Rangers Pull Off Victory Over Canadiens In Dramatic Fashion To Snap Losing Streak

It wasn’t pretty, but the New York Rangers found a way to pull out a gutsy 4-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday afternoon, snapping a five-game losing streak.

The Rangers’ performance against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday was dreadful. There was no sense of urgency as the team really played without any heart.

It was a different story during today’s game.

It all started in the first period when Jacob Trouba fought Josh Anderson for well over 30 seconds. While Trouba didn’t necessarily win the fight, seeing their captain battle the way he did was inspiring for the Rangers and it set the tone for the rest of the contest.

“We needed to respond,” Zac Jones said. “Obviously in the last three periods, we’ve been outshot, it’s been stupid, it’s been bad. Having Trouba get a quick fight early, definitely put some energy on the bench and gave the boys a little jolt.

“Any time anyone fights, it gives the bench a little jolt of energy. It doesn't matter if he wins or loses, he’s out there sticking up for the team and that was great from Trouba. We needed that, the team needed that and that was a big-time moment for him.”

The game got extremely physical and chippy. Throughout the entirety of the afternoon, both teams were going at each other from a physical standpoint.

All of the rough play seemed to motivate the Rangers in a way and elevate their game. Finally, the Blueshirts looked like a hungry team that was playing with an edge that we just haven't seen from them recently.

The power play was another big aspect that came alive for the Rangers. New York scored three power play goals and that was a critical factor in the team’s victory.

“Teams can really change the direction of the game like we did tonight,” Peter Laviolette said. “That’s part of it, if you can win the special teams battle with regard to goal differential, there is a good chance you can win the hockey game. I thought the power play was good, Chris Kreider did an unbelievable job in front of the net, in front of the goaltenders eyes on both goals. The power play did their job.”

The Rangers got goals from Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zabanejad over the first 40 minutes and they held a 3-1 lead going into the third period.

In the final frame, Montreal clawed their way back into the game with the Rangers’ defensive lapses coming back to haunt them.

The Rangers were given a four-minute power play during the last couple of minutes after Kirby Dach was called for high-sticking penalty and Kaapo Kakko buried the puck past Sam Montembeault with 22.5 seconds remaining, propelling New York to a dramatic victory.

It was a game that had a little bit of everything for the Rangers both positive and negative.

“To stay with it and win it in regulation, I thought that was good. I liked the start, there were some big hits, there was a fight, power plays, so there were a lot of positives to pull from as well. Things we need to do better, but there were some positive things as well.”

It may be an overreaction, but this is the sort of game that can change a season.

The Rangers were in the midst of a massive skid and instead of faltering and letting the late pressure from the Canadiens get to them, the Rangers fought back to win.

Even though it was an ugly victory, it took a lot of character to come out of the day with two points and it should give the Rangers much-needed confidence moving forward.

The Rangers will be back in action on Monday against the New Jersey Devils.