COLUMBUS, Ohio — Everything has gone the Rangers’ way this season up until this point. But all it takes is one instant for things to change and the Blueshirts will be hoping that moment didn’t happen Thursday in Nationwide Arena.
Defenseman Adam Fox left Thursday’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets one shift into the third period after an awkward collision against the boards with Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and did not return. Adding insult to injury, the Rangers lost, 5-3, and fell into a tie for first place in the Metropolitan Division with the Pittsburgh Penguins, who lost in overtime to the expansion Seattle Kraken.
Fox, the Norris Trophy winner, entered the game as the Rangers’ leading scorer and if he is out for any length of time, his absence would be a huge blow to the Blueshirts.
Trailing 4-2 after two periods, the Rangers got within 4-3 on a power-play goal by Mika Zibanejad at 7:12 of the third. But they couldn’t get the tying goal, and Sean Kuraly scored his second goal of the game into an empty net with 1:14 left to seal it.
The Rangers flew home after the game and will get right back on the ice Friday in a game against the Minnesota Wild at Madison Square Garden, on Henrik Lundqvist night, when the former netminder’s No. 30 is to be retired to the Garden rafters.
With Kaapo Kakko on injured reserve due to an upper-body injury, and Filip Chytil still out with a lower-body injury, Rangers coach Gerard Gallant’s options to play right wing on the top two lines were limited. The coach opted to keep Barclay Goodrow on the line with Artemi Panarin and Ryan Strome, and put Julien Gauthier on the top line with Chris Krieder and Zibanejad to start the game.
"Obviously, the guy that's supposed to be there (Kakko) is not playing,’’ Gallant said. "So, with Gauthier getting the opportunity, he's been a steady guy. He's played with a lot of different people this year in our lineup. … He gets a chance to have an opportunity to play with two of the top players in our team that are having real good seasons, and I like what he brings. He brings speed, (and) he's playing a real good game now. He's more confident than he was earlier in the year.’’
It was the Panarin line, though, that got the Rangers off to a two-goal headstart, with Panarin, the former Blue Jackets star who left Columbus to sign with the Rangers as a free agent in the summer of 2019, scoring on his first shift of the game to put the Rangers ahead 1-0 at 1:49. Goodrow made it 2-0 at 4:44, redirecting a shot/pass by Braden Schneider past Joonas Korpisalo for his ninth goal of the season, a career-high.
But Columbus, which had been outshot 62-23 Wednesday in losing 6-0 to the Calgary Flames, fought back to tie the game before the first period. First, Gustav Nyquist drove the net and knocked in Patrik Laine’s pass with his skate for his 14th goal of the season, at 5:49. Then, with Goodrow in the box serving a tripping penalty, Boone Jenner deflected Zach Werenski’s shot past goalie Alexandar Georgiev (14 saves) at 7:28.
Columbus then scored twice in the second period to open a 4-2 lead. Kuraly, left alone in the slot on a defensive breakdown, redirected a shot past Georgiev at 6:18 of the period to make it 3-2, and then Jenner added his second of the game after a giveaway in the slot by Fox to make it 4-2 at 12:27.
