Rookie Will Cuylle scored the tiebreaking goal with 9:39 remaining in the third period and the host New York Rangers extended their winning streak to six games with a 2-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night.
The Rangers improved to 8-2-0 through their first 10 games, marking the second time in team history they won at least eight of their first 10 games.
After New York spent most of the game struggling to generate offense against Carolina’s neutral zone trap and physical defense, the Rangers came alive midway through the third.
Moments after Blake Wheeler was stopped on a partial breakaway, the Rangers cycled the puck out from behind the net. Jacob Trouba gained possession at the blue line near the Carolina bench and skated toward the right corner where he whipped a pass to a streaking Cuylle, who lifted the puck past goalie Frederik Andersen.
Chris Kreider scored a power-play goal in the first period to tie Andy Bathgate for fourth place on New York’s all-time list with 272 goals. Artemi Panarin set up Kreider’s goal to extend his season-opening points streak to 10 games, tying Bob Nevin for the third-longest in team history to start a season.
New York’s Igor Shesterkin made 12 of his 26 saves in the third, including a sprawling glove save on Martin Necas with 4:10 left.
New York finished its latest victory with 16 skaters after losing defenseman Adam Fox and forward Filip Chytil to injuries. Fox did not return due to a lower-body injury after colliding with Carolina’s Sebastian Aho with 7:51 remaining in the first and Chytil exited with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the second due to an upper-body injury.
Seth Jarvis scored for the Hurricanes, who saw a three-game winning streak snapped.
Andersen stopped 24 shots.
Kreider tied Bathgate during New York’s first power play when he re-directed Panarin’s backhanded pass from the right circle for his seventh goal and fifth power-play goal this season.
The Hurricanes evened things when Jarvis finished a partial breakaway by getting a pass from Aho and pushing a backhander by Shesterkin after splitting New York defensemen Trouba and Ryan Lindgren.
–Field Level Media
