and I thought we handled it well and found a way to get a big win.’’
The victory was the eighth in nine games for the Rangers (34-24-4), who set a franchise record with their eighth straight road win. It was the Rangers’ third win in four games against the Islanders this season, moving them within four points of Columbus for the second-wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
“That felt like a playoff game in a lot of ways,’’ Rangers coach David Quinn said. “Just an incredibly fast-paced game, incredibly intense. We really had it between the ears tonight. Some guys were sluggish, but I thought we really managed the game well.’’
The Rangers spent much of the night in their own zone and were outshot, 45-28. But they held a 3-1 lead when Brendan Smith fired a shot that was tipped in by Brett Howden at 9:34 of the third period. But the Islanders tied it on goals by Jordan Eberle and Brock Nelson, the latter with 17.9 seconds left and Semyon Varlamov pulled for an extra skater.
First, an apparent Islander goal was waved off for goaltender interference by Anders Lee with 7:44 remaining in regulation. The Islanders challenged the ruling and failed to get it overturned, giving the Rangers a power play.
But they failed to score with the man advantage, and seven seconds after it ended, Eberle scored on a backhander at 14:23 off a pass by Mat Barzal. Nelson's goal forced overtime.
In the overtime, Artemi Panarin, who scored the Rangers’ first goal, stole the puck from Anthony Beauvillier just inside the Rangers blue line and headed off on a breakaway. All three Islanders players hustled to get back and surround Panarin in the right circle, but Panarin was able to hold on to the puck, turn, and send a pass to a wide-open Zibanejad, who cranked a one-timer past Varlamov for the winner. It was his 29th goal of the season.
Georgiev, who started all four games against the Islanders this season, was sharp all game but did his best work in the first period, when he kicked out all 15 shots the Isles took in the period. Panarin’s goal, his 32nd, gave the Rangers the lead at 17:02 of the first. They made it 2-0 when Greg McKegg, back in the lineup to replace Buchnevich after sitting out the last three games, tipped a shot by Brendan Lemieux past Varlamov at 7:48 of the second period.
But the Islanders kept piling up shots and eventually got on the board when a shot by Ryan Pulock deflected over the goal and off the back glass and came back into the slot. Neither Georgiev nor Staal knew where the puck went, but Jean-Gabriel Pageau, battling with Staal, did, knocked it down with his glove and tapped it in behind Georgiev for his first Islanders goal and 25th of the season at 17:04.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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