The New York Rangers had the game in their hands until they didn’t as they blew a third period lead to the Carolina Hurricanes en route to a 4-3 loss.
Going into this matchup the Rangers had lost three consecutive games and have really been struggling to find their identity.
Between all of the trade rumors involving the team’s veteran players and on-ice woes, there was a lot riding on the Rangers to get back on track in Carolina.
Through the first two periods, the Rangers actually looked like a different team than we’ve been seeing through this tough skid.
Down 1-0 and 2-1, the Rangers didn’t let it faze them and continued to fight and ultimately clawed their way back through two deficits.
New York just seemed to play with a passion and energy that was encouraging given the past couple of weeks where the same intensity was really missing.
Brett Berard scored his first NHL goal, showing off his explosive offensive potential and the kind of player he can possibly be for the Rangers down the road.
Late in the second period, Adam Edström propelled New York to take a 3-2 lead and everything seemed right for the Blueshirts.
All the Rangers had to do was hold a one-goal lead and victory would be theirs. However, in the third period, New York’s worst instincts kicked back in.
It started with a fluky wrap-around goal from Jesperi Kotkaniemi after yet another defensive breakdown from the Rangers.
New York committed a costly penalty a few minutes later, leading to a power play goal from Jackson Blake, giving the Hurricanes a 4-3 lead.
The Rangers panicked after that and struggled to sustain any sort of offensive pressure and had trouble breaking the puck into the opposition’s own zone, a problem that continues to plague this team.
It’s clear that the Rangers are a fragile team and it just took a couple of goals to completely shatter the confidence of New York.
While the Rangers showed some impressive flashes, their struggles were prevalent. Now, the Rangers find themselves on a four-game losing streak and may have some serious soul searching to do over Thanksgiving.