Rangers fall in overtime as Panthers even up conference final

NHL

By Mollie Walker

SUNRISE, Fla. — So the Eastern Conference Final has come down to the best of three.

After both the Rangers and Panthers split at home through the first four games, with Florida taking a 3-2 win on Sam Reinhart’s power-play goal just over a minute into overtime of Game 4 Tuesday night at Amerant Bank Arena, the best team on the Eastern Seaboard will be revealed by who can come away with two more victories in this grueling crusade of a series.

The first of the final back-and-forth battles will be Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

“We know what we have to do better,” said Mika Zibanejad, whose offensive-zone pass was picked off and forced Blake Wheeler to take a hooking penalty that set the Panthers up for their game-winning goal in the extra period with the man-advantage. “We know what we have to do more of and the recipe to get the game our way and to tilt the ice the other way.”

The Rangers both led and trailed in this one, but the final 40 minutes of regulation largely belonged to the Panthers. Such has been the case for a majority of this series, in which Florida has generated suffocating offensive stretches.

Getting outshot 27-10 and having to defend 14 high-danger chances in comparison to their two, according to Natural Stat Trick, the Blueshirts are going to have a tough time pulling out two more wins with how much time they’re getting pinned in their own end.

“We’re spending a little bit too much time playing defense, especially in the second period,” head coach Peter Laviolette said, referring to how the Panthers took a 2-1 lead on a goal from Sam Bennett and a power-play score from Carter Verhaeghe in the middle frame. “That happened last game as well and so we’re not able to move and generate the way that we want to out there. They come at you hard, they dump a lot of pucks, they forecheck hard.

“So you’re not spending time in the right zone, like [Chris Kreider and Zibanejad], they want to get out of the defensive zone, they want to get into the offensive zone where they can make an impact in the game. That’s something I thought we did a much better job at home.”

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As strong as the Rangers’ first period was, the Panthers’ second and third periods were even stronger.

The opening 20 minutes represented the Rangers’ best period of the series thus far.

Not only were they on the attack so much more, but the visitors made quicker decisions with the puck and managed to disrupt some of what the Panthers were trying to do in transition and in their zone.

The power play also snapped an 0-for-8 skid in the series on a one-timer from Vincent Trocheck in the first period, as the Rangers’ top man-advantage unit started to resemble what it had looked like for a majority of the playoffs.

It didn’t take long for the Panthers to wear the Rangers down, however, as the home team kicked it into overdrive to outwork their opponents as the game progressed.

Alexis Lafreniere did make it possible for the Rangers to reach overtime.

The once-underachieving first-overall pick collected his third goal in two games Tuesday night, a game-tying score early in the third period that forced overtime, to boost his postseason totals to seven goals and 13 points in 14 games.

Goalie Igor Shesterkin also had to be brilliant once again, but his 36 saves in regulation were wasted.

So the Rangers need to take two of the next three to make it count.

Two more wins to confirm they are in fact the best team in the East.

Two more to earn the right to compete for the Stanley Cup.

“Obviously, wanted to get that third one and come back with a 3-1 lead,” said Adam Fox, who posted his first multi-point night of the playoffs in the loss. “But just come back on home ice next game and respond.”