Blue Jackets halt Rangers' winning streak at 10 games
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Jack Roslovic scored a tiebreaking goal in the second period to lift the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 4-2 victory over New York on Sunday night, snapping the Rangers' franchise record-tying 10-game win streak.
Dmitri Voronkov and Kirill Marchenko each had a goal and an assist, Ivan Provorov also scored, and Johnny Gaudreau had two assists for Columbus, which had lost three straight at home. Elvis Merzlikins stopped 38 shots as the Blue Jackets won the opener of the teams' home-and-home set that concludes Wednesday in New York.
"We played a real smart hockey game," Blue Jackets coach Pascale Vincent said. "Their transition game is so good. They use the full length of the ice in the offensive zone. Our guys were ready."
Drive to the net + good things happen. ☝️ pic.twitter.com/YeRJvVMCOR
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 26, 2024
Artemi Panarin and Adam Edstrom scored, and Jonathan Quick stopped 37 shots for the Rangers, who lost for the first time since Jan. 26. They still lead the Metropolitan Division with 81 points -- seven ahead of second-place Carolina.
"They came at us with a lot of speed," Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said. "They'd get behind us with odd-man rushes. It wasn't one or two -- it was too many -- and we couldn't capitalize at the other end. That was the difference in the game."
The teams traded goals in the first period, with Voronkov putting Columbus up at 4:35 as he buried a behind-the-net feed from Kirill Marchenko for his 16th goal of the season. He sits third in scoring among NHL rookies behind Connor Bedard and Marco Rossi, who each have 17.
Panarin pulled New York even with a shot from the right circle with 5:38 left for his 33rd, tying Brock Boeser for seventh in the NHL.
Marchenko regained the lead for Columbus just 18 seconds into the second period, before Edstrom pulled the Rangers even again after a neutral-zone turnover at 11:11.
Roslovic put the Blue Jackets ahead for good 46 seconds later off a tape-to-tape pass from Gaudreau on a rush, and Provorov made it 4-2 with his first goal since Jan. 13 with 1:25 left in the middle period.
"Personally, I don't think the first was all that great, but we stepped up in the second and did the job tonight," Roslovic said. "You've got to tip your hats to Elvis at the end. Huge win - snaps a team's 10 game winning streak and finish out the game in the third."