Klein's First 2-Goal Game Puts Rangers Past Ducks, 2-1
ANAHEIM (AP) — Kevin Klein had the first two-goal game of his 11-year NHL career, scoring the tiebreaking goal with 6:41 to play in the New York Rangers' 2-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday night.
Klein also scored the tying goal in the second period for the Rangers, who opened their three-game California road trip with their second win in five games overall. The veteran defenseman played 555 regular-season games with Nashville and New York and 67 playoff games before his first two-goal performance.
Antti Raanta made 22 saves in the Rangers' second victory over Anaheim this season.
Jamie McGinn scored and John Gibson stopped 21 shots for the Ducks, who have lost four of five in their first poor stretch since Christmas.
The Ducks lost in regulation at home for the first time since Jan. 17, ending a 10-game points streak at Honda Center.
New York's Ryan McDonagh appeared to get hit in the face by an Anaheim shot at the final buzzer, leaving the forward down on the ice in pain. McDonagh eventually got up and skated off.
Klein's pair of scores emphatically made up for his turnover that led to McGinn's goal in the first period. Klein drove to the net in the waning minutes and deflected home a sharp pass from J.T. Miller for his eighth goal of the year.
Brandon Pirri made his debut for Anaheim, slotting in on the Ducks' top line with captain Ryan Getzlaf and fellow midseason acquisition David Perron. Anaheim grabbed Pirri from the Florida Panthers at the trade deadline, but had to wait 2 1/2 weeks while he recovered from a nasty ankle injury that kept him off the ice for a full month.
McGinn put the Ducks on the board midway through the first period after a spectacular play by Corey Perry. The former NHL MVP took the puck away from Klein with an artful reach before feeding the unmarked McGinn for his third goal in eight games with his new team.
Klein made up for it early in the second, putting a long rebound of Tanner Glass' shot into a wide-open net when Gibson was slow to move post to post. New York dominated long stretches of play in the second, but Gibson kept it even.
NOTES: Anaheim D Kevin Bieksa and C Nate Thompson both missed their second straight games with lower-body injuries. D Sami Vatanen sat out his third straight game with an upper-body injury. ... Linesman Lonnie Cameron went to the dressing room in the second period after he was hit by a long cross-ice pass by Anaheim's Ryan Garbutt. Cameron returned later in the period. ... New York F Oscar Lindberg was a healthy scratch, missing his first game since Jan. 14. The Swede has one point in his last seven games.
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