LAS VEGAS — The Rangers had a serious relapse Thursday night.
The two-game losing streak of the season felt like a distant memory as the Blueshirts were upset by the reigning Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights and lost 5-1, losing competitively in just five minutes.
Both teams have slipped through the midway point of the season after getting off to a strong start.
But the Rangers were the only team that still seemed to be sliding in on Thursday night.
“It's a difficult game,” head coach Peter Laviolette said after the game. “I thought our players started with the right intentions and played hard all night. I hate the score. The game kind of developed in the wrong direction for us. [what] It looked like a group ready to play. ”
In the first of two meetings with Vegas over nine days and the first of a four-game road trip out West, the Rangers went up 4-0 through two periods until Mika Zibanejad capitalized on a carryover. I fell into it. Play the third 40 seconds.
The Golden Knights made the most of the offensive opportunities they were given, while also practicing defensively at times.
So was Las Vegas, which was without Jack Eichel, who missed three straight games after undergoing knee surgery, and goalie Adin Hill, who gave the club a big boost in lifting Lord Stanley seven months ago.
Taking advantage of three rushing opportunities throughout the night, Las Vegas found holes in the Rangers' organization and exploited them — as many opponents have done in the past.
Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin gave up four points on 17 shots through 40 minutes, but was far from the savior the team was looking for.
“Again, some of the 'sacred moments' behind the net were five or six minutes where we played really well,” said Chris Kreider, who assisted on the Rangers' only goal. . “When you try to box them in and get chances, they were able to get some great chances the other way. …When that happens, you don't really set your goalie up to be successful. It’s difficult.”
Already trailing by two points at the start of the second period, the Rangers struggled to get into the offensive zone cleanly, and the Golden Knights were running out of time late.
Golden Knights forward Ivan Barbashev scored his second goal of the game on a power play after Braden Schneider was called for interference at 16:31.
Just 25 seconds later, Kaydan Kortschuk's trailing shot deflected off Keegan Kolesar's stick.
This is the eighth time this season the Rangers have conceded two goals within 30 seconds, yes, the eighth time.
The Rangers did everything but score in the first five minutes of the game, but the rest of the game belonged to the Golden Knights, even though the visitors had a 30-26 advantage in shots. It became.
Three of Las Vegas' five goals (including former Ranger Brett Howden's empty-netter) came from rushes.
That has taken a toll recently, putting the Rangers in an early hole.
For the past month and a half, the same habits have yielded the same results.
“There are things I want to improve on and I want to be better,” Zibanejad said. “But I'm happy that there are things to improve on. We're in a position to keep pushing towards the second half of the season, but there are things to improve on and that's good for us.”
