Plenty of winners, few losers after Rangers finally erase multi-goal deficit, win 5-3 over Panthers
The New York Rangers finally overcame a multi-goal deficit Monday night, rallying from a 3-1 hole to take down the Florida Panthers 5-3 in their second-to-last game of the season Monday at Amerant Bank Arena.
Among the notable performers were Matt Rempe. who cashed in with a goal and an assist, as well as J.T. Miller who did the same. Jonny Brodzinski, Vincent Trocheck, and Juuso Parssinen were the other goal scorers for New York.
Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann got back into the lineup as the Rangers are out of playoff contention, and defenseman Matthew Robertson made his NHL debut with Braden Schneider out for the remainder of the season with an upper-body injury.
It was an all-around great team win for the Rangers in their final road game of the season. Jonathan Quick picked up his 11th win of the season in what is likely his final game until 2025-26, making 27 saves on 30 shots. He passed Grant Fuhr for sole possession of 13th place on the all-time NHL wins list with No. 404 of his great career.
Let’s take a look at the winners and losers from the win on Monday.
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Winner – Matt Rempe – Rangers
This was by far Matt Rempe’s best game of his young career, and not only because he cashed in with a big goal for the Rangers. The towering 6-foot-9 forward played a very effective game on the fourth line, and what was most noticeable was his skating and speed, something he’s been very vocal about working on this season. This game felt like a culmination of everything Rempe set out to do this year, and showed that he has improved greatly, and can continue to get better as a complete hockey player. The goal, where he gained position on veteran defenseman Seth Jones to cash in on a rebound, was a big one for the Rangers and the 22-year old, and he had multiple other close calls as well. Rempe finished with a goal, an assist, and 12:26 of ice time in his first multiple-point outing in the NHL.
Loser – Brett Berard – Rangers
With rookies Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann back in the lineup, and even Matthew Robertson earning his NHL debut on defense, it’s hard to come up with a good reason as to why Brett Berard was a healthy scratch. He’s been one of, if not the best rookies for the Rangers with six goals and 10 points in 35 games, many of which have been spent on the fourth line. With just two games remaining and the Rangers out of playoff contention, there’s no reason why Berard should be sitting in the press box, especially after he scored two goals against the Islanders last week.
Winner – Vincent Trocheck – Rangers
In his 800th NHL game, Vincent Trocheck scored a huge short-handed goal early in the third period, his team-high fifth of the season and 25th overall, which ended up being the game-winner for the Rangers. And it came against the team that drafted him back in 2011. While Trocheck took a step back from his impressive 77 points last season, he’s reached the same amount of goals as a year ago and quietly earned 58 points. He’s also continued to be one of the best in the League in the face-off circle with a win percentage of 59.4. He remains a heart-and-soul Ranger.
Loser – Home ice advantage – Panthers
The Florida Panthers had a golden opportunity to keep their hopes for home ice advantage alive in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Tampa Bay Lightning. With a 3-1 lead against the Rangers late in the second period, it looked like things would go their way, but they instead allowed the visitors to earn their first multi-goal comeback win of the season, giving the Lightning the rights to four home games in the first-round matchup. While not the end of the world for the Panthers by any means, they have been distinctly better at home (27-12-2) compared to on the road (20-18-2), so we’ll see if this plays a factor in the first round.
Winners – Rookies – Rangers
With the Rangers out of playoff contention, rookies Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann were finally inserted back into the lineup after each was recently scratched for multiple games, and defenseman Matthew Robertson made his NHL debut. While they didn’t record any points, the three young Rangers got some valuable playing time and experience that they’ll take with them into next season. Robertson nearly scored a goal on the first shift of the game, hopping up to join the rush. And Perreault came close to his first NHL goal late in the third period. Othmann logged 12:34 of ice time, Perreault had a career-high 16:01, and Robertson 15:24 skating on a pair with Adam Fox. Expect a similar deployment of young guns for the Rangers on Thursday night in the season finale against the Lightning.
Winner – Zac Jones – Rangers
While he didn’t record a point in this one, Zac Jones was one of the Rangers best players in the victory. He was noticeable, especially in the first and second periods. Jones had numerous looks to score, made some impressive moves in the offensive zone to create scoring opportunities for himself and others, and was decent defensively as well. He finished with three shots on goal, tied for the team-lead with six shot attempts and had 19:29 TOI. It must good for the 24-year-old, whose been frustrated this season with being scratched in nearly half of the games. If this game was any indication of Jones’ ability, the Rangers should think twice when deciding his future this offseason.
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