Ryan Strome scored on a wrist shot from the left dot at 2:09 of overtime Saturday to give the visiting New York Rangers a 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Pittsburgh's playoff lot came down to Saturday's results on the final night of the regular season. The Penguins (44-26-12) finished third in the Metropolitan Division and will be the road team in a first-round series against the New York Islanders.
Brendan Smith, Brady Skjei and Vladislav Namestnikov also scored for the Rangers, who are out of the playoffs and finished 32-36-14.
Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev made 36 saves.
Jake Guentzel's 40th goal off a rebound that gave Sidney Crosby 100 points came with 2:35 left in regulation and tied it at 3 after the Rangers scored twice in a span of 1:16 in the third for a 3-2 lead.
Crosby and Nick Bjugstad also scored for Pittsburgh, and Matt Murray made 26 saves.
Crosby opened the scoring at 6:36 of the first. He and Guentzel had a two-on-one breakaway with New York's Neal Pionk defending. Crosby one-timed a pass from Guentzel short side from the lower part of the right circle for his 35th goal.
The Rangers pulled even at 12:49 of the first. Pittsburgh's Garrett Wilson turned the puck over in the neutral zone, allowing Smith to move in on Murray and let loose a shot that sailed over the goalie's left shoulder.
Bjugstad gave the Penguins a 2-1 lead at 2:28 of the third. Marcus Pettersson took a shot from the left point. Pittsburgh's Patric Hornqvist got his stick on the puck, which knuckled to Bjugstad, who batted the puck behind Georgiev.
Skjei tied it 2-2 at 12:34 of the third. Off a three-on-two, he wristed a shot past Murray's glove.
Namestnikov gave the Rangers a 3-2 lead when he scored short-handed on a shot that went off Murray's stick and skittered in off the goalie's body.
On the tying goal, Pittsburgh's Justin Schultz worked to keep the puck in New York's end. Crosby's shot from in close bounced off at least one Rangers player, and Guentzel scored on the rebound.
--Field Level Media
NY Rangers | Pittsburgh | |
Vladislav Namestnikov 2 | Points | Sidney Crosby 2 |
Vladislav Namestnikov 1 | Goals | Sidney Crosby 1 |
Vladislav Namestnikov 1 | Assists | Sidney Crosby 1 |
N/A | Power Play Goals | N/A |
Vladislav Namestnikov 1 | Short Handed Goals | N/A |
Alexandar Georgiev .923 | Save Percentage | Matt Murray .867 |
Alexandar Georgiev 36 | Saves | Matt Murray 26 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
NY Rangers | 30 | 4 | 0-0 | 4-4 | 8 | 28 |
Pittsburgh | 39 | 3 | 0-4 | 0-0 | 0 | 34 |