Sometimes the team has to walk away with a victory.
Well, on Saturday night, the Rangers took an empty net against the Red Wings for a 4-0 victory, and given how poorly the score came, the score could have been reversed, and maybe After a game that should have been reversed, it was successfully avoided. The visitors played.
It wasn't just that puck luck was on the Blueshirts' side.
They were buried in 5-on-5 play throughout the second period, losing 27-11 on attempts and trailing 12-3 on dangerous chances.
The Red Wings' expected goal percentage at 40 minutes was an astonishing 74.72.
Detroit never had trouble getting into the Rangers zone, where they spent the majority of the game. After the final horn, there was still a zero next to the logo.
It was a last-minute miracle.
The word “borderline” plays a big role because this is exactly the situation the Rangers are in these days.
They still manage to get by with otherworldly goaltending — this time Jonathan Quick's 37 saves for his 61st career shutout — and special teams play.
Detroit was playing the second night of a back-to-back, and third game in four days.
Given how mired the Rangers were at 5-on-5 against the Red Wings, no one would have known that without looking at the NHL calendar.
Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso had the NHL's worst points-against average (9.42) in his second game of the season, but the Rangers didn't put much pressure on him with 23 shots on target.
After defeating the Red Wings by a combined score of 9-3 in their last two games in October, the Rangers didn't get off to the same strong start as they had earlier this season against Detroit.
The Red Wings had the upper hand in 5-on-5 play for the first 20 minutes.
The home team outscored the Rangers 19-8 in the second period with more onslaught.
Still, the Rangers managed to take the lead late in the opening frame with a power-play goal by Chris Kreider.
Playing with the lead gave the Blueshirts a little more stability, but they still found themselves under siege at times. It was clear how much the face of the matchup had changed in just three and a half weeks.
It seemed like the Red Wings were about to take the game away.
Jimmy Vesey then buried Sam Carrick's feed from behind the Detroit goal, doubling the Rangers' lead at the 16:52 mark of the second period.
Less than a minute later, Mika Zibanejad scored on Artemi Panarin to make it 3-0.
That was around the time the Rangers were warming up their planes on the tarmac.
The third period was played more evenly, and the final stats evened out a bit, but Detroit still dominated the possession game.
Relying on individual talent both in goal scoring and in net, the Rangers' team play remains a mess on both sides of the puck.
The NHL's best team, the Winnipeg Jets, is coming to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.
At least the Rangers will be heading home soon to prepare.
