Rangers fall out of playoff position after deflating effort in loss to Flames
Published
The slow fall for the New York Rangers continues, as the team slid out of playoff position again after losing to the Calgary Flames 2-1 on Tuesday.
The Rangers were among the top teams in the Eastern Conference after starting the season 12-4-1 – tied for third in points with games in hand over every team above them in the standings.
Their next game was against the Flames, where New York was outshot 49-29 in a 3-2 loss. That defeat started a 4-15-0 stretch for the Rangers.
The Flames have been the bearer of bad news for the Rangers this season in each of their games, and their effort left a few players despondent after the loss on Tuesday.
“We just didn’t show up to play,” defenceman K'Andre Miller said after the game. “One of the biggest games of the year.”
“No execution,” Mika Zibanejad said of the team's effort. “I thought we were slow. I think we got away from the things that we did well in previous games.”
“They worked hard for the ice tonight, and we didn’t,” head coach Peter Laviolette added.
New York mustered just 13 shots on net against Flames' backup goaltender Dan Vladar on the second half of a back-to-back.
Outside of an early goal from Artemi Panarin in the first period, the Rangers failed to generate pressure against a beatable team on home ice. New York also failed to generate a shot on goal in two tries on the power play.
“We didn’t break the puck out,” Laviolette said. “We didn’t move it through the neutral zone. We turned it over countless times in the neutral zone. That takes away from offense.”
The loss, combined with victories by the Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders on Tuesday, moved the Rangers (33-30-6) out of a playoff spot. They sit two points ahead of the Detroit Red Wings, Islanders and Columbus Blue Jackets in the playoff picture, with all three of those teams holding games in hand.
The Rangers have qualified for the playoffs in each of the past three seasons, advancing to the Conference Finals twice. They haven't played in a Stanley Cup Final since the 2013-14 season, when they lost 4-1 to the Los Angeles Kings.