SUNRISE, Fla. — Nothing has come easy against the Panthers, but the Rangers have proved they can work that much harder.
Every shift is strenuous and every puck battle seems to hurt for the Rangers in this Eastern Conference Final series, and yet, it was the visitors who prevailed despite blowing a two-goal lead in the third period when Alex Wennberg deflected in a shot from Ryan Lindgren 5:33 into overtime to take a 5-4 win and a 2-1 series lead Sunday evening.
There’s something to be said for the way a game feels in comparison to the way it actually goes.
Alex Wennberg scored the game-winning goal for the Rangers on Sunday.
Alex Wennberg scored the game-winning goal for the Rangers on Sunday.
With the way this Panthers team has competed through the first three games of this series, most contests may feel in their favor, but there’s also something to be said about the Rangers’ composure and how it combats that fact.
The Rangers’ mentality has proven to be one of the strongest, if not the strongest, weapon they have. Not much rattles this team, and that’s certainly played a role in how the Blueshirts have gone 4-0 in overtime games this postseason.
Despite the fact that the Rangers were up 4-2 at the start of the third period, it never felt like the Panthers were out of it — and they weren’t.
Florida made it a 4-3 game on a goal from Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov just over five minutes into the final frame, after they went scoreless in the second period while the Rangers put together a two-goal effort.
As the Amerant Bank Arena crowd — which had patches of Rangers fans spread throughout — fed off their team’s push, the Panthers just kept coming and gaining momentum while swarming the offensive zone.
Alex Wennberg #91 of the Rangers celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal against Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers during overtime on Sunday.
Rangers winger Alexis Lafreniere reacts after scoring one of his two goals in Game 3 against the Panthers on Sunday.
Gustav Forsling found a clear lane in front of him and whipped it far side over Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin’s glove to even the score at four-all with 13:02 left in regulation.
Knotted at two-all to start the second period, the Panthers continued to do what they’ve done all series long.
It seems like whenever a Rangers skater is waiting for the puck to come to him instead of going to meet it, chances are a Panthers player will step in front to get to it first. And as Florida racked up power-play opportunity after power-play opportunity, having scored on two of them in the first period, the Rangers struggled with both of their man-advantage chances.
Rangers center Barclay Goodrow celebrates his shorthanded goal against the Panthers on Sunday.
The Panthers’ penalty kill has been so aggressive, forcing the Rangers to the perimeter and refusing to let them set up and get comfortable the way they like to. So it came down to five-on-five play, which the Rangers actually got the better of in this one.
Skating down the left boards, Alexis Lafreniere skated right at Dmitry Kulikov and toe-dragged around the Panthers’ defenseman before backhanded the puck past Florida goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for the 3-2 lead at the 15:23 mark of the middle frame.
Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin makes a save during the second period against the Panthers on Sunday.
On a Panthers’ four-minute power play, stemming from back-to-back penalties from Rangers captain Jacob Trouba, Goodrow netted his second of the game by one-timing a feed from Vincent Trocheck while shorthanded for the 4-2 lead with 1:44 left in the second period.
The Rangers had arguably their best first period of the series, both in terms of withstanding the Panthers’ pushes and generating some of their own. It resulted in a 2-2 game by the first intermission.
Sam Reinhart scored both the Panthers’ goals on the power play as the home team was awarded the first three man-advantage opportunities of the game, while the Rangers received none.
After Florida went up 1-0, Vincent Trocheck set up Lafreniere on a breakaway before Lafrieniere tied the game at one-all on a slick backhand shot that’s becoming a speciality of the 2020 first-overall pick.
Just 25 seconds later, Goodrow tipped in a Braden Schneider shot for the 2-1 lead and his fifth goal of the postseason, officially surpassing his regular-season total of four.
