Rangers drop 2nd consecutive game with 4-2 loss to Colorado

Dec 14, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; New York Rangers right wing Julien Gauthier (15) attempts to score past goaltender Darcy Kuemper (35) and Colorado Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard (49) in the third period at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Rangers were defeated by the Colorado Avalanche 4-2 on Tuesday night, their second loss in a row.

The New York Rangers are a good hockey club, yet they were no match for the complete game the Colorado Avalanche put on display Tuesday night in their 4-2 win.

Colorado’s Valeri Nichushkin scored two goals and Nazim Kadri recorded three assists in the victory. The Avalanche has beaten the Rangers two times in the last six days.

Ryan Strome and Julien Gauthier scored for the Blueshirts with Alexandar Georgiev making 27 saves in the loss.  The Rangers have now lost their last three out of four games following their seven-game winning streak.

Adam Fox played a massive 27:22 with 30 shifts. Jacob Trouba was second in ice time with 23:29.

Strome found some positive things coming from the loss.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for growth,” Strome told Mollie Walker of the New York Post. “When things are going well, sometimes you get a little bit complacent, and sometimes it’s a little bit of a reality check. Although it’s a loss, I think that the effort was there. Teams that are good go through adversity no matter where it is in the season, and maybe we’re facing a little bit of it now before Christmas.”

Recap Rangers Scoring

Ryan Strome scored to cut the Avalanche lead in half at 10:31 of the 2nd period with his sixth goal of the year.

In the third period, with the Rangers down by a score of 3-1, Gauthier scored his second of the season, with Geogiev pulled for an extra attacker.

Post Game Notes

Adam Fox reached the 25-assist mark and 30-point mark when he got the helper on Ryan Strome’s second-period goal. Fox’s 25 assists are the second in the NHL behind Connor McDavid (29) and lead all NHL defensemen. Fox joins Brian Leetch as the only defenseman in team history to reach the feat. Leetch did it in 1990-91, 1991-92, and 2000-01. With 30 points, Fox required the fewest games (28) to reach the mark among Rangers defensemen since Brian Leetch (24 GP in 2000-01).

Ryan Strome scored his sixth goal of the season and fourth in his last nine games. Strome has five points (3G-2A) in his last seven games and 16 points (5G-11A) in his last 18 games.

Artemi Panarin notched his team-leading 33rd point of the season with an assist, his 24th of the year. Panarin has recorded 10 points (3G-7A) in his last six games and has points in seven of his last nine games (5G-9A), four of them being multi-point games.

Julien Gauthier scored his first goal since November 16.

The Rangers visit the Arizona Coyotes on Wednesday night with a 9 p.m. Eastern time faceoff.

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