Back at Madison Square Garden after a pair of losses in French-speaking Canada, the Rangers looked like they had turned things around Sunday, jumping all over one of the NHL’s elite teams, the Winnipeg Jets, in the first two periods.
But an untimely penalty by Brendan Smith opened the door for Winnipeg to get back in and the Jets scored three goals in the third period, then won in a shootout, 4-3, when Mark Scheifele beat Henrik Lundqvist with the final shot on Vic Hadfield Night.
With Hadfield’s No. 11 going up to the Garden rafters before the game, the Rangers leaned on the guy whose jersey is likely to be the next one headed for the ceiling.