Rangers capitalize on miscues in shootout win against Lightning

TAMPA --The New York Rangers capitalized on miscues by the Tampa Bay Lightning before recovering for a 4-3 shootout win at Amalie Arena on Friday.

Barclay Goodrow scored twice against his former team, and Igor Shesterkin made 25 saves for the Rangers (20-8-4), who had lost four of their past five games. Mika Zibanejad scored the deciding goal in the third round of the shootout.
"I had a tough time napping today, I was pretty excited," Goodrow said. "But when the puck drops you are able to put all the other things aside and just focus on the game. I think you could see by my reactions after the goals I was pretty excited. It was a great game and I'm happy for the effort the guys put out tonight."
Goodrow, who helped Tampa Bay win the Stanley Cup the past two seasons before being acquired by New York in a trade for a seventh-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft on July 17, received his championship ring before the game in front of many of his former teammates.
"It's bittersweet, I'll be honest, all these players … when you win a Cup … have a special place in your heart," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "But 'Goody' especially. He came here without a lot of fanfare and I think the trade (with the San Jose Sharks prior to the 2020 NHL Trade Deadline) was criticized by many people, and all he did was come in here and help lead us to two Stanley Cups. There's not too many players I've coached, not just in the NHL, in my career, that have the heart and gamesmanship that kid has."

Steven Stamkos had a goal and an assist, and Brian Elliott made 20 saves for the Lightning (21-7-5), who were coming off a 9-3 loss at the Florida Panthers on Thursday.
"You challenge your team and then you see what they have," Cooper said. "Tonight wasn't about wins and losses. It was about attitude, it was about compete level and I thought it was all there."
Stamkos gave the Lightning a 1-0 lead at 18:21 of the first period, scoring on a one-timer from the left circle off a pass from Victor Hedman on the power play.
Alexis Lafreniere tied it 1-1 at 5:30 of the second period when he intercepted a clearing attempt by Elliott in the left circle and quickly shot into an open net.
Goodrow then put New York ahead 2-1 at 14:30 following another mistake by Elliott. The goalie's cross-ice pass through his zone was collected along the left boards by Rangers forward Greg McKegg, who passed to Goodrow for a shorthanded goal in front.
Elliott, who was cleared from NHL COVID-19 protocol before the game, had played three seconds since Dec. 11, when he replaced Andrei Vasilveskiy for an equipment issue. Vasilevskiy is in protocol.
"'Moose' came back and made some unbelievable saves after that," Hedman said of Elliott. "We win and lose as a team. Mistakes can happen during a game. I thought Moose was tremendous. We hadn't practiced for a long time with him, so for him to come back today and put on a performance like that was very encouraging for the team and gave us a lot of confidence. We're very happy with the way he played tonight."

Ross Colton tied it 2-2 at 17:31 of the second period with a one-timer that beat Shesterkin glove side from the top of the left circle.
Goodrow put the Rangers back in front 3-2 at 13:35 of the third period on a redirection, but Corey Perry tied it 3-3 at 18:03 on a rebound at the top of the crease with Elliott pulled for the extra skater.
"It was a big win, obviously," New York coach Gerard Gallant said. "We had the lead and then they scored late in the hockey game, so that was tough to give up. But to win it in a shootout was good."
NOTES:Lightning forward Pat Maroon played his 600th NHL game. He has scored 257 points (107 goals, 150 assists) in 11 NHL seasons with the Anaheim Ducks, Edmonton Oilers, New Jersey Devils, St. Louis Blues and Tampa Bay. … Lightning defenseman Zach Bogosian was a late scratch and is day to day with a lower-body injury. … Rangers forward Artemi Panarin had an assist and has scored 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in his past nine games. … Hedman had an assist in a game-high 33:27 of ice time.