COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Will Cuylle scored twice in the third period and the New York Rangers rallied to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 on Saturday night.
Mika Zibanejad had a goal and an assist, Arthur Kaliyev also scored, and Vincent Trocheck had two assists to help the Rangers win for the third time in four games. Jonathan Quick made 22 saves.
Kent Johnson, Justin Danforth, and James van Riemsdyk scored for Columbus in its fourth straight loss, including the last two at home. Elvis Merzlikins made 36 saves and the Blue Jackets remained one point behind Detroit for the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot.
Cuylle tied the score 1:57 into the third period, and then got the go-ahead score with 1:39 remaining.
Takeaways
Rangers: New York looked poised to dominate after taking a 1-0 lead just 1:56 into the first period on Kaliyev’s goal, but twice fell behind before rallying for the win in the third.
Blue Jackets: Columbus came out flat-footed and fell behind early before coach Dean Evason gave the team a wake-up call during the first media timeout. The Blue Jackets responded by taking the lead in both the first and second periods but failed to close out the victory.
Key Moment
Cuylle corralled the loose puck on the right side on a clearing attempt by the Blue Jackets, skated around to the left side and turned and fired the puck through traffic past Merzlikins to tie it early in the third period.
Key Stat
Zach Werenski’s assist on Johnson’s goal extended his home point streak to 21 games, the fifth-longest by a defenseman in NHL history and the third-longest by an American-born player. He continues to extend the Blue Jackets’ single-season record for points by a defenseman (59) and is now just four assists behind Rick Nash (258) for the team’s all-time lead.
Up Next
Both teams head into the 4 Nations Face-off break. Rangers visit Buffalo on Feb. 22, and Blue Jackets host Chicago.
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