Madness at MSG: Breaking down the Brady Tkachuk-Igor Shesterkin scuffle

The New York Rangers played one of their best games of the season on Tuesday night, beating the Ottawa Senators 5-0 at Madison Square Garden as the Blueshirts continue to push for playoff position. New York has points in nine straight games, posting a 6-0-3 record going back to January 4.

Though everything seemed to be going for the Rangers against Ottawa — offense, defense, goaltending — the most entertaining part of the night was a third period scrum where Senators captain Brady Tkacuk went into the crease, hit Igor Shesterkin's hand and all hell broke loose. Every Ranger on the ice, including Shesterkin, took it personal and joined in on the fight.

Let's break down what happened.

It started when Shesterkin made a save and covered up the puck on a Ridley Greig shot, and as he was covering up, Tkachuk immediately went into the crease. From afar, it looked like Tkachuk whacked Shesterkin's hand with his stick, and that's when the fighting began.

In the NHL, whenever someone goes after the goalie or comes close to them, expect the team fight back. This wasn't the only time in the game where Shesterkin was touched - he was tripped from behind the net by Michael Amadio a few minutes later, and off that goalie interference penalty, the Rangers went on to score two power play goals.

But, in this one, Tkachuk clearly hit Shesterkin. This is what the Senators captain does and has made his name off of. He is a great hockey player — he has 38 points (18 G, 20 A) in 47 games this season — but is known to be a rougher player. There have been plenty of incidents where he has crossed the line, whether for instigation, dirty hits or something else.

To a point, this is exactly what a team wants: someone who is a bruiser and can score. That's why there have been rumors about Tkachuk possibly coming to the Rangers if things don't get better in Ottawa. At this point in the game - 12 minutes left and trailing 3-0 - he was trying to give his team a spark.

But, by doing that, expect the Rangers to respond.

And they did. For a team that felt lifeless for more than two months, the Rangers played an emotional 60 minutes that waa capped off by this scrum.

Right after Tkachuk hit Shesterkin, the five Rangers on the ice — Matt Rempe, Filip Chytil, Adam Edstrom, Braden Schneider and Urho Vaakanainen — went after him. As the fighting escalated to the boards, Shesterkin seemed to be injured.

But, he got up and went after Tkachuk. He even tried to throw a haymaker.

As the fighting went on and players started getting broken up, players such as Rempe and Schneider - the two Rangers more inclined to fight - were held back by Ottawa players and referees.

The best part of this was Shesterkin getting involved. It's not often that goalies join scrums, and as has become so well known over the past five years, Shesterkin cares A LOT. That goes for wins, losses and whenever someone touches him. The 28-year-old has a history of taking things near him personal, but not like this.

With what the Rangers and their fans had to go through during November and December, it's time like this where they can sit back and laugh. Nobody was hurt and New York picked up another big two points.

But, the most important part of this scrum was how the Rangers backed up their superstar goaltender.

Rempe — who also scored his first goal of the season Tuesday night —put it best.

“I can’t let anything happen to [Shesterkin]. I had about eight guys holding me back," Rempe said. "Igor is the best goalie in the world. I want to do everything I can to make sure nothing happens to him.”

The game was practically over with the Rangers leading by three with just over 12 minutes remaining. But, how the Rangers responded to Tkachuk's incident shows how much they cared.

New York could have layed down been dead in the water. Entering the Christmas break, the Rangers were last in the Metropolitan Division. But, since the new year got underway, they are 7-1-3 and are clawing back.

Are the Rangers going to make the playoffs? It's going to be hard and there's still a lot of time. There's no clear answer on a yes or no. But, at least the Blueshirts are making it interesting.

Tuesday night, they did it by battering another playoff contender 5-0 and everyone — including their superstar goalie — getting involved in confrontations. That emotion is what the Rangers will need down the stretch.