Rangers can't handle potent Canucks offense 

The Rangers had an impressive start this season, but they’re coming back to the pack now.

A 6-3 loss to the high-flying Vancouver Canucks at Madison Square Garden on Monday night, their second straight defeat, left the home crowd stunned and may have exposed some cracks in the Rangers’ makeup. Suddenly, a team that started the calendar year at the top of the NHL standings has lost four of its last six games (2-3-1) and eight of its last 16 (8-7-1).

“I don’t know, I think we might have slipped a little bit defensively,’’ Mika Zibanejad said. “I think we’re giving up a little bit too much — in chances, but also the type of chances that we’re giving up. I think that something that . . . has made us successful this year is being tight defensively, being good with the puck, being responsible with the puck and not forcing it.’’

Elias Pettersson had two goals and two assists and Nils Hoglander had two goals for the Canucks, who also got goals from former Ranger J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser. Thatcher Demko made 39 saves.

Vincent Trocheck had two goals for the Rangers and Artemi Panarin had the other. Igor Shesterkin made 20 saves.

“We’re not really supporting each other. Not really,’’ Zibanejad said. “We’re there, but not really. It’s helping each other. We’re not going to be able to play amazing hockey every game, but we’re just putting ourselves in a bad spot, I think. And then we feel like we’re forced to make plays on every rush chance that we have and try to create something out of nothing.’’

Against the Canucks (26-11-3), who came into the game having scored the most goals in the league, the Rangers (26-11-2) were charged with committing 13 giveaways to Vancouver’s one.

And though the Rangers outshot Vancouver 42-26 and the analytics website Natural Stat Trick said the Rangers had more high-danger chances than the Canucks (14-9 in five-on-five play), the Rangers’ turnovers led to more dangerous scoring chances against.

“The chances that we let up tonight were way too loud,’’ Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said. “We weren’t under siege, but some of the decision-making for line changes, or line rush with people in place . . . they bit us right away against a team that’s got a lot of talent. There’s no excuse for that.

“We’re not going to win giving up five goals. Not on a regular basis. You’ll win one out of 10. Maybe you’ll score six. And so that has to get taken care of.’’

Trocheck’s first goal of the game, on the power play at 3:38 of the first period, gave the Rangers the early lead, but just as Garden public address announcer Joe Tolleson was announcing that goal, Miller tied it at 4:31. Hoglander gave the Canucks the lead at 6:45 and Boeser scored with 16 seconds remaining in the period.

Panarin’s goal at 8:19 of the second cut the gap to 3-2, but Pettersson’s first at 15:33 and Hoglander’s second at 16:47 put Vancouver up 5-2 after two periods.

Trocheck made it 5-3 at 3:36 of the third period, but Pettersson scored his second goal into an empty net with 1:31 remaining to end things.

“We’ve just got to limit the chances [against],’’ Trocheck said. “We’ve got to limit the turnovers. I think. I trust that we’ll get [scoring] chances if we play the right way defensively. And leaving our goalies out to dry — I know we have really good goaltenders, but you give these teams that many odd-man rushes, they’re going to score.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

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.