Kreider gives Rangers win over Red Wings to extend Eastern Conference lead
DETROIT — Chris Kreider scored the go-ahead goal on a power play midway through the third period and the Eastern Conference-leading New York Rangers beat the Detroit Red Wings 4-3 on Friday night.
Barclay Goodrow had two goals to double his season total, Will Cuylle also scored and Jonathan Quick made 30 saves. The Rangers have 108 points, three more than Boston in the chase for home- ice advantage in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Goodrow, who plays on the fourth line, was switched from center to left wing and the move paid off.
"He's a blood-and-guts type of guy and you need those guys in your lineup," Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said. "It's nice to see him have a night like that. I thought the line was dangerous all night."
Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher and Dylan Larkin scored for the Red Wings, and David Perron had two assists. Alex Lyon stopped 35 shots for the Red Wings, who remained tied with Washington one point out of the second wild card in the East.
"They're a desperate team. We know where they are in the standings," Quick said. "We knew how hard they were going to come out and play. That was our goal — to match that, exceed that."
Kreider tapped in a rebound of Mika Zibanejad's shot at 10:14 of the period. Kreider's 37th goal allowed the Rangers to get their seventh win in their last eight games. Artemi Panarin added an assist for his 111th point.
New York swept the three-game season series and is now 9-1-2 in the last 12 meetings with Detroit.
"The frustrating thing is you can play a perfect game and lose to a team of that caliber, but I don't think we did that," Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said. "We just gave them a little too much."
Cuylle scored his 13th goal at 5:58 of the first period as he stole Austin Czarnik's backward pass and wristed the puck past Lyon to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead.
Detroit tied it just over a minute later on Copp's backhander in front of the net for his 13th.
New York regained the lead with 29 seconds remaining in the period, as Goodrow scored from the slot.
Compher's 17th tied it again at 1:24 of the second. Jeff Petry took a shot from the left side that bounced off Compher's skate and past Quick.
Larkin's 30th goal with 6:41 left in the second gave the Red Wings a 3-2 lead. Larkin converted a rebound during a power play after Perron hit the post.
"We played good enough to get a point or two points tonight," Larkin said. "I think when you get to this time of the year, every time you drop a game, it seems like a missed opportunity."
The Rangers needed only 25 seconds to tie it again as Goodrow scored his second goal of the game and fourth of the season on a rebound.
"Tonight was fun," Goodrow said. "Obviously I'd like to do it more often. It's always nice to contribute and help the team in any way to win."
UP NEXT
Rangers: Host Montreal on Sunday.
Red Wings: Host Buffalo on Sunday.
