Less than 24 hours after an emotionally-draining shotoout loss in Brooklyn against the Islanders, the Rangers were unable to muster the same intensity against a non-conference opponent and wound up on the losing end of a 2-1 final score against the Colorado Avalanche.
The Blueshirts now have recorded only one victory in their last six games, posting a 1-4-1 record in that span. It was only their second loss all season against a Western Conference team, as they fell to 8-2-0 in such games.
Antti Raanta started in goal and made 16 saves for New York. He was sitting on the bench in favor of a sixth attacker when the Rangers snapped Semyon Varlamov's shutout bid with 49.5 seconds remaining in regulation.
Oscar Lindberg scored the goal for New York, his tenth of the season, after Derick Brassard zipped a pass into the crease from the right wing corner. HOwever the Rangers could not add the equalizer despite late offensive-zone pressure.
The opportunistic Avalanche patiently waited for their openings and then capitalized twice in the second period to open up a 2-0 lead. Chris Wagner's third of the season, off the rush after slipping behind the Rangers defense on right wing, gave Colorado the lead at 13:21, and then the red-hot Matt Duchene buried a right-wing shot off a Gabriel Landeskog feed at 17:37, his team-high 14th goal putting New York in a two-goal hole.
There weren't too many other good scoring chances for Colorado, so it was frustrating for the Rangers to see a pair in the back of their net. Raanta did make one outstanding save, a lightning-quick right-pad stop in front of the goal line on a point-blank snipe by Tyson Barrie 4:03 into the second.
The scoreless first period was one of few shots on goal and even fewer whistles. The Rangers outshot the Avalanche 4-3 in the opening period, one in which the final 12 minutes were played without a whistle interrupting play.
The first shot was not recorded until five minutes eight seconds had elapsed--officially on a long Jarome Iginla shot; and New York did not pick up its first shot until the 11:37 mark of the first period, a harmless long flip by Derick Brassard. However following the next face off Mats Zuccarello had a quick snap shot from the low slot which required a sharp pad save by Varlamov.
Tanner Glass dropped the gloves with Colorado's Cody McLeod 7:46 into play, but even their spirited fight did little to snap each team out of its sluggish start.
The second period had a scary moment when Avs defenseman Erik Johnson was accidentally struck in the mouth by the skate of Rick Nash in an awkward collision near the boards. A bloodied Johnson left for the dressing room, but did return before the second period ended
FINAL STATS
NY RANGERS 1 -- COLORADO AVALANCHE 2
Scoring Summary
1st Period
NONE
2nd Period
13:21 COL Chris Wagner (3) Snap shot - ASST: Jack Skille (4), Tyson Barrie (14) 1 - 0 COL
17:37 COL Matt Duchene (14) Snap shot - ASST: Gabriel Landeskog (14), Carl Soderberg (12) 2 - 0 COL
3rd Period
19:10 NYR Oscar Lindberg (10) Backhand shot - ASST: Derick Brassard (11), Rick Nash (9) 2 - 1 COL
Penalty Summary
1st Period
07:46 COL Cody McLeod Fighting (maj) - 5 min against Tanner Glass
07:46 NYR Tanner Glass Fighting (maj) - 5 min against Cody McLeod
2nd Period
18:56 COL Tyson Barrie Hooking - 2 min against Rick Nash
3rd Period
NONE
shots by period
Period COL NYR
1st 3 4
2nd 9 13
3rd 6 8
Total 18 25
Team Stats
Category COL NYR
Power Plays 0/0 0/1
Hits 18 25
Faceoff Wins 29 19
Giveaways 8 12
Takeaways 5 5
Blocked Shots 21 11
Penalty Minutes 7 5
NEXT GAME: SUNDAY DECEMBER 6 RANGERS VS SENATORS 7:00 PM
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