"It comes down to winning," Lundqvist said. "You want to feel like you're making a difference out there. That's why I'm here. I want to try to help the team to win games. The first half of the season, I felt as good as I've felt in a few years. I want to come back to that and believe that we can win games and believe in myself. I think the last couple games we're moving in the right direction."
WATCH: [All Rangers vs. Flames highlights]
Ryan Spooner had a goal and an assist, and Kevin Hayes and Pavel Buchnevich scored for the Rangers (29-30-6), who have won two in a row following a seven-game losing streak (0-6-1). New York trails the Carolina Hurricanes and Columbus Blue Jackets by five points in the race for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
"It's been a few weeks where it's been tough," Lundqvist said. "No fun at all. When we go out there and play with a lot of energy and get good starts and compete, you enjoy it more."
Brett Kulak scored, and Jon Gillies made 24 saves for the Flames (32-25-9), who have lost three in a row and six of their past eight games (2-5-1). Calgary trails the Anaheim Ducks by three points for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference.
"It's tough," Flames forward Mikael Backlund said. "Other teams are winning and we're not. It's obviously a tough position to put ourselves in."
Buchnevich scored 56 seconds into the second period to put the Rangers up 2-1. The goal came moments after Lundqvist made a diving save with his blocker on Backlund's shot.