EDMONTON – The Rangers lost Brendan Shanahan with a knee contusion after he turned into Dustin Penner at center ice in the third period.
They lost Martin Straka with an apparent stinger in overtime, and lost the game to the Oilers, 3-2, in a shootout, when Sam Gagner put the only goal scored in it, off Henrik Lundqvist’s glove.
They lost all three games on their first trip to Western Canada since 2002 because, just like in Calgary and especially Vancouver, they couldn’t stay out of the penalty box.
Down 1-0 into the third period when Jarret Stoll’s power-play point drive was deflected at the point of launch by Chris Drury and flew over Lundqvist’s shoulder to put Edmonton up 1-0, the hockey gods seemed to be taking care of the Rangers.
Dan Girardi’s drive from along the boards had similarly been deflected by Andrew Cogliano over Edmonton goalie Mathieu Garon’s shoulder to tie the game 8:07 into the third period.
But Ryan Hollweg was given a five-minute penalty for hitting Shawn Horcoff from behind and Straka was called for holding Dustin Penner off a faceoff, and Horcoff roofed a 5-on-3 third-period power-play goal to put Edmonton up 2-1.
“I didn’t think it should have been five,” said Hollweg, “I tried to hold him up.”
The Oilers, losers of seven of the last eight, in 15th place in the West, tried to give it back. Joni Pitkanen cross-checked Shawn Avery in the back with 1:02 left, drawing a roughing penalty. And with Lundqvist pulled and the Rangers skating six on four, Jaromir Jagr threaded a pass from the halfboards to Chris Drury at the opposite post.
Drury blocked it with his chest and calmly swept it into the half-open net to tie the game with seven seconds left.
“It was a sick pass,” said Drury.
And Jagr said it similarly was an unbelievable play by Drury to use his body rather than try to swipe the puck out of the air. The game was tied, the Rangers had salvaged at least a point, and when Lundqvist’s glove flashed to rob Sheldon Souray in overtime, the Rangers had the vibes, just not enough shooters in the overtime.
Sean Avery, Scott Gomez, and Jagr, probably subbing for Shanahan, all failed to beat Garon. And Gagner, the first Oiler shooter, put one off Lundqvist’s glove, and it plopped down into the goal like an egg and the trip splattering.
“That’s the way we are right now, the puck bouncing the wrong way,” said Lundqvist. “I tried to keep my arm tight to my body, know I got a piece of it, but not enough.”
Lundqvist had come up big in the third period as the Rangers, true to their 40-game form, shot with futility at Garon. They persevered, despite their penalties – Stoll’s power-play goal was set up by a needless slash by Shanahan behind the play – and seemed about to be rewarded.
“We had Henrik going in the shootout and we have guys who can snipe,” said coach Tom Renney. “I felt good about our chances.
“That play Jagr made was one only a few players in the game can make. I liked our battle level, but, boy, it doesn’t matter when you are in the penalty box in the third period again.
“I can, I suppose, take some satisfaction that it hasn’t been something running rampant through our season. But we gotta stop it right now or we’ll be watching in April.”