Rangers outgun, beat Flyers to clinch playoff berth

NHL

By Mollie Walker

This is where the Rangers have been headed all season long.

Despite starting the season under their third coaching regime in four seasons, the consistent injury hurdles and even a brutal showing in January, the Blueshirts — just like in their thrilling 6-5 overtime win over the Flyers at Madison Square Garden — have simply marched on en route to becoming the first NHL team to punch its ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Tuesday night.

Perched at the tippy top of the Metropolitan Division since Oct. 24, the Rangers have had an unobstructed view of their goals for playoff position. Officially clinching a spot was all but inevitable.

“Moving forward, I think it’s just another step on the way,” said Vincent Trocheck, who scored one of the Rangers’ three go-ahead goals in the third period before he assisted on Adam Fox’s game-winner in the extra period. “There’s a lot more things that we want to accomplish.”

For 40 minutes, the Rangers’ matchup with the Flyers was a classic case for this time of year — that was until the home team decided it wouldn’t be.

The Rangers — without four regular skaters — initially couldn’t contend with the Flyers’ desperation and fell behind 2-0 by the 11:39 mark of the second period for the second time in as many games.

Philadelphia has had to fight tooth and nail to keep its playoff hopes alive, while the Rangers have sat pretty for the entire season.

After Mika Zibanejad’s power-play goal cut the Rangers’ deficit in half, the dynamic unfolded accordingly in a high-intensity back-and-forth third period that was tied four (4!!!) times.

“They’re a good team,” Fox said of the Flyers, whose one point in the OT loss kept them ahead of the Capitals. “They’re in a playoff spot right now and fighting to keep that, too. They’re going to fight and claw, don’t quit at all. I think, for us, too, we’re still playing for points here. We’re still trying to get our game right and keep sharp.”

From behind the Flyers’ net, Kaapo Kakko fed Jonny Brodzinski in front to even the score at two-all less than a minute and a half into the final frame.

Philadelphia never lost its sense of urgency, however, responding to each of the Rangers’ next three goals.

When Alexis Lafreniere jammed home a rebound to give the Rangers their first lead of the night at the 2:57 mark of the third, Travis Konecny answered for the Flyers. Later on, Owen Tippett responded to Trocheck’s shorthanded tally.

And when Lafreniere scored his second of the period, Tyson Foerster clapped back less than three minutes later to ultimately force overtime.

It may have come down to overtime, but the Rangers ultimately made this game competitive without Jacob Trouba, Ryan Lindgren and Erik Gustafsson, three of their top-six defensemen who are all out with injuries.

They did it down a forward, too, with Alex Wennberg unavailable due to “personal reasons,” believed to be the birth of his child.

This is nothing new for the Rangers, who made a statement both with Tuesday’s win and its meaning.

That is what the Rangers have been working toward all season.

“I think you really have to stay current with what you’re doing,” head coach Peter Laviolette said. “Our guys have done a really good job of that. The schedule has been tough. We’re banged up a little bit. It wasn’t our best tonight. Yet, we still found a way to win. That’s really the only thing we talked about. We knew Philly would play hard. They did. We only talked about that.”