Red Wings fight back too late in loss to Rangers.

Will Cuylle #50 of the New York Rangers celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal in the second period against the Detroit Red Wings at Madison Square Garden on November 7, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images)

Detroit fell flat for too long in a 5-3 defeat against the New York Rangers on Tuesday night. Two uneventful periods for the Red Wings allowed New York to score five straight at Madison Square Garden and avoid a resurgence. Jonathan Quick made 25 saves on the night, inching closer to becoming the most-winning American goaltender in the NHL.  

The Red Wings big victory at home against the Boston Bruins was a huge statement, handing them their first regulation loss. They came in for their first visit with the Rangers and goaltender Igor Shesterkin still out. It was up to Quick to use his experience against Detroit and their offense to start on time. The Rangers shootout loss to the Wild on Saturday on the road was a small step back, but hosting the Red Wings could bring a positive start to their three-game homestand.

The Rangers took control in the opening ninety seconds, taking three shots on goal. It was their last one that came off the faceoff, with a big shot from the blueline blocked by Ville Husso. Vincent Trochek came back on the glove side of the Red Wings netminder, firing on the open stick side for his second of the season. After four minutes, New York had seven shots on goal while Detroit waited to tally their first.

Detroit marked their first during the man advantage, but it was all that was produced as missed opportunities were apparent. They struggled to return to even strength as the Rangers pressured the defense in the Red Wings zone. Getting the game at Quick was a struggle as New York fought to gain more puck possession. They handed the Red Wings a second power play where Alex DeBrincat and captain Dylan Larkin challenged Quick.

He put a stop to it at the center, while the PK unit killed half the time. When it was all said and done, Detroit notched three more but was still outshot 12-4. After 20 minutes, they tallied five and were outplayed, outhit, and outdone at the faceoff. A third attempt to make the power play work didn’t pan out at the start of the second period as they tallied a shot on goal.

The Rangers pushed the envelope at Husso, who had a chance to increase their lead. Eight minutes into the period New York got their first man advantage, which resulted in a goal 11 seconds into it. Chris Kreider tipped in the puck off a monster shot through traffic from Erik Gustafsson at the blue line for his ninth. Detroit suffered another penalty and watched the Rangers take a 3-0 lead on Trocheck’s second of the night, firing a one-timer to the high slot.

New York continued to have successful offensive shifts with Alexis Lafreniere getting a play rolling. He ended it in the hands of Artemi Panarin, scoring his seventh of the year. The Rangers notched their fourth goal of the period, with Zac Jones eager to get a point or a goal for himself. His drive ended up tipped by Will Cuylle, getting his third, with six minutes left in the period. The Red Wings handed the Rangers another man advantage, hoping to avoid their opponent’s going 3 for 3.

They did prevent another goal while down a man, and more as the game returned to five on five. Detroit fought to kill time and before it was over, gained a fourth power play. Most rolled into the third, but they slipped up massively to allow the Rangers free movement and control. New York outshot them 13-7 and won 58 percent of faceoffs. It was a mountain for Detroit to climb back and very unlikely to close the gap.

Detroit opened with the remainder of their power play but nearly saw a short-hander for the Rangers succeed. Mika Zabinejad took off with the puck and made the pass down to Kreider, who was shut off by Husso on the stick side. It was another failed attempt for the Red Wings, who struggled to transition as the Rangers went heavy into the offensive zone. They got a couple of ringers off the post, missing by small margins.

The Red Wings made the best of their fifth power play, with J.T. Compher ringing the post before they got into a scuffle with New York in frustration. On the next play, Michael Rasmussen rang a puck off the pipe to see it go in and end the shutout for Quick. They marked another, with Klim Kostin backhanding one near the slot and keeping the celebrations short. Sitting three down with 11 minutes to go, Detroit kept their hopes high, intent on maintaining discipline and going for broke.

As time fell off the clock, the Red Wings defense strengthened, blocking plenty of scoring chances from the Rangers. Near the six-minute mark, Andrew Copp got Detroit within two, scoring his fifth. It was the third game this season that Detroit attempted a comeback from behind, with two wins in the books. Detroit coach Derek LaLonde pulled Husso out of the net, giving the team six attackers. They didn’t find clean shots to close the gap and suffered a tough outing in NYC.