A Christmas Miracle in D.C.: Rangers Explode in the Third for Statement Win
A big night of redemption as two teams came into tonight trying to get back in the win column. The New York Rangers continue to look for some spark after the loss of their captain, J.T. Miller. Meanwhile, the Washington Capitals hoped to get a win without their enforcer, Tom Wilson, who was out due to illness. Despite the Blueshirts continuing to look quite lost on the ice, a familiar face to these Washington Capitals found the back of the net a few times. As the NHL closes out its last game before Christmas, the New York Rangers were blessed with a Christmas miracle as they escaped from Washington with a 7-3 win over the Washington Capitals.
Right off the drop, a golden opportunity presented itself for Alexis Lafrenière, who was robbed by the post yet again. Aside from that chance, Washington had the Rangers on their heels to start the game. Despite the heavy pressure, New York had their first chance on a double-minor, but the power play continues to look lost out there. A humiliating power play, but New York would strike first as Washington's old friend Taylor Raddysh made it 1-0 Rangers. Washington may have had the edge to start this game, but New York escaped to the second with a 1-0 lead.
New York's first-period victory was soon silenced as Washington tied the game just 23 seconds into the second period. Some pretty passing led to John Carlson ripping one past the blocker of Igor Shesterkin and tying the game. Washington soon had their chance on the power play, but they too found themselves in quite a drought, while Shesterkin stayed strong as always. They failed on their first attempt, but their second was quite the opposite, as they took the lead in the most unlikely fashion. Dylan Strome with plenty of net, shoots it into the glove of Igor, but the puck just barely crossed the line in his glove, making it 2-1 Capitals. New York found themselves back on the power play, where they responded immediately as Will Cuylle tapped it in and tied the game. Less than a minute later, Aliaksei Protas found a rebound and took the lead right back for Washington as he made it 3-2. A back-and-forth period soon concluded with Washington in front, with twenty remaining.
The third period went off, and New York searched for the equalizer. Even with a power play, Logan Thompson stayed strong, but the game was soon tied yet again. New York's efforts soon paid off as Raddysh picked up his second goal of the game against his former team, and tied the game yet again, but again, not for long. More pressure in the Washington zone led to Artemi Panarin shooting one through traffic, and it was tipped past Thompson by Lafrenière, giving New York the 4-3 lead. The Blueshirts didn't stop there, right off the faceoff, Vincent Trocheck picked up a rebound and slid it past Thompson to make it 5-3 Rangers. The net in Washington soon emptied, and it didn't take long for Panarin to seal it and make it 6-3 Rangers. The damage wouldn't stop as Trocheck slid yet another one underneath Thompson, making it 7-3 New York. The buzzer sounded, and the Rangers escaped with a 7-3 victory on the road, continuing their road success.
A good win for New York as they bounce back from a heartbreaker in Nashville. A much-needed win indeed, but still much more to work on by the looks of it, the power play mostly. As Washington looked to have the Rangers on their heels quite a bit, they continue to be unable to close out games like this, where they're expected to win. A nice early Christmas gift for the Rangers as they rest up to return to New York to face the Islanders, as Washington heads to New Jersey after the holidays looking to bounce back.
