The New York Rangers lost to the Washington Capitals 5-2 at Madison Square Garden this afternoon. The Capitals were on a mission all game and the Rangers did not have the tenacity and the drive to combat that. The Capitals have now won 5 of 6, while the Rangers have lost 2 of their last 3. The Rangers have 7 games left, while the Capitals have 6 games left. The Capitals' last game is against the Rangers.
The Capitals got on the board first with a shot from Alex Ovechkin for his league leading 48th of the year. With 2 minutes left Kevin Hayes picked up the puck in the offensive zone off a turnover and fired it past Capitals goalie Braden Holtby. One minute later the Rangers took the lead when Mats Zuccarello fed Derrick Brassard.
In the 2nd, Ovechkin got his 2nd tally of the game for his 49th of the season, while the Rangers did not get one past Holtby in the 2nd period. At the end of the 2nd the game was 2-2. In the third period Jason Chimera put one past Cam Talbot, 5 hole to take a 3-2 lead. At 7:40 of the third Jason Chimera made it a 4-2 game with his 2nd of the game. The Caps' Marcus Johansson sealed the win for the Capitals with a beaut of a goal with 4 minutes left in the game.
The Rangers fall to 47-21-7, and are stuck at 101 points, while the Capitals are 41-25-10 with 92 points. The Rangers are in a funk right now, prior to the playoffs starting. The Rangers' power play faltered all game, with the Rangers being 0/5. The Rangers next play on Tuesday in Winnipeg. The Capitals next go up against the Hurricanes on Tuesday in Washington.