TORONTO — The Rangers had spent much of their time over the last few days talking about how their deals at the deadline had changed the club’s dynamic.
Unfortunately for the Blueshirts, their game did not become dynamic until the third period last night when they scored twice in the first nine minutes to pull even with the Maple Leafs, only to lose 4-3 when Phil Kessel got his second of the game at 9:39, just 39 seconds after Derek Stepan had tied it.
The defeat leaves the Rangers in a tie for seventh place with the Islanders and only two points ahead of the ninth-place Devils, with nine games remaining for each team. The Blueshirts remained two points behind the sixth-place Senators, who hold one game in hand, while slipping six points behind fifth-place Toronto.
Neither club created much during a mundane first period in which the Maple Leafs scored the only goal by capitalizing on a poorly timed Rangers’ line change.
Dan Girardi had hit the post from the right circle before the Leafs were able to create a rush off a neutral zone scramble while the Rangers were in the midst of a change.
James VanRiemsdyk, left alone in front by Michael Del Zotto in misguided pursuit of the puck in the left corner, was able to beat Henrik Lundqvist on a second try at 11:04 for the only goal of the period.
The Blueshirts, who failed to mount a threat during the only power play of the period, endured a stretch of 9:23 without a shot, from the 7:11 to 16:34.
The Maple Leafs, who owned the final change, had right defenseman Dion Phaneuf matched against Rick Nash for every shift No. 61 took. Nash, who had recorded six goals in the previous 10 games, had three of the Rangers’ seven first-period shots, but all from the outside.
Tight checking continued through the opening 10 minutes of the second period, but the match opened up thereafter and not necessarily to the Rangers’ benefit.
The Maple Leafs extended their lead to 2-0 when Ryan O’Byrne converted a neat two-on-one Nazem Kadri feed at 11:28 with Del Zotto caught in the neutral zone on a chip up the right boards by Clarke MacArthur. The Carl Hagelin-Derick Brassard-Boyle unit was trapped up the ice on the play that O’Byrne finished at the left side.
Nash, able to escape the Phaneuf match for the second time, took advantage by powering his way to the net against Cody Franson to cut the Maple Leafs’ edge to 2-1 at 14:55. Nash’s goal, his 16th of the season, came soon after Phaneuf had left the ice for a change following a Rangers’ power play.
The winger drove to the net from the left wing. Goaltender James Reimer made the stop from in close but the puck then glanced in off Jay McClement’s skate.Stepan got the assist on the headman feed on which Nash was sprung.
The Rangers picked up the pace but the Maple Leafs got the next goal, this one on their first power play of the match when Kessel’s left wing snap shot beat Lundqvist through traffic at 19:18 to send Toronto into the third with a 3-1 lead.
The third goal ended Lundqvist’s streak of 10 straight games in which the goaltender had allowed two goals or fewer, having surrendered one goal four times and two goals on six occasions.
Coach John Tortorella moved Nash — who had been skating with usual linemates Stepan and Ryan Callahan — onto the unit with Brassard and Hagelin on the second rotation of the third period for the first of a series of double shifts in order to get the Big Easy away from Phaneuf.
The strategy paid off immediately when Nash drove to the net against Mark Fraser on a bull-rush from the right wing before beating Reimer at 2:50 for his second of the night and eighth goal in the last 11 matches.
larry.brooks@nypost.com