Postgame takeaways: Rangers take down another NHL heavyweight in Colorado

If you polled those who follow the NHL closely about the best team in each conference, there would be substantial support for the Rangers in the East and the Avalanche in the West.

That gave Thursday's showdown in Colorado the feel of a Stanley Cup preview.

It'll be a long, hard road if either of these teams is going to get there, but they both looked like they're gearing up for that challenge. That made the Rangers' 3-2 shootout win even sweeter, as they stood up to one of the league's hottest outfits and prevailed in a fast-paced, tightly-contested battle.

They were a smidge better than the 2022 champs, registering both of their goals in the third period − first from Kaapo Kakko, then from Chris Kreider − before finishing it in the shootout round to earn their 24th comeback win of the season.

That represents the NHL's second-best total, behind only the Avs' 25. Colorado showed that mettle when Devon Toews tied score at 2-2 with 7:13 to play, but the Rangers (49-20-4) had a clear advantage in goal once the game got to overtime.

Igor Shesterkin was huge throughout the night but especially in that extra period, where he made five of his 38 saves before shutting the door by stopping both shootout attempts he faced.

Best vs. best

The thrilling win maintained a one-point lead over the Dallas Stars in the race for the Presidents' Trophy and created a three-point cushion over the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes in the more-important race for the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed.

It also ends a grueling stretch of playing five straight teams who are currently in playoff position, including four of the NHL's top-eight teams in Colorado, Boston, Florida and Winnipeg. The Rangers went 4-1 in those contests, with the only loss coming Mar. 19 against the Jets.

They've won four straight since then and will now enter a softer spot in the schedule. Their next six games will come against teams who are on the outside of the postseason picture, beginning Saturday at 6 p.m. in Arizona against the Coyotes.

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Might that give these Blueshirts a chance to regroup and get a little rest? Probably not. They'll play every other day from here until their regular-season finale on Apr. 15, with nine games remaining.

Still, it would be beneficial to find ways to give some key players a breather, particularly a banged-up defensive corps. Ryan Lindgren returned Thursday following a four-game absence with a lower-body injury, but Adam Fox took a puck to the face in the third period and did not take another shift. He returned to the bench for the shootout and appears to be okay, but it served as yet another oh-no moment at a critical point in the season.

Ending Nathan MacKinnon's point streak

Despite the star players on both sides, defense was the story in a first period that featured just 12 combined shots on goal. The Rangers blocked 10 shots in those 20 minutes alone (and 22 for the game, including a game-high six from Fox) and were committed to slowing down the Avs' high-powered attack.

The gridlock wasn't broken until 33 seconds remained in the second period, when a couple Colorado trade-deadline additions snapped the scoreless tie. It started with Brandon Duhaime absorbing a hit from New York defenseman K'Andre Miller, then turning a flipping a pass to an oncoming Casey Mittelstadt, who fired a shot over Shesterkin's right shoulder.

The Rangers were otherwise stout and disciplined against arguably the most dangerous team in the league.

The Avalanche may inarguably be the NHL's fastest team, which they combine with a high level of skill. That's led by Nathan MacKinnon, who entered the night riding a 19-game point streak and is considered by many the front-runner for the Hart Trophy.

The 28-year-old center is an absolute force when he picks up speed with the puck on his stick, finishing with five shots on goal in a whopping 27:53 time on ice. But despite all of those minutes, the Blueshirts limited his touches and backchecked hard to cut off shooting lanes when he did go into attack mode. The extra effort kept the league's second-leading scorer off the scoresheet for the first time since Feb. 10.

It may have been a different story earlier in the season, when the Rangers ranked as one of the NHL's worst teams at defending against the rush. That's been a glaring issue for multiple seasons, particularly against speedy transition teams like the Avs, and still creeps in on occasion. But there's been a clear, concerted emphasis on improving that area under head coach Peter Laviolette, which has been paying dividends during this impressive 19-4-1 stretch coming out of the all-star break.

That's a very good sign with the playoffs just over three weeks away.

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Holding Colorado to one goal through two periods − and only four high-danger scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick − allowed the Rangers to mount yet another third-period comeback.

They seem to be at their best when their backs are against the wall.

It started with an unlikely hero in Kaapo Kakko, who's had an underwhelming offensive season and increasingly seen his ice time reduced late in close games. But the 23-year-old took control of his first shift in the third period, as he carried a puck behind the Avs' net, fed Jonny Brodzinski for a chance in front, then banked the rebound off the back of goalie Alexandar Georgiev and in to tie the score at 1-1.

Kreider, who's looked either slightly off or fatigued for stretches lately, followed with his 34th goal of the season and first power-play tally in nine games to put the Rangers on top, 2-1, with 10:25 remaining.

The Avs pressed hard from there, earning 17 shots on goal and eight HDCF in the final period alone, and they carried that momentum in OT. But that's where Shesterkin showed what kind of X-factor he can be in these big games and carried his team to the finish line.

He's among a handful of reasons the Rangers believe they can beat any team in the NHL, which they've certainly been proving lately.

Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Postgame takeaways: Rangers defeat another NHL heavyweight in Colorado