New York, N.Y. — The Rangers fell to the Buffalo Sabres 5-3 on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in their final home game of the season.
This marked the last home game of the season, branded as “Fan Appreciation Night,” the annual Rangers tradition that honors fans for sticking with the team all year—especially this season, which has been abysmal, to say the least.
After back-to-back hat tricks from Gabe Perreault and Will Cuylle, the Blueshirts looked to keep the scoring going against a Buffalo team that made the playoffs for the first time in 14 seasons.
The Rangers came out hot, generating more than a few quality chances in the opening minutes. However, it was the Sabres who struck first, as Ryan McLeod ripped a shot past Igor Shesterkin to give Buffalo a 1–0 lead. It was McLeod’s first goal in 16 games.
Buffalo wasn’t done. With 11:02 remaining in the period, Rasmus Dahlin fired a long wrister that was tipped in front by Zach Benson, extending the Sabres’ lead to 2–0.
With 1:36 remaining in the period, the Rangers went to their first power play as McLeod was called for tripping. New York capitalized, as Adam Fox sent a shot from the point that Alexis Lafrenière deflected in front to cut the deficit in half.
After one period, the Rangers trailed 2–1.
Just one minute into the second period, Fox was called for tripping, giving Buffalo its first power play and a chance to extend the lead. The Rangers killed it off and generated offense of their own, as the Sabres lost Lafrenière in coverage, allowing him to beat Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and tie the game at two.
With 5:46 remaining in the period, the Rangers went back on the power play as Peyton Krebs was called for hooking. This time, New York took advantage. Fox sniped a shot over Luukkonen’s blocker to give the Rangers a 3–2 lead.
Despite holding the lead, Vincent Trocheck was sent to the box with 3:29 remaining in the period. Just over a minute into the Sabres’ power play, Vladislav Gavrikov was called for cross-checking, giving Buffalo a two-man advantage for 56 seconds. The Rangers successfully killed both penalties to maintain their lead.
After two periods, the Blueshirts led 3–2.
The Rangers held that lead for about six minutes into the third period before a shot from Krebs was deflected by Alex Tuch to tie the game at three.
Buffalo continued to push, and Jason Zucker scored to give the Sabres a 4–3 lead with just over 12 minutes remaining.
At the 10-minute mark, Will Borgen was called for holding the stick, giving Buffalo another power play. That advantage was short-lived, as Josh Norris was called for hooking less than a minute later, resulting in four-on-four play.
The final goal came into an empty net, as Benson scored his second of the game to seal a 5–3 Sabres victory.
The Rangers return to action on Saturday against the Dallas Stars on the road at American Airlines Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 5 p.m.
