Barclay Goodrow scored at 14:01 of overtime, lifting the New York Rangers to a 2-1 victory over the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final at Madison Square Garden on Friday.
Goodrow capitalized on a pass from Vincent Trocheck at the top of the slot, beating Sergei Bobrovsky with a wrist shot.
“I don’t remember exactly how it went in,” Goodrow said. “I just know Trocheck made a great pass, and Will Cuylle was driving to the net, opening up the lane. It was a great play by those two … It feels good to help the team. We played a pretty good game tonight, and it was nice to get rewarded with the win.”
The winning goal came shortly after Goodrow won a face-off in the defensive zone.
“Everybody knows what he brings to the team,” Trocheck said of Goodrow. “Every night, he’s consistent. We use him in all different situations. … In these playoffs, he’s been outstanding for us on both ends of the ice.”
With the series tied 1-1, Game 3 will take place in Sunrise, Florida, on Sunday (3 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, SN, TVAS, CBC).
Trocheck had a goal and an assist, and Igor Shesterkin made 26 saves for the Rangers, the top seed from the Metropolitan Division. New York is now 3-0 in overtime this postseason.
“In overtime, you’re just looking for that one,” Rangers defenseman Adam Fox said. “… You know how important it is to make the series 1-1 rather than 2-0. It’s massive, and you’re excited to see that one go in.”
Carter Verhaeghe scored, and Bobrovsky made 28 saves for the Panthers, the top seed from the Atlantic Division. Florida had previously won four consecutive Stanley Cup Playoff games on the road.
“Obviously it’s tough to lose in overtime, but at the end of the day, we went 1-1 in their building,” Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “They came out really explosive tonight, which we expected. We lost a tight game. We’ll move on. We have a quick turnaround.”
Trocheck gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead at 4:12 of the first period with a tap-in off a pass from Fox. It was New York’s first goal of the series after being shut out 3-0 in Game 1.
“It got the building going, that was big,” Rangers captain Jacob Trouba said. “Obviously a huge start. We wanted to get the first goal. They battled back, and it was a tight game. That’s what we’re going to expect every game in the series.”
Verhaeghe tied it 1-1 at 18:09 of the first with a power-play goal from the slot.
“They got one goal, but it was a good response,” Verhaeghe said. “To go into the second tied, the game was there but they came out on top. … That’s what happens when you get the two best teams in the conference. … It’s going to be a battle.”
Despite allowing a power-play goal and going 0-for-4 with the man advantage, the Rangers found a way to win.
LETS GO RANGERS!!
