The New York Rangers unfortunately wasted away another point and a possession of a wild-card playoff berth on March 8th, burning a two-goal lead and suffering their second consecutive overtime loss — this time to the Ottawa Senators.
The Blueshirts ended up losing 4-3 in overtime at the Canadian Tire Centre with Brady Tkachuk winning it for the Senators 33 seconds into the extra time.
"That's disappointing. We were in control of the game," New York Rangers Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. "We didn't finish it, so it's disappointing we leave a point on the table and not get the win."
Let's breakdown exactly how the Rangers got their latest loss with three key takeaways from the matchup.
1. Carson Soucy's First Game as a Blueshirt
Newcomer Carson Soucy, a defenseman acquired from the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday, scored the first goal of the Saturday contest in his Rangers debut. He becomes the 26th different goal scorer for Blueshirts this year, tied for the most in the NHL.
Soucy gets his first as a #NYR. pic.twitter.com/Tslb5yhZc4
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) March 8, 2025
Soucy said that despite the loss, he didn't feel too bad about his first game as a New York Ranger.
"Not bad, unfortunately not the win. Felt better as the game went on, think some things just going to take a little bit of time to get used to just [with the] systems change. But overall, the first game, I thought it felt pretty well, Soucy said postgame."
2. Finding the Highlights in the Loss
Mika Zibanejad made it 2-0 early in the second period featuring a stellar passing play and feed from J.T. Miller. Zibanejad’s 39 goals in the month of March since 2019-20 are tied for the fourth most in the NHL.
Goaltender Igor Shesterkin posted a .892 save percentage and tallied 33 saves; despite giving up the OT goal he played the majority of the game well and displayed dynamic stoppings on the crease.
Igor Shesterkin and Will Borgen combine to keep the puck out in the dying seconds of the first period ‼️🤯🙅🏽♂️#NYR #NYRangers @BlueLineStation pic.twitter.com/bhLvRF78zw
— Dan Godlewski (@Danthfc_) March 8, 2025
3. Quick Turnaround
The Blueshirts have no time to waste in the playoff race. They immediately travel back to New York City to host the Columbus Blue Jackets at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. Puck drop is slated for 6:00 p.m. EST.
Rangers leading scorer Artemi Panarin said don't have time to dwell on this latest loss given their tight schedule.
"We don't have time [to be] frustrated for too long, we have a very important game tomorrow. We have to be ready," Panarin said.