ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Rangers are less than half a period away from losing to the lowly Ducks, snapping their third straight loss.
That was until Will Quill's hard work throughout the game paid off in full.
Sunday's game against the Rangers was clearly focused on getting his body into the net, with Kyle fighting hard all night in front of the blue crease.
The Rangers rookie escaped from a pin in the corner, beat his opponent in front of the goal, and converted Jacob Trouba's shot with his stick to tie the score at two-all with 9:50 left in regulation time.
“I don't think we've been getting good screens at the net the last few games, we haven't been getting F1 at the net,” said the first forward in the offensive zone after the Rangers' 5-2 come-from-behind victory. Quill said about. Beyond the Ducks. “That was a big focus and we tried to execute that as much as possible throughout the game.”
Just over four minutes later, Quill was clutch again, earning a tripping penalty while cutting into the net.
The Rangers then took advantage of an immediate opportunity with a goal from Artemi Panarin on the power play to take their first lead of the night.
The 21-year-old has been a relatively consistent and impressive presence for Rangers this season.
Aside from scoring his eighth goal of the season on Sunday, Quill's play could be directly related to the Rangers' recovery and eventual victory.
“He was great all night,” head coach Peter Laviolette said of Caillou. “He moves his feet, he works physically, he's around the net, he's close to the net. There's a lack of that presence on the net, so it's talked about. He always fights to get in there. He's willing to pay the price to get there.”
Erik Gustafsson returned to the lineup Sunday night against the Ducks after missing the previous game in Los Angeles with a lower-body injury.
As a result, defenseman Zach Jones suffered his 31st graze in 46 games this season.
Additionally, Laviolette opted to insert Nick Bonino back into the lineup after removing the 35-year-old forward in favor of Tyler Pitlick.
Laviolette eventually reversed his decision and moved Bonino back to the center of the fourth row between Barclay Goodrow and Jimmy Vesey.
Pitlick has played 26 consecutive games since the beginning of November until this month, but has been injured in nine of the last 10 games.
The Rangers are scheduled to take Monday off and conclude their trip Tuesday night against the Sharks in San Jose.
Upon returning home, the Rangers are scheduled to play the Golden Knights again on Friday before playing their final game before the All-Star break in Ottawa on Saturday.
