Rangers score much-needed win over Capitals with third-period eruption

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It was a merry night for the Rangers in our nation’s capital. 

Bearing down in the third period with five goals, the Blueshirts overcame their second one-goal deficit of the night and snagged a 7-3 win over the Capitals on Tuesday night to go into the three-day holiday break with some much-needed Christmas cheer. 

Ending an otherwise tumultuous month on a high note was imperative for this Rangers team. 

Coming off of laying an egg in Nashville, a response was necessary. 

It was far from a sure-thing victory, but the visitors pulled through when they needed to. 

In his return to D.C., Taylor Raddysh scored two goals, including the game-tying score in the third period. It counted as his first two scores since Oct. 30, first putting the Rangers up 1-0 in the first period before knotting the game at three-all at the 8:10 mark of the final frame. 

Alexis Lafreniere then got a stick on an Artemi Panarin shot from the top of the zone to capture the Rangers’ first lead of the game since the first period. 

Off a faceoff win later in the final frame, Vincent Trocheck padded the Rangers’ lead with his seventh goal of the season. Panarin’s empty-net goal only sealed the deal before Trocheck netted another.

Despite making up for it in the third, the Rangers endured another shaky second period.

After giving up four goals — two on the power play and one shorthanded — to the Flyers on Saturday, Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin had three hung on him in the middle frame Tuesday night. 

Limited to five shots on goal through each of the first two periods, the Rangers allowed Washington to rack up 15 through the second period alone on the way to 32 on the night. 

It didn’t take the Capitals very long to get going. Just 23 seconds into the second period, John Carlson whipped the puck right under Shesterkin’s blocker to even the score at one-all. Shesterkin did his best to shake it off, denying Justin Sourdif on the doorstep to keep the game tied. 

With Carson Soucy in the box for holding, Shesterkin appeared to rob Dylan Strome on the Capitals’ power play to the shock of the fans in attendance. After a review from the situation room in Toronto, however, it was determined that the puck “completely crossed the line” to give the Caps a 2-1 edge. 

In an unfortunate situation for the Rangers, Shesterkin couldn’t make the save despite having the puck in his glove. 

The Rangers were able to answer and tie it up on the power play, when Will Cuylle tapped in a feed from Mika Zibanejad. The tie game didn’t last long, with the Capitals continuing to pepper Shesterkin shift after shift . 

Shesterkin then left a juicy rebound for Aliaksei Protas to bury for his 13th goal of the season.