The New York Rangers got the kind of quality, all-around effort they needed from the get-go and outplayed the Carolina Hurricanes.
Andrew Copp had a goal and two assists, Frank Vatrano and Adam Fox each had a goal and an assist, and the Rangers defeated the Hurricanes 4-1 on Tuesday night to tie their second-round streak at two wins apiece. side.
Mika Zibanejad scored the other goal for Rangers while Ryan Lindgren had two assists.
Goaltender Igor Shesterkin also did his part by stopping 30 pucks in nets for the Rangers, who won their fifth straight game at home in the playoffs.
“Everyone contributes and it’s been that way for the duration of the playoffs,” Copp said.
“It’s not just a trio, a duo of defenders, it’s everywhere in our formation. […] We want to build on the momentum we created in the last two games. »
At the other end of the rink, Antti Raanta made 24 saves for the Hurricanes, whose road record is 0-5 since the start of the playoffs, compared to 6-0 at home.
Shesterkin only yielded to Teuvo Teravainen, 6:33 into the third period, on a pass from Sebastian Aho. The goal allowed the Hurricanes to reduce the Rangers lead to 3-1.
However, Copp restored Rangers to a three-goal lead, aided by Ryan Strome, with just under nine minutes to play. It was his fifth goal of the playoffs.
The Rangers are coming off a back-to-back win against the Hurricanes after losing eight of the previous nine games. The streak includes three losses in the four games between the two clubs this season.
Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant liked what he saw from his team, calling Tuesday’s game “close” to one of the most complete performances by his squad since the start of the playoffs.
“We had a little dip in one segment of the second period and another brief segment in the third half. But overall we did a great job. »
Rangers took advantage of a power play to open the scoring with 6:29 left in the first period thanks to Vatrano’s goal. Fox doubled the Rangers lead just two minutes 11 seconds later when he deflected a shot from Lindgren.
Rangers extended their lead with 3:12 left in the middle period when Zibanejad managed to collect the puck, which was behind Raanta after a save by the latter, and push it into the net.
Game 5 is Thursday night in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Game 6 follows Saturday at Madison Square Garden.