It was a goaltending showdown from start to finish, and the Avalanche prevailed.
In a game that saw a total of 90 shots on goal, Colorado forward Evan Rodrigues netted the shootout winner to hand the Rangers a 3-2 loss Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. Artemi Panarin was the only Ranger to score in the shootout.
It was the Rangers’ third straight loss, which only happened twice last season.
All eyes at the Garden were on former Rangers backup netminder Alexandar Georgiev, who took his spot between the pipes — as the No. 1 goalie he always believed he was — across the ice from the goaltender he once played behind. In his first game back in New York since the Rangers traded him to Colorado this summer, Georgiev finished with 44 saves.
There was more on the line than just a regular-season win in this one. Georgiev surely wanted to prove he could be the starting goalie he was never allowed to be with the Rangers. It ended up being a tight game overall, with both goalies giving up only one goal through two periods.
On the power play for the Rangers, however, Shesterkin’s rare mishandling of the puck resulted in a go-ahead shorthanded goal for the Avalanche. Colorado forward Andrew Cogliano was aggressive on the forecheck and stole the puck from Shesterkin, who wasn’t able to get set in net before Logan O’Connor scored 59 seconds into the final frame.
But a stellar play from defenseman Adam Fox, who had been quiet in the last few games, allowed the Rangers to even the score and send the game to overtime. After Fox caused a turnover that sprung an odd-man rush for the Rangers, Jimmy Vesey fed Fox for the game-tying goal with just under six minutes left in regulation.
When Kaapo Kakko was called for hooking at 10:25 of the first, the Avalanche’s red-hot power play blazed its way to a 1-0 lead. Cale Makar’s shot was tipped in by Valeri Nichushkin at 11:40 for Colorado’s 10th power-play goal in 18 chances this season.
On the other hand, the Rangers’ power play was 0-for-4 on the night. Despite their consistent ability to hold the zone and create opportunities, they’ve only scored one man-advantage goal in the last three games, which came during a five-on-three stretch. The lack of power-play scoring in this game, however, was a testament to Georgiev.
No goaltender in the league is more prepared for that Mika Zibanejad slap shot from the faceoff circle than Georgiev, who has seen it up close and personal for years. Georgiev made sure he was at the other post before the pass to Zibanejad even became a thought. There simply were no holes for the Rangers to break through.
The Rangers finally figured Georgiev out later in the second period, when a tic-tac-toe passing sequence from Sammy Blais, Jacob Trouba and Barclay Goodrow ended with Goodrow netting the equalizer.
Source: New York Post
