This one had you on the edge of your seat. As someone who attended what turned out to be a great game, most fans were up during plays. There was a lot more energy in the building.

The Rangers pulled out a hard fought 2-1 overtime win over the Panthers to tie the series. The best of seven Eastern Conference Final is now down to a best three out of five. It shifts to Florida for the next two games. Game 3 is Sunday afternoon on Memorial Day weekend.

Barclay Goodrow won it in overtime. The gritty center once again came up big in the postseason. All night, he was a factor. Whether it was dominating on faceoffs (10-for-13), including the big win in the defensive zone that led to him scoring at 14:01 in sudden death, or making key defensive plays, Goodrow delivered for the Rangers in a money spot.

It was Goodrow who came through when they needed it most. After beating Kevin Stenlund on the key draw, he put himself in the right spot to receive a Trocheck touch pass at the Panthers’ blue line. Jacob Trouba made the outlet for Goodrow, who moved the puck to Trocheck, who then found Goodrow open. He skated in and beat Sergei Bobrovsky with a perfect shot high blocker inside the far goalpost.

Up to that point, the overtime had been close to even. Unlike most of regulation, the Blueshirts found some open ice. A few minutes earlier, Filip Chytil looked to have the game on his stick. He got to a Chris Kreider rebound in front. With Bobrovsky down, Chytil fired the puck towards the net when it hit Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the back. Had he not blocked it, that would’ve ended it sooner.

Instead, the teams played on. After the Rangers iced the puck past the halfway point, they got a break due to the ice scrape. Following it, Goodrow blocked a shot. It was his play that really stood out. When he was with Matt Rempe, who Laviolette reinserted into the lineup for Kaapo Kakko, Goodrow made things happen. So did Rempe, who registered a game high nine hits in 10:02 of ice time.

Rempe was one of the best Rangers’ skaters. He had his best game in Game 2 of the Conference Finals. Laviolette was forced to mix and match after losing Jimmy Vesey to an upper-body injury on a hit from Ryan Lomberg. It looked serious. He was in a lot of pain when he left the ice.  Without Vesey, Laviolette had Will Cuylle take some shifts with Goodrow and Rempe. He trusted them in a tie game late in regulation. A noticeable difference from how he coached Game 1.

With less than seven minutes left in sudden death, Eetu Luostarinen had a dangerous chance to win it. His wrap-around try was denied by Igor Shesterkin. You could feel the anxiety from the crowd. Shesterkin was eventually able to freeze the puck on another Luostarinen backhand that went wide. Everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Then, Laviolette sent Goodrow out with Trocheck and Cuylle. With Trocheck having an off night on faceoffs (7-for-7), Goodrow took the defensive draw and won it. After Trouba absorbed a hit from the gritty Lomberg, he moved the puck up for Goodrow, who worked a give and go with Trocheck. He sprung Goodrow for the winner with 5:59 left in the first overtime.

Players poured off the bench to congratulate Goodrow. It was his second career overtime winner in the playoffs. He scored for the Sharks to beat the Golden Knights on Apr. 23, 2019.

The goal was Goodrow’s fourth of this postseason. It’s a new career high. After a regular season in which he scored four goals in 80 games, he’s already matched that output. He’s the definition of a high character player who shows up in pressure packed situations. Ask the Lightning how much he meant to their two Stanley Cups.

Goodrow isn’t paid $3.6 for the regular season. It’s for games like Friday night. His team was staring at being down 0-2 with the next two games in Florida. That wouldn’t have been ideal for the Rangers against the very tough Panthers. It would’ve meant winning four of the next five to come back and take the series.

Now, the Eastern Conference Final is tied. Anything can happen. As expected, it’s been a very close series. After the Panthers took the first game 3-0 thanks to stronger play at even strength, the Rangers came back with a better effort to even it up. They needed to work overtime but got the job done. 

Unlike Game 1, the Rangers came out with more energy. They skated with purpose. On the first shift, the Mika Zibanejad line spent some time in the Panthers’ zone. As expected, Chytil moved up on the line to play with Kreider and Zibanejad. Jack Roslovic slid down to the third line with Alex Wennberg and Cuylle.

If there was an interesting development early on, Laviolette opted to get the Goodrow line on for a shift before Trocheck. The crowd responded to Rempe with chants. He got an early hit on Brandon Montour, which drew the Garden’s approval.

When asked about it afterward, he told reporters that he didn’t want to disappoint the fans. He was very complimentary.

If there was a noticeable difference from the first game, Laviolette rolled all four lines. He showed more trust in using everyone. That included Rempe, who was very effective on the forecheck and responsible defensively. A sharp contrast to how he was utilized against the Hurricanes last round.

The strategy paid dividends. On a good offensive shift from the Trocheck line, Alexis Lafreniere decked Carter Verhaeghe to force a turnover. Once the puck was free, Artemi Panarin passed it over to Adam Fox, who found a wide open Trocheck for the game’s first goal at 4:12.

Following the goal, the Panthers didn’t take kindly to Lafreniere’s hit on Verhaeghe. A scrum ensued. It included Matthew Tkachuk pinning Trocheck down while Lafreniere got involved with Verhaeghe. Both Lafreniere and Verhaeghe received two for roughing while Tkachuk got the extra roughing minor.

That put the Rangers on the power play. Unlike last series, they’ve been unable to get untracked. The Panthers have done a good job at attacking the top on the penalty kill. They’ve limited the Rangers’ top unit’s time and space. Zibanejad got the only shot that Bobrovsky handled. It was a missed opportunity.

Back at even strength, the fourth line had a good shift in the Panthers’ zone. Rempe got a pair of hits on Sam Bennett and Montour. There definitely was more of a buzz in the building. The Rangers made it a point to finish checks. They out-hit the Panthers 51-40 for the game. Every skater except for Vesey was credited with a hit. Vesey only took nine shifts before exiting the game in the second period. He’s being reevaluated.

During the first half of the opening period, it was mostly Blueshirts. They controlled the tempo by using their speed and skating. A more aggressive approach worked. There was more time spent in the offensive zone. The crowd was into it.

The Panthers continued to play physical. On a play in the neutral zone, Dmitry Kulikov caught Wennberg with a high hit after the puck was gone. It was reviewed for a major penalty. They reduced it to a two-minute interference minor.

Watching it live, it looked worse. The thing is that Kulikov’s hit was close to targeting the head. But the replay showed that it was shoulder to chest. They got the call right.

Instead of taking advantage, the Rangers again struggled to establish anything on their second power play. They had a couple of sloppy turnovers. One led to Sam Reinhart testing Shesterkin while shorthanded.

Erik Gustafsson replaced a clearly hobbled Fox for the second part of the five-on-four. It was more effective. After going wide with a shot, he got one on Bobrovsky that he stopped. Kreider later missed a tip-in.

Boosted by a second straight successful penalty kill, the Panthers grabbed the momentum. Barkov immediately got a good shot right on Shesterkin that he froze.

Florida began to win more puck battles. They also turned it up. Lomberg caught Zibanejad with a clean hit in the neutral zone that sent him down. He isn’t the biggest player, but he makes things happen. Lomberg was a pain in the ass all game.

During a strong shift from the Barkov line in the Rangers’ zone, Reinhart just missed a good chance. Vesey then blocked a Barkov shot. With Barkov on the puck, Goodrow knocked him down. The refs called Goodrow for a very soft interference minor. It was a hockey play. Barkov clearly sold it.

On the power play, Panthers coach Paul Maurice went with his second unit. After coming close last game, they connected to tie the game. Anton Lundell got the puck over for Bennett. He then passed it over for Verhaeghe, who danced around a sliding Wennberg and fired a shot that banked in off the skate of Ryan Lindgren to tie it with 1:51 remaining.

On Verhaeghe’s power-play goal, Evan Rodrigues did a good job screening Shesterkin in front. He never picked up the shot, which changed direction.

Following his goal, the Panthers pressed for more. The Rangers looked lethargic. Fortunately, they escaped the period without any further damage.

There was a stretch early in the second period when the Panthers looked like they’d go ahead. Shesterkin was sharp, making a few timely saves to keep the game tied. That included a good stop on Tkachuk when he made sure to halt their momentum by getting a faceoff.

The Panthers continued to look for the go-ahead goal. Despite some strong effort from the gritty Lomberg, it never came.

It took a while for the Rangers to get a chance. On a good shift by the third line, Wennberg was all set up. He had his rising shot hit the crossbar. Bobrovsky later stopped Fox from long distance.

The hitting continued. On a play in the defensive zone, Braden Schneider delivered a clean check on Bennett that drew the crowd’s approval.

On a dangerous opportunity in front, Montour got loose for a backhand that Shesterkin made a big save on. It was his best of the period.

With over eight minutes remaining, Lomberg caught Vesey with a big hit that injured him. He struggled to get to the bench. It looked like he injured his forearm. Vesey was done for the game.

Forced to shuffle the deck, Laviolette did a good job using his remaining bottom five forwards. He had Cuylle sub in for Vesey with Goodrow and Rempe. They were very effective when their numbers were called. Cuylle is versatile enough to play either on the third or fourth line. He had another strong game, finishing with four shots and three hits in over 16 minutes of action.

With 7:45 left in a tie game, Chytil and Stenlund each received minor penalties to create a four-on-four. During it, Kreider took a high stick from Aaron Ekblad to put the Rangers back on the power play.

On a four-on-three, the Rangers’ unit of Fox, Panarin, Zibanejad, and Kreider were reluctant to shoot the puck. Especially Fox and Zibanejad. It made it easier on the Panthers’ penalty killers. Bobrovsky stopped Kreider twice.

When it became five-on-four, Trocheck joined Lafreniere, Wennberg, Chytil, and Gustafsson. They weren’t able to accomplish much.

Late in the period, Barkov nearly scored. He went around Zibanejad and got a dangerous chance in front that Shesterkin stopped. That was a clutch stop.

Facing puck pressure from Rodrigues in the final minute, Fox coughed up the puck. He then got called for holding. Rodrigues basically pulled his stick into Fox to draw the penalty. It’s an old trick.

The Rangers were able to get to the locker room still tied. Considering how it ended, it felt like relief. 

In the third period, Verhaeghe negated the remainder of the Panthers’ power play by high-sticking Trouba. Shesterkin made two key saves on Montour and Lundell to keep it tied during the four-on-four.

On an abbreviated man advantage, the Rangers managed only one long Panarin shot that Bobrovsky stopped.

The rest of the period was tightly contested. Both sides knew that the next goal would probably decide it. Cuylle got a good chance that Bobrovsky turned away. Reinhart fanned on a shot from point blank range.

With under five minutes left, Zibanejad had his shot hit the crossbar. It came when his line was out against the Panthers’ fourth line. They almost took advantage of the matchup. Laviolette should try to get Zibanejad away from Barkov as much as possible when the series resumes tomorrow.

With less than two minutes left in regulation, Laviolette sent Rempe out with Goodrow and Kreider. He made a nice block on a Gustav Forsling shot to cheers.

Both Roslovic and K’Andre Miller had shots miss wide late. As I told a fan in our section a few minutes earlier, this one would go to overtime.

Given that only once has the home team gone down 2-0 in the Conference Finals and rallied back to win (1954 Red Wings), it felt like do or die for the Rangers. They’re up against a tough opponent who’s trying to do what they couldn’t last year. It wasn’t a shock that it was a low scoring game that went to sudden death.

Early in the extra session, the Rangers tried to end it. They definitely went for it. That’s the only way to play in such a pressure packed scenario. Cuylle had a deflection stopped by Bobrovsky in the first minute.

Not even two minutes in, Rempe had a step on Forsling. But the Panthers defenseman recovered to block his shot. It was his only shift in overtime. He skated very well.

Shots were few and far between. Lomberg got a clean look, but Shesterkin sealed up the near goalpost to get a stoppage. Lomberg doesn’t play a lot for Maurice. But you always notice him. He’s a hard-nosed player.

There weren’t many mistakes by either side. It was close to the vest.

Cuylle nearly had a breakaway. But he over skated the puck. The Rangers found some openings in the Florida defense. The stretch pass to the weak side seemed to work. We’ll see if that carries over.

Kreider got open in the slot for a good shot that Kulikov blocked. He then sent a rebound wide. The puck came right to Chytil in front. It looked like he had an open net. But his shot was blocked by Ekman-Larsson. That saved the game for the Panthers.

Then came a tricky sequence for Shesterkin. Luostarinen had some room behind the net. His wrap-around was kept out by Shesterkin. That was the only nervous point of the overtime.

With 6:25 left, out came Goodrow for an important faceoff against Stenlund in the defensive zone. After winning it, he’d be directly involved in the dramatic overtime winner.

In his end, Trouba took a tough hit from Lomberg. He then lifted a high pass in midair up for Goodrow, who knocked it down and got the puck over for Trocheck. Once they were onside, Trocheck made a great saucer pass that was right on Goodrow’s stick. He immediately moved in and let go of a wrist shot that beat Bobrovsky to win win the game.

As is customary, they reviewed the play for a high stick. It wasn’t close. I knew it was a good goal. It was a fun celebration both on the ice and in the stands.

It was great to see such a big game. It didn’t disappoint. Now, it’s all about what happens in Florida. The Rangers need to get one of the next two to grab home ice back. They’ll have support in the stands.

It sure is exciting. This is the best time of year for a reason. Let’s enjoy it.