Artemi Panarin played heroes in overtime when the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Sunday in the final game of their first-round series.
With just nine seconds left on Brock McGinn’s penalty, Panarin, after receiving a pass from Adam Fox, fired a wrist shot between Kristopher Letang’s legs and Tristan’s left side Jarry.
The Rangers, who fell 3-1 in this series, rallied to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
Mika Zibanejad twice threaded the needle while Chris Kreider added a goal for the Rangers, who now face the Carolina Hurricanes.
Igor Shesterkin had some tough moments in the series against the Penguins, but he booked a 42-save performance for Game 7.
Danton Heinen, Jake Guentzel and Evan Rodrigues answered for the Penguins, who are looking to win their first series since 2018. This is their fourth consecutive first-round elimination for them.
Jarry, who has not played since April 14 due to a foot injury, gave up four times in 30 shots in front of the Pittsburgh team.
The Rangers wanted to test Jarry quickly, but the two teams started by learning from each other and they didn’t take too many risks.
Rookie defenseman Braden Schneider stopped attacking his blue line and started a 2-on-1 run. Zibanejad crossed to Kreider, who fired a very powerful and accurate shot so Jarry could do nothing even if he moved in time.
The Penguins responded before finishing the first frame, during a numerical superiority. Jeff Carter sent the puck in front of the net and Heinen was able to divert it over Shesterkin’s pad. The puck was saved by Adam Fox, but the replay confirmed that it had just crossed the red line.
The visitors took a 2-1 lead midway through the second period, still in power play. Guentzel showed amazing coordination kicking the puck with his right skate before it was quickly hit. Again, a replay was needed, and it confirmed that Guentzel’s stick was properly and truly below the horizontal bar.
However, the Rangers tied the game after 65 seconds. Miller received the puck at the fulcrum and fired a low shot that hit Mike Matheson’s right skate before going into the net.
The special teams again served the Penguins ’goal, but this time it was the shorthanded unit that stood out. Rodrigues blocked a pass from Filip Chitil and he partially escaped in front of Shesterkin. Although harassed by Miller, he placed the puck in the top corner with a backhand shot.
Although the minutes were ticking in the third period, the Rangers ’effort into enemy territory helped force an overtime. Andrew Copp took the puck in the corner and saw Zibanejad in the slot. The Swede fired a sharp shot that stopped Jarry.
Source: Radio-Canada
