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Resilient Rangers rally to beat Canadiens 5-4 in overtime: Takeaways
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- Resilient Rangers rally to beat Canadiens 5-4 in overtime: Takeaways
Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
The New York Rangers ' current captain sent 24 of their former players, including five ex-captains, and a sellout crowd of 18,006 on "The New Garden" night home happy after their most stirring win of the season.
J.T. Miller, named captain during training camp, scored his second goal of the game at 2:56 of overtime to cap New York's comeback from a three-goal deficit and give the Blueshirts a 5-4 victory against the Montreal Canadiens at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.
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With Montreal's Jake Evans off for slashing Artemi Panarin, Miller took a pass from Mika Zibanejad and got every ounce of a one-timer from the right circle, beating rookie Jacob Fowler for the win – something that looked impossible after the Canadiens led 3-0 entering the final two minutes of the first period.
"I was supposed to be in front of the net," Miller confessed after scoring his 16th career overtime goal. But when Panarin went to the net instead, Miller flared back to the right circle to provide another option – and it paid off with the winning goal.
It was a huge rebound for the Rangers after a poor effort in a 3-0 road loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday — and a fitting tribute to the former Rangers on hand.
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"It was good," Alexis Lafreniere said of the performance after the loss in Chicago. "We tried to be a little more careful and play in their end."
The Rangers played one of their best shutdown stretches of the season in the first 12 minutes of the first period, holding the Canadiens without a shot on goal. Montreal finally got its first shot on goal at 12:41 – and found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. Zach Bolduc set up in front of the net and tipped Nick Suzuki 's feed past a defenseless Igor Shesterkin.
The Canadiens' second shot also went in, with Arber Xhekaj getting to the front of the net and deflecting Alexandre Carrier 's shot past a screened Shesterkin at 14:10. Evans further silenced the Garden crowd at 16:18, beating Shesterkin from inside the left circle after the Rangers were outworked in their own zone.
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But a goal from an unlikely source – the struggling power play – got the Rangers back in the game. Noah Laba went to the net, picked up a loose puck after Will Cuylle cut in front, and popped his own rebound past Fowler, making his second NHL start, at 18:49 to make it 3-1.
Panarin cut it to 3-2 just 19 seconds later when he scored on a penalty shot after being hooked by defenseman Noah Dobson . The Rangers' leading scorer fired back to his left while going right against Fowler, cutting Montreal's lead to 3-2.
"I was panicked, to be honest. Everyone in the rink (was) excited, too," Panarin said. "The ice was not the best in the last minute. I'm glad I scored."
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The Canadiens quieted the crowd again 3:17 into the second period, making it 4-2 when Josh Anderson beat Shesterkin on a one-timer from the slot after a terrific pass by Lane Hutson , the reigning Calder Trophy winner. But the Blueshirts got even with two goals in 35 seconds before the eight-minute mark.
Cuylle made it 4-3 at 7:22 when his feed through the crease hit Huston and went past Fowler. Miller tied it 4-4 at 7:57, picking up the rebound of Matthew Robertson's shot and deking Fowler before sliding the puck between the rookie goalie's legs.
The Garden erupted 5:51 into the third period when Sam Carrick appeared to score the go-ahead goal off a scramble. But a quick video review showed that the veteran center kicked the puck into the net, and the goal was waved off. There was plenty of physicality during the remainder of regulation, but no goals.
The Rangers will have Sunday off to regroup before beginning a week that will see them play five times in seven days, beginning with the return of former Blueshirt Chris Kreider to MSG when the Anaheim Ducks visit on Monday.
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Key takeaways after the Rangers' 5-4 OT win against Montreal
Miller time
This is the version of J.T Miller the Rangers thought they were getting when they acquired him from the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 31.
Miller scored the tying goal by bulling his way to the net, picking up a rebound and getting Fowler to open his pads before sliding the puck into the net. The game-winner was pure power – a blast off the feed from Zibanejad that Fowler had no chance on.
"We have to find ways to win every single way," he said.
The captain was also pleased at the way the Rangers showed the resilience to come back after falling behind by three goals on the heels of the poor effort in Chicago.
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"I think we did a good job of staying mentally tough and in the moment," he said. "Present, worried about the next shift and (we) really turned the tide on them. They defended a lot of the night, I felt like. When we play like that, it's the same speech every game — I think we're a lot to handle."
A comeback to remember
Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
The Rangers won a game in which they trailed by three goals for the first time in nearly two years; they beat the New York Islanders 6-5 in overtime after trailing 4-1 in the second period of their NHL Stadium Series game on Feb. 18, 2024, at Met Life Stadium.
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Coach Mike Sullivan said even when his team was down three goals, he didn't think they were playing badly.
"We were on our toes," he said. "We had a couple of breakdowns that ended up in the back of our net, but I didn't think we were playing badly. We held them without a shot for almost 13 minutes."
He said there was no thought of pulling Shesterkin and just wanted to make sure that his players didn't get down on themselves.
"There was a lot of hockey left — that's what we talked about on the bench," he said. "That's what we talked about in between periods, 'Let's not get overwhelmed here. Let's just keep playing, keep playing the game. Let's work for the next goal.' And that's what they did."
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Power play comes alive
Sullivan stuck with the five-forward system he's used on the first power-play unit since defenseman Adam Fox was injured two weeks ago. But it was the second unit that produced the Rangers' first extra-man goal since Nov. 28. Laba went to the net and banged in his own rebound to get the Rangers on the board.
The overtime power-play goal was scored at 4-on-3, but the four players on the ice — Miller, Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck and Panarin — are all part of PP1.
Seeing his power play go 2-for-2 after firing blanks in five straight games has to make Sullivan feel better as the Rangers head into their toughest week of the season. The power play could be especially important against the Ducks, who've allowed 27 PPGs, tied for the second-most in the NHL.
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Kreider's return with Ducks takes center stage
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There will be a familiar face wearing No. 20 when the Rangers host the Ducks on Monday — but he'll be wearing orange and white rather than a Blueshirt.
GM Chris Drury traded Kreider to the Ducks in June after arguably the worst season of his career — he finished with 22 goals and 30 points after three straight seasons with at least 36 goals while battling injuries and illness.
The third-leading goal-scorer in Rangers history (326 goals) is off to a fast start with his new team, He's scored 13 goals and has 21 points in 28 games for Anaheim, which is second in the Pacific Division and trying to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2017-18.
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Kreider tried to play down his return to the Garden, referring to it on Thursday as a "business trip."
But it's hard to imagine he won't at least a little emotional after the requisite a video tribute from the Rangers and a big welcome from the Garden fans he played for.
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