NEW YORK — Kaapo Kakko desperately needed to redeem himself. And with 2:47 remaining in regulation against the archrival Islanders Thursday at Madison Square Garden, he did.
The 21-year-old Finn had gifted the Rangers a goal in the second period that briefly earned him a mini-benching. But with the game tied late, and the Rangers having just failed to score on yet another power play, Kakko drove the net and banged in a pass from K’Andre Miller to put the Rangers ahead and on their way to a 5-3 win in their final game before the NHL’s three-day Christmas break.
Vincent Trocheck’s empty-net goal with 1:32 remaining sealed the result for the Rangers, who finished the pre-Christmas portion of their schedule with a record of 19-11-5. Though their seven-game win streak had ended Tuesday with a loss to the Penguins in Pittsburgh, the Rangers finished 8-1 in their last nine games before the break. They return to action on Tuesday, Dec. 27, at the Garden, against Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.
