Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his fourth goal of the game at 2:54 of the second overtime as the Senators rallied to stun the Rangers, 6-5, in Game 2 of the best-of-seven series.
Leading 5-3 late in the third, the Rangers allowed two goals in the final 3:19 — both by Pageau. His third goal with 1:02 left tied the score at 5 with goalie Craig Anderson pulled for an extra skater.
Pageau, who scored 12 goals in 82 regular-season games this season, is the first player with four goals in a playoff game since the Red Wings’ Johan Franzen did it in 2010 against the Sharks.
Game 3 is tomorrow at Madison Square Garden.
In a game that appeared would be decided by special teams, which coach Alain Vigneault thought had cost the Rangers in the 2-1 Game 1 loss Thursday, the Blueshirts scored twice shorthanded and another goal five seconds after a power play ended in the second period.
Trailing 4-2 after two periods, the Senators got a big bounce off the end boards and Ottawa’s Mark Stone was in front for the carom at 1:28. But Rangers rookie defenseman Brady Skjei scored his second of the game and fourth goal of the playoffs at 5:10 to give the Rangers a 5-3 lead.
With 8:31 left, Kyle Turris was whistled for holding on a rush putting a damper on the Senators hopes. But with 3:19 left, a low right point shot was tipped past Henrik Lundqvist (28 saves) by Pageau. Pageau’s tying goal 2:17 later also was on a tip-in, off a long shot from Turris, on a six-on-five, and it completed the comeback and gave him his second career playoff hat trick.
The Rangers had won six of the last eight playoff games they have played when trailing in a series, dating back to Game 5 of the second round against Washington in 2015.
Neither Lundqvist or Anderson were in top form.
There were four goals scored — three by the Rangers — in a 5:12 span of the second period, in which they outshot the Senators 19-10 and could have had more than three if not for some remarkable saves by Anderson (43 saves).
It was also the penalty-kill, by snuffing out three opportunities by the Senators in the first period that allowed the Rangers to be tied 1-1 after 20 minutes.
With Marc Staal in the box for interference at 3:28, Ottawa forward Mark Stone couldn’t handle a pass from the offensive zone to the left point. Jesper Fast scooped it up and broke down ice on a two-on-one with Michael Grabner, who buried a shot at 4:16 for the game’s first goal. It was Grabner’s third of the playoffs.
Later in the first, Dan Girardi’s wayward cross-ice pass from the right side was scooped up in the neutral zone by Pageau, who drove in on Ryan McDonagh and beat Lundqvist with a shot over his left shoulder from outside of the right faceoff circle at 13:59.
Vigneaut juggled his lines in the second. Mats Zuccarello was with Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, and Oscar Lindberg was centering Pavel Buchnevich and JT Miller. The move seemed to jumpstart the club.
Anderson was forced to make two big saves, first on Miller in front, prompting chants of “Andy, Andy” and then on Grabner from the left side. At 9:30, Jimmy Vesey was hooked by Stone going to the net, and Derek Stepan’s shot from the left post was denied. On the ensuing power play, the Rangers couldn’t solve Anderson, who sprawled to stop Miller alone at the right post, with an arm and glove save.
Shortly after it ended, Kreider fought off Viktor Stalberg in the left circle, spun and fired toward the net and it got past Anderson at 10:39 for a 2-1 Rangers lead. It was his first goal of the playoffs. Stepan then finished off Rick Nash’s pass on a two-on-one rush for the Rangers’ second short-handed goal. With six minutes left, Mike Hoffman dashed down the right side, around Skjei, and Mike Methot scored on the rebound to cut the lead to 3-2.
But Skjei’s first goal, a long, soft shot that went through traffic, made it 4-2 at 15:51 of the second period.
RESULTS
Senators 6 Rangers 5
Penguins 6 Capitals 2
