CALGARY, Alberta _ The Rangers were never expected to be a playoff contender in this rebuilding season but for much of the season they'd done a decent job of hanging in there against some of the top teams in the league.
But reality set in a while ago for the Blueshirts, and now their season has begun to unravel on this swing through Western Canada. The Calgary Flames, one of the elite teams in the Western Conference, were simply too much on Friday night, getting two goals and two assists from Matthew Tkachuk in overpowering the Rangers, 5-1. The Rangers (28-30-13) are 0-2-1 on their four-game road trip that concludes Saturday night in Minnesota They are 2-5-5 in their last 12 games, with their only victories in that stretch coming against the lowly and banged-up Devils.
Rangers forward and alternate captain Chris Kreider offered up a "no comment" when asked at the morning skate about his ejection from Wednesday's game in Vancouver and the subsequent $5,000 fine the NHL hit him with for his five-minute elbowing penalty against Vancouver's Elias Pettersson.
