Rangers 3, Devils 2: Rick Nash scored his team-leading 10th goal to snap a tie in the second period and Henrik Lundqvist turned aside 29 shots as visiting New York won its second straight game.
Defenseman Michael Del Zotto collected a short-handed goal and an assist and Carl Hagelin snapped a nine-game goalless drought for the Rangers, who totaled three goals in their previous four contests.
Travis Zajac had a power-play goal and defenseman Anton Volchenkov also scored for the Devils, who remained winless in their last three games (0-2-1) and fell to 3-8-2 in their last 13. Johan Hedberg finished with 19 saves.
Nash snapped a five-game goalless drought at 7:25 of the second period to give New York its third lead of the contest. After chasing down Del Zotto's lead pass, Nash skated into the right faceoff circle and fired a shot which sailed inside the left post for his 299th career tally.
The teams scored two goals apiece in just under a 5 1/2-minute span in the first period. After Zajac forged a 1-1 tie by beating Lundqvist on the doorstep, Hagelin regained the Rangers' lead by converting defenseman Dan Girardi's shot off the end boards. Volchenkov leveled the contest with a shot from the point with 2:47 remaining in the period.
GAME NOTEBOOK: New Jersey G Martin Brodeur served as the team's backup after being sidelined with a pinched nerve in his neck and upper back. The 40-year-old last played on Feb. 21 versus Washington. ... New York C Derek Stepan, who set up Del Zotto's first-period goal, has collected five goals and six assists in his last 11 contests. ... Devils D Marek Zidlicky played in his 600th career game and C Adam Henrique competed in his 100th contest.
NY Rangers | New Jersey | |
Michael Del Zotto 2 | Points | Anton Volchenkov 1 |
Michael Del Zotto 1 | Goals | Anton Volchenkov 1 |
Michael Del Zotto 1 | Assists | Stephen Gionta 1 |
N/A | Power Play Goals | Travis Zajac 1 |
Michael Del Zotto 1 | Short Handed Goals | N/A |
Henrik Lundqvist .935 | Save Percentage | Johan Hedberg .864 |
Henrik Lundqvist 29 | Saves | Johan Hedberg 19 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
NY Rangers | 22 | 3 | 0-2 | 3-4 | 8 | 26 |
New Jersey | 31 | 2 | 1-4 | 2-2 | 4 | 36 |