The Rangers didn’t make it easy on themselves Thursday night, but they still found a way to finish the job at Madison Square Garden.
After taking an early lead and then watching the Flyers flip the game with a pair of second-period goals, New York needed a sharp response in the third. It got one. Pavel Dorofeyev and Tye Kartye delivered the late punch, and the Rangers walked away with another home win in a season that has looked very different on their own ice.
The night opened with the Rangers carrying over momentum from Tuesday’s win over the St. Louis Blues, when Dylan Garand was a major reason they came out on top. They also debuted their new “Hometown Remix” jerseys, navy blue with “New York” across the front and the Lady Liberty patch on the left chest.
New York came out flying. The Rangers pinned the Flyers in their own end with heavy forechecking and sustained zone time, and that pressure turned into the first goal.
Marcus Pettersson worked the puck back to the point and sent a shot toward the net, where it changed direction off J.T. Miller’s stick and then off Gabe Perreault’s jersey before sneaking in.
But the game shifted late in the first and carried over into the second. Philadelphia found its legs, New York’s pace dipped, and the Flyers started dictating play with a low-to-high attack that paid off twice in 1:59.
At 9:50 of the second period, Simon Benoit tied it with a slap shot that found its way through. Not long after, Noel Acciari buried a rebound to give Philadelphia the lead.
Mike Sullivan then made a noticeable statement to open the third, sitting Pavel Dorofeyev for the first 4:50 of the period. The move looked designed to send a message, and the Rangers responded with more urgency and a much sharper edge.
That push eventually earned them a late power play, and Dorofeyev made the most of it. He unloaded a blistering wrist shot over Joseph Woll’s shoulder to bring the game level at 2.
Then came the finish. Kartye broke in on a partial breakaway and beat Woll glove-side, setting off a roar inside the building and putting the Rangers ahead for good.
From there, New York closed it out and secured its eighth home victory. The turnaround at Madison Square Garden has become one of the defining reasons behind the Rangers’ strong start, especially after last season’s struggles in the building.
Now the challenge gets tougher. The Rangers head west for a four-game road trip that begins in Seattle and continues through Western Canada. If they want to keep this run going, they’ll need to bring the same edge they showed when the game was slipping away Thursday night.
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Rangers Finally Delivered The Late Push Fans Had Been Waiting For
For a team that had been waiting on a timely finish, the Rangers finally gave Madison Square Garden one. New York trailed Philadelphia before finding its push in the third period, scoring twice to turn a one-goal deficit into a 3-2 win and give the home crowd the kind of late surge it has been hoping to see more often.
Dylan Garand backed it up with 23 saves, and the result also fit a broader trend the Rangers have been trying to build at home and against Metropolitan Division opponents. The comeback left the Flyers paying for a costly mistake, while the Rangers walked away with a win that felt like more than just two points. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Already Face An Uncomfortable Rick Tocchet Question
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For the Rangers, that matters because the same kind of scrutiny can quickly land on a front office when results lag and the margin for error gets thin. The current chatter around Philadelphia, San Jose and New York is less about one bad week than about whether the people steering these teams have enough answers, and for the Rangers, that leaves a familiar question hanging over the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]
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What makes this stretch encouraging is that it is not coming from one player carrying the load. Cuylles versatility, Lafrenires continued rise, Perreaults upside and Kartyes ability to chip in give the Rangers multiple paths to more scoring depth. For a team that has been searching for more long-term certainty up front, that kind of development is exactly the sort of thing that can change the outlook, even if the final shape of the group is still coming into focus. [Read more 🡒]