Kreider scores tiebreaking goal in 2nd period as Rangers beat Red Wings 4-1

NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Kreider scored the go-ahead goal on the power play late in the second period and the New York Rangers beat the Detroit Red Wings 4-1 on Monday night.

Kreider tipped Mika Zibanejad’s shot with 2:55 left in the middle period to snap a 1-1 tie after the teams traded goals in the first. Alexis Lafreniere, Reilly Smith and Zibanejad also scored for the Rangers, and Igor Shesterkin finished with 31 saves.

Dylan Larkin scored for Detroit with 2 seconds left in the first after Lafrieniere opened the scoring for the Rangers with 8:15 to go. Alex Lyon had 24 saves for the Red Wings in his first start of the season.

The Red Wings were playing their first road game. They beat Nashville 3-0 on Saturday after losing their season opener 6-3 to Pittsburgh.

Takeaways

Red Wings forward Patrick Kane, who played 19 games for New York after a heralded trade late in the 2022-23 season, received polite applause from the Madison Square Garden crowd during his first game back with Detroit. Kane assisted on Larkin’s goal for his 814th career assist to pass Mike Modano for second-most among U.S.-born players.

Rangers forward Artemi Panarin, who led with the team with 120 points last season, had three assists and has a team-best seven points — including two goals — in three games.

Key moment

Shesterkin denied Detroit’s J.T. Compher from in close with 1:58 left in the second period to keep it 2-1. Smith padded the lead at 4:51 of the third, his first goal with the Rangers.

Key stat

Kreider’s goal was the 307th of his career — third-most in Rangers history behind Rod Gilbert and Jean Ratelle. It was his 111th power-play goal, second-most in franchise history behind Camille Henry’s 116.

Up Next

The Rangers visit Detroit on Thursday to complete a home-and-home series.

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL