Robert Sabo/New York Daily News
Rangers goalie Cam Talbot makes 29 saves but surrenders the game-winner with under two minutes to play in the game.
No one on, or around, the Rangers is conducting themselves as if they expect Ryan Callahan to be traded prior to Friday’s 3 p.m. NHL roster freeze.
So when that deadline passes, it should be no shock if Callahan – rather than getting on a plane to another city – is napping in Pittsburgh as the Rangers prepare for their final game prior to the Winter Olympics against the Penguins, the only team ahead of New York in the Metropolitan Division standings.
That game was supposed to be a golden opportunity for Alain Vigneault’s club to carry a six-game winning streak into the break, but the Rangers (31-24-3, 65 points) were handed a 2-1 loss by the visiting Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night at the Garden, snapping a four-game streak.
Robert Sabo/New York Daily News
Marc Staal (r.) crushes Edmonton’s Sam Gagner.
Edmonton’s Nail Yakupov scored the game-winner with 1:38 remaining in the third period to snap a 1-1 tie, beating Rangers backup goalie Cam Talbot (29 saves), who fell to 10-5-0 on the season and lost his second straight start.
Henrik Lundqvist (9-2-0, 1.46 goals against average, .952 save percentage in his last 11 games) will return to New York’s net against the Penguins, hoping for a bounce-back win before the Rangers’ 19-day Olympic break between regular-season games.
The Oilers (20-33-6, 46 points) and goalie Ben Scrivens (35 saves) stole one from a Blueshirts club in the Rangers’ final home game prior to the Olympics. Callahan had a shorthanded breakaway and created several potential game-winning chances later but either was denied by Scrivens or shot wide.
Thursday morning, in preparation for the game, Vigneault moved his captain to the front of the net on one of New York’s two power play units, where Callahan seldom has played this season for the Blueshirts’ new coach. Vigneault and associate head coach Scott Arniel were hoping Callahan could help spark a power play that has failed to score on its last 14 opportunities during parts of the previous six games.
Frank Franklin II/AP
Oilers’ Ryan Smyth (c.) celebrates his first-period goal with teammate David Perron.
“I’m definitely comfortable there,” said Callahan, who had led the Rangers in power play goals the previous three seasons under former coach John Tortorella. “I’ve played there the past four or five years, so I’ve gotten pretty familiar with it, and when I get an opportunity to play on the power play like this, I have to take advantage of it.”
Unfortunately, the Rangers earned no power play opportunities in a game that was horribly officiated on both sides, as evidenced by a no-call on Edmonton’s Ryan Jones’ elbow to the head of the Rangers’ Mats Zuccarello; as well as an Oilers second-period power play goal that didn’t count because the whistle had blown prior to the puck crossing the goal line. It was, therefore, not a reviewable play.
Tuesday’s promotion of Callahan to the power play, though, did not exactly indicate the coaches expect an imminent trade. Also, it’s not likely they would feel the need to showcase Callahan’s power-play skills to other NHL teams, since his grit and scoring ability on the man advantage already are well established.
Meanwhile, the captain’s agent, Steve Bartlett, told the Daily News on Thursday morning that he would with the Rangers on Thursday for the second straight day, after speaking with the club on Wednesday as reported by NHL Network. He said later on Thursday that he had little new to report, so the sides may still be apart on a potential contract extension. Still, the consistent communication seems to indicate a willingness to continue negotiating.
If GM Glen Sather wishes to trade Callahan, he must do so by Friday at 3 p.m., or wait until after the Olympic roster freeze and do so between Feb. 24 and March 5 at 3 p.m.
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