Over a month in between wins due to the Olympic break, the Rangers finally ended a five-game losing streak by rallying past the Penguins to win 3-2 in a shootout. It was their first victory since defeating the Bruins 4-3 in overtime on Jan. 26.

Following an uninspired first period that saw them take undisciplined penalties and fall behind the Pens 1-0 on an Anthony Mantha goal, the Rangers responded with a much better effort over the next two periods.

Despite going behind by two on a Ryan Shea goal less than two minutes into the second period, they turned the tide thanks to spending extended time in the Pittsburgh end. In particular, the line of Vincent Trocheck, Will Cuylle, and Alexis Lafreniere applied some consistent forecheck pressure to create opportunities. Cuylle drew a hooking minor on Rickard Rakell that gave the Rangers a power play.

They made the most of it thanks to some superb passing that led directly to Mika Zibanejad getting his team-leading 24th. After taking a J.T. Miller feed down low, Trocheck centered across for a Zibanejad one-timer in the slot that beat Stuart Skinner to make it 2-1 at exactly the 10-minute mark. It was his team-leading 12th power-play goal, hiking his franchise record to 120 as a Ranger.

Shortly after the goal, they came close to tying it. Skinner made a string of saves including one on Gabe Perreault, who was around the puck a lot. Despite failing to score for an 11th straight game, he generated chances with his linemates. The line with Zibanejad and Miller dominated the Pens at 5-on-5 by finishing with an 88.46 CF and outshooting their opponents 10-2. That included generating 16 scoring chances with four considered high-danger according to Natural Stat Trick.

On the flip side, Igor Shesterkin handled the Pens by turning aside all 14 shots in an entertaining middle stanza. After allowing two goals on 12 shots, Shesterkin stopped the final 21 to earn his first victory since Jan. 2 versus the Panthers. He finished the game with 31 saves. Despite missing time due to a lower-body injury in a challenging season, he’s two victories shy of reaching 20 for the fifth time in his career. Even with the team out of playoff contention, he has a 2.45 goals-against-average and .913 save percentage.

“I think he’s the best goalie in the game,” Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan said afterward.

In the third, the Rangers kept up the momentum by taking it to the Pens, who outside of Evgeni Malkin didn’t muster much offense. They were outshot 10-4 by the Blueshirts, who played with more speed and grit than they have most of the season.

Some hard work from newcomer Brendan Brisson created the tying goal scored by Taylor Raddysh. Moved up to play with Noah Laba for a shift, Brisson used some hustle to get the puck up to Vladislav Gavrikov, whose shot pass was easily steered in by Raddysh to make it 2-2 less than three minutes into the third. The secondary assist gave Brisson his first point as a Blueshirt. He played well by using his speed and scrappiness to make things happen.

Perreault nearly put them ahead, but he had two shots hit the goalpost. He also nearly had Zibanejad for a goal on a 2-on-1. Zibanejad had nothing but good things to say about the 20-year-old rookie.

“The skill that he has and I think more and more confident he’s getting – you see him making more plays. You try that on the 2-on-1, try to get it back to me. I’m laughing, but I don’t care – like if that’s what he thinks is the best play, trust it. Trust it. Next time, it goes through and I score and we’re happy. That’s a great play.”

In his Rangers debut, Tye Kartye had a pair of shots and a team best six hits in 17 shifts (12:39) while playing mostly with Laba and Conor Sheary on the third line. They had a strong shift with the game tied. Skinner made a pair of stops on Kartye and Laba.

The Pens’ best shift came from Malkin, who flew into the Rangers zone and got off a tricky backhand that Shesterkin shrugged away. Despite the Malkin line buzzing, the Rangers were able to get out unscathed.

Late in regulation, Will Borgen had a good look, but his shot missed the mark. Eventually, the game went to overtime. Not much happened in the first part of the 3-on-3. However, Lafreniere made a strong move to get off a tough shot that Skinner kicked out. He also set up a Braden Schneider attempt that went high. In the final minute, Shesterkin made a pair of saves on Malkin to take it to a shootout.

In Round 1, Trocheck came in from the right side and beat Skinner through the five-hole. After having stopped Mantha before Trocheck’s shootout goal that made him a perfect 3-for-3 this season, Shesterkin turned away Egor Chinakhov in the second round. In the bottom half, Miller tried to come in from the left side, but Skinner made a blocker save to deny him. It came down to Tommy Novak, who was unable to beat Shesterkin in the third round.

That gave the Rangers the victory. In two games since returning, they’ve earned three out of four points. Unlike the overtime loss to the Flyers the other day, this one was more satisfying due to the effort they gave. They got what they deserved today.

Morrow Returns to Lineup

After sitting out on Thursday, Scott Morrow returned to the lineup. He teamed up with Matthew Robertson on the third pair. In 23 shifts (15:31), Morrow had a shot, three attempts, and went a minus-1.

Vincent Iorio was a healthy scratch.