The Rangers finally broke through on the power play in the Eastern Conference Final, but it wasn’t enough in their 3-2 overtime loss to the Panthers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final on Tuesday night in Sunrise, Fla.
The Blueshirts took a 1-0 lead over the Panthers early in the first period, as Vincent Trocheck connected on the man advantage.
Coming into the night on a brutal 1-for-17 stretch on the power play, the Rangers seemed destined to fail again on the power play but got things going with the clock winding down.
Vincent Trocheck is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a goal in the Rangers’ 3-2 OT loss to the Panthers in Game 4. Getty ImagesWith 20 seconds left on the advantage after Anton Lundell high-sticked Will Cuylle, Adam Fox controlled the puck at the point and fed Artemi Panarin, who was skating down to the goal line along the nearside boards.
Panarin quickly corralled the puck and fed an open Trocheck in the slot.
The forward one-timed it over the head of goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, getting the puck to go bar-down for the goal at 8:51 of the period.
It was the Rangers’ first power-play goal this series after starting out 0-for-8.
Vincent Trocheck is congratulated by his Rangers teammates after scoring a power play goal. Getty ImagesMika Zibanejad almost added a second power play in the period, when his shot from the slot glanced off Bobrovsky, hit the crossbar and bounced down into the crease for a fortuitous Panthers bounce with 3:21 left on the clock.
“Puck’s got to move, feet got to move,” Chris Kreider said Tuesday morning before Game 4 at Amerant Bank Arena. “Got to support the puck, got to win puck battles.”
Well, at least on this one chance, the Rangers did win the puck, and it ended up with a beautiful goal.
