Rangers defeat Panthers in overtime thriller to tie Conference Finals and escape 0-2 hole

NEW YORK — Only one team had ever come back to win a Stanley Cup series after losing the first two games at home in the conference finals. The New York Rangers had no intention of attempting to become the second.

Barclay Goodrow scored the winning goal with 5:59 remaining in overtime, and the Rangers defeated the Florida Panthers Friday night in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final, 2-1. The series is now tied at a game apiece as the teams head to Sunrise for Game 3 Sunday at 3 p.m.

”Obviously it’s tough to lose in overtime, but at the end of the day, we’re 1-1 in their building,” Aaron Ekblad said. “They came out really explosive tonight and that’s what we expected. We lost a tight game, we have to move on and we have a quick turnaround.”

The loss snapped an 11-game playoff overtime winning streak for the Panthers, spanning from when they were eliminated in Game 6 of the first round of the 2016 playoffs by the New York Islanders.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette, who saw his team shut out for only the second time this season in the series opener, was happy for Goodrow, who usually contributes in other ways.

"To see him score a goal like that tonight is awesome because his role doesn't always consist of that," Laviolette said. "It's not always in the offensive zone. It's not on the power play, but when you see somebody who does so many other things that helps a team be successful, you're really happy for a guy like that when he can make a huge impact in the game tonight offensively."

Goodrow received a pass from Vincent Trocheck in the high slot and ripped his shot past goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.

"I don't really remember exactly how it went in," Goodrow said. "I just remember Troch giving a great pass to me and (Will Cuylle) was driving the net and opening up the lane, so it's great play by those two."

Vincent Trocheck got the scoring started Friday in Madison Square Garden 4:12 into the game, giving the Rangers their first goal and their first lead of the series. New York went to the power play immediately following the goal but could not capitalize.

Carter Verhaeghe tied the game up later in the period, zipping a power-play goal from the slot past goalie Igor Shesterkin.

There would be no more scoring until overtime, though both teams had several chances before Goodrow’s shot beat Bobrovsky in OT.

”I’m fine with tonight,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said. “You shouldn’t come in and beat the Presidents’ Trophy team twice in their own building. We got it to overtime, we had a good look a bunch of times and we couldn’t get it to go. Two really good goaltenders and it’s exciting. Lots of hits, lots of action.”

Here are three takeaways from Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final:

Panthers' penalty kill unit continues to shut down vaunted Rangers

Florida found itself on the penalty kill at multiple crucial points of the game and the Panthers have been rock solid each time.

When the Panthers went down a man immediately after the Rangers scored following a scuffle right after their goal, they only allowed one shot on goal while shutting down the passing lanes and being aggressive on the puck.

They made it hard for the Rangers to build any kind of momentum going on the power play and they were able to force turnovers with the stick and create chances the other way at points.

Florida finished 4-for-4 on the night on penalty kills.

”Obviously it’s predicated on pressure,” Ekblad said. “At the end of the day, that’s one of the top power plays in the league and we’re just trying to limit their chances. Bob is making huge saves, so that’s kind of the key.”

Florida brings physicality after Rangers make big change

The Rangers slotted big bruiser Matt Rempe into the lineup for Game 2 in search for a statement game and the Panthers answered back with even more physicality.

Ryan Lomberg led the way on that front, throwing three big hits in the first period and creating multiple Grade A scoring chances in the process. Aleksander Barkov was only credited with one hit, but he was tenacious on the puck, driving his way through New York’s defense to create opportunities on multiple chances.

Dmitry Kulikov may have had the biggest hit of the game, catching up to rookie Matt Rempe when he was all alone on Bobrovsky late in the third period and driving him into the boards.

“I thought we held the fort well,” Ekblad said. “1-1. It’s a tough game, came down to the wire in overtime, so I liked our response. We knew they were going to come out hard. We expect it and we'll try to match that intensity for Game 3."

Goaltending battle was brilliant on both sides

Bobrovsky and Igor Shesterkin put on a show at the World’s Most Famous Arena in Game 2.

Through regulation, the two netminders combined for 10 high-danger saves and 39 total, only allowing one goal each heading into overtime. Shesterkin led in high-danger saves, making six to Bobrovsky’s four, while the Florida netminder led 24-21 in total saves.

Shesterkin, however, had the last laugh.

”They are obviously two of the best goalies in the world and it’s a showdown out there,” Verhaeghe said. “We’re looking to get chances and they are both playing unreal.”

Information from northjersey.com contributed to this report.

Stanley Cup Eastern Conference FinalGame 3: Rangers at PanthersSunday, 3 p.m.ABC

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: New York Rangers beat Florida Panthers in OT to knot Conference Finals