Henrik Lundqvist, Rangers defeat Panthers

Henrik Lundqvist made 43 saves and got his 404th NHL win to move into 10th place on the all-time list in the New York Rangers' 5-2 victory against the Florida Panthers at BB&T Center on Tuesday.
Lundqvist, who was tied with Grant Fuhr, also passed Martin Brodeur for most wins by a goalie in his first 12 NHL seasons and became the first to have 30 or more wins in 11 of his first 12 NHL seasons.

"I'm proud. I'm very proud," Lundqvist said. "I've worked really hard. ... That's what I've been doing here for 12 years now. Of course, the big goal is to win the Stanley Cup, but at the same time you have to enjoy the ride."
WATCH: All Rangers vs. Panthers highlights | READ MORE: Top 10 winningest goalies
New York (43-22-2) has won the first two of its four-game road trip; the Rangers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 1-0 in overtime on Monday.
"You have stay engaged and not relax and feel like it's going to be an easy road, because they kept coming," Lundqvist said. "They are good team offensively, I think defensively they made some mistakes where we can take advantage. I think that's the difference in this game."
Thomas Vanek and Aaron Ekblad scored for the Panthers (29-25-11), who lost for the sixth time in seven games (1-5-1). They are four points behind the New York Islanders for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
"It still stings but we keep saying, 'We are still in it, we are still in it.' We have to be positive, but we have to realize how tight [the playoff race is] getting," Ekblad said.

The Rangers took 1-0 lead when Chris Kreider scored at 9:25 of the first period. He deflected a bouncing puck on a shot from the point by Steven Kampfer for his 25th goal. It was Kampfer's first point with the Rangers, who acquired him in a trade with the Panthers on Nov. 8.
Tanner Glass, playing in his second game this season, made it 2-0 when he put a rebound past James Reimer at 13:00. It was his first goal since March 21 (10 games).
Kevin Hayes made it 3-0 with his 16th goal at 4:06 of the second period.
"It's good to get [big leads] again," Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh said. "Obviously we like the offense with the goals and different lines contributing. That's a great sign and it gives a lot of guys confidence."
Nick Holden made it 4-1 at 13:14 of the second period with his 10th of the season.
Reimer allowed four goals and made 15 saves. He was pulled in the second period for Reto Berra, who made eight saves.
"Tough loss," Reimer said. "Anytime you get pulled, you want to be better and be better for your team. Those games happen sometimes and we'll bounce back and we'll get them next time."
Pavel Buchnevich scored an empty-net goal with 1:45 remaining.

Goal of the game

Hayes took a stretch pass from Brady Skjei and skated in alone on Reimer before faking him out and beating him with a backhand shot.

Save of the game

Lundqvist saved a goal when he got his left skate on the puck to deny Jussi Jokinen of an open net at 1:38 of the first period.

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Unsung performance of the game

Rangers center Oscar Lindberg won 9 of 13 faceoffs, had two assists and was plus-2.

Highlight of the game

With the Rangers leading 3-0 at 12:47 of the second, Lundqvist stopped a deflection of Ekblad's shot before sliding to the other post to rob Colton Sceviour.

They said it

"He's been one of the best goaltenders in the last 12 years in the League and we are all working hard in front of him and hopefully we continue to do that." -- Rangers coach Alain Vigneault on goalie Henrik Lundqvist
"We're a team. I make mistakes; teammates mistakes; we all make mistakes. Your job is to try and bail your teammates out. That's your job as a goalie. You try to be there for them, but unfortunately they got a couple by me tonight." --Panthers goalie James Reimer

Need to know

Fuhr had 114 ties in his NHL career, and Brodeur had 105 in his first 12 seasons playing before the NHL implemented the shootout in 2005-06, which was Lundqvist's first season. … The Panthers went 4-for-4 on the penalty kill and have not allowed a power-play goal in 11 games (26-for-26). New York is 1-for-40 on the power play in its past 15 games. … Prior to the game, Olli Jokinen signed a one-day contract to retire with the Panthers. Jokinen, 38, spent seven seasons with Florida from 2000-08 and was captain from 2003-08. He is the Panthers' all-time leader in points (419), goals (188), game-winning goals (36) and overtime goals (10). ... Florida goalie Roberto Luongo missed his second straight game because of a lower-body injury and is day to day. ... Rangers defensemen Kevin Klein (back) and Dan Girardi (ankle) and forwards Jesper Fast (shoulder) and Michael Grabner (hip) did not play.

What's next

Rangers:At the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; FS-CR, MSG, NHL.TV)
Panthers: Host the Minnesota Wild on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET; FS-F, FS-N+, NHL.TV)