It was a back-and-forth affair throughout the majority of the afternoon between the Bruins and Rangers on Friday but New York scored a pair of goals in the third period to help earn a 5-2 win.
Forwards Artemi Panarin and Julien Gauthier led the way for the Rangers as both players registered two points in the win. Gauthier assisted on both of the even strength third-period goals for New York.
Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin stayed hot and really helped shut down the Bruins offense, stopping 34 of the 36 shots that he faced.
At the 11:35 mark of the third period, Ryan Strome hit Gauthier on a cross-ice pass and Gauthier had to gather the puck in his skates. Gauthier ended up being able to put the pass right on Panarin's stick for the easy goal right in front of Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman. Panarin's tally gave the Rangers a 3-2 lead at the time.
Then just five minutes later, Gauthier set up another impressive goal. He pounced on the loose puck in the Rangers zone and took it the other way. Gauthier then fed Alexis Lafreniere, who wristed one high past Swayman to give the Rangers some insurance.
It certainly was surprising to see the Rangers come out on the winning side after the way the game began.
The Bruins really dominated play out of the gate as they outshot the Rangers 17-5 in the opening period. Despite the Bruins holding such a lopsided advantage, the game was tied 1-1 after Strome scored with just 5.8 seconds remaining in the period.
The two teams also exchanged goals in the second period with Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron and Rangers forward Dryden Hunt finding the back of the net for their respective teams.
Why the Rangers won
Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin was sensational all afternoon. In the first period, the Bruins were easily the better team. They had an abundance of scoring chances and ended up outshooting the Rangers 17-5 in the first 20 minutes. Still, Shesterkin had an answer for everything and continued to embark on an impressive season that has saw him carry a 2.24 goals-against-average into Friday's contest.
It certainly didn't hurt that Ryan Strome was able to score in the final seconds of the opening period. However, even if that didn't happen, the Rangers would've only been down one goal despite having one of the more lackluster periods of their season.
Why the Bruins lost
The Rangers weren't exactly the most disciplined team throughout the game. In fact, New York committed five penalties, which gave Boston plenty of chances to take control of the game. But the Bruins couldn't cash in on a single one of those opportunities.
The Bruins have been one of the most dangerous power-play units throughout the first quarter of the 2021-22 season. Entering Friday, the Bruins were scoring on 24.5 percent of their chances on the man-advantage, which is good for seventh in the league. When Boston had New York on the ropes in the first period, they had two power plays within a two-minute stretch and registered seven shots during that time. Now, Craig Smith did score right after the second penalty expired, but the Bruins had a chance to put a stranglehold on this game and just couldn't do it.