LAS VEGAS — The setup was excellent, with the Rangers coming off three thrilling wins as head coach Gerard Gallant and winger Ryan Reaves ready to face their former workforce, the Golden Knights, on the highway for the primary time for the reason that two got here to New York.
However their grand return was shortly overshadowed by a heap of shoddy protection and pregame information that No. 1 goalie Igor Shesterkin had entered COVID-19 protocol, and the Rangers fell 5-1 to the Golden Knights in entrance of 18,117 at T-Cellular Area on Thursday night time.
The loss snapped a three-game win streak for the Rangers, who now enterprise to California for 3 video games.
“Positively didn’t need to are available in right here and get beat like that,” Reaves mentioned. “Powerful solution to exit, for certain.”
Each Gallant and Reaves acquired a heartfelt tribute video on the scoreboard and a loud ovation from the Vegas crowd, however the fourth-line winger admitted that he was affected by it greater than he anticipated to be.
“I used to be a bit of flustered for the remainder of the sport,” Reaves mentioned. “Whenever you’re connected to a metropolis like I used to be right here and, you realize, had some good instances right here. Recollections form of begin flooding in a bit. I’m not an emotional man, I wasn’t anticipating that in any respect, but it surely received to me a bit of bit. It messed with my sport a bit of bit.”
Simply earlier than puck drop, the Rangers introduced that Shesterkin, who was probably going to start out, had entered COVID-19 protocol. That compelled the Rangers to show to backup Alexandar Georgiev, who completed with 30 saves within the loss.
The majority of the sport’s motion got here within the second interval, through which the Rangers trailed by a purpose in the beginning. Simply 52 seconds into the center body, Chris Kreider wired one from the highest of the circle to even the rating 1-1 off in all probability the farthest shot he has taken this season.
The Rangers grew more and more careless with the puck and left Georgiev out to dry on multiple event whereas giving up a number of odd-man rushes.
Vegas finally posted two targets later within the interval to take a 3-1 lead into the ultimate 20 minutes. Winger Mark Stone made the Rangers pay for one of many many odd-man rushes they gave up, ending a stellar passing sequence by kicking the puck in. The purpose went beneath assessment, but it surely was upheld.
Mattias Janmark then breezed proper by Rangers defenseman Libor Hajek to select the highest nook of the online at 13:08 to offer the Golden Knights a two-goal lead.
Defensively, the second interval was a little bit of a large number for the Rangers.
“Once they scored the second purpose, it simply appeared like all the pieces went the mistaken means,” Gallant mentioned. “We didn’t compete anymore, we didn’t have the arduous work, actual disenchanted within the final 35 minutes.”
At one level, Gallant switched up the defensive pairs to try to get the Rangers to lock it down. He put Hajek with Adam Fox, whereas Ryan Lindgren skated with Zac Jones. It didn’t assist a lot and Gallant reverted again to his unique lineup by the third interval.
Former Ranger Brett Howden and Jonathan Marchessault capped the scoring within the third. Of Howden’s 4 targets in his first season in Vegas, two have come in opposition to the Rangers.
“We made a number of errors tonight,” Gallant mentioned. “The primary 25 minutes we performed an ideal sport plan to come back in right here and attempt to beat this hockey workforce. After that, it fell aside. We began turning these pucks over on the blue traces, we began defending in our ‘D’ zone as a substitute of enjoying.
“We began giving them time, if you allow them to go ‘D’ to ‘D’ and get pucks to the online and win battles, you’re not going to beat that workforce.”
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