Rangers Drop Fourth Straight Against Panthers

The New York Rangers continued their losing ways against the Florida Panthers.

Dec 30, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) loses possession of the puck as Florida Panthers center Carter Verhaeghe (23) falls on top of him during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The New York Rangers continued their descent out of the postseason picture after a matchup with the defending champions, the Florida Panthers. Traveling to Sunrise, Florida, the Rangers lost their fourth straight game. The Panthers had no trouble dispatching the Rangers by a score of 5-3.

The Rangers made this one a bit more competitive than their other recent losses. The teams were tied deep into the third period of the game. That was until Panthers' depth forward Jesper Boqvist hammered home a rebound behind Igor Shesterkin to give Florida a 4-3 lead.

A penalty with less than five minutes remaining wasn't enough to help the Rangers either. While Panthers' star Matthew Tkachuk watched from the penalty box, the Rangers attempted to pull their goalie to give their power play a two-man advantage. The gamble failed, however, and Panthers' captain Aleksander Barkov netted an empty-net goal to put the Rangers away.

Times continue getting tougher in New York. In addition to losing four in a row, they've lost eight of their last 10 and 15 of their last 19. It's dropped them out of the playoff race and the top three spots in the Metropolitan Division and landed them in last place in the division.

With another loss, the job security for head coach Peter Laviolette crumbles further. The team's fall from grace has already landed him on the hot seat. As the losses keep stacking, so do the chances of Laviolette being dismissed.

But it's not just the coach that has an issue. Their entire roster is lost, and the departures of captain Jacob Trouba and veteran winger Barclay Goodrow have only disrupted the locker room further. Even as they finalized a mega-deal with Shesterkin, it hasn't been nearly enough to make up for the mess in front of him.

The Rangers are now 16-19-1 through 36 games. The season isn't over for New York, but it's getting dangerously close. A fourth straight loss only exacerbates their existing issues, and it's unclear when they will snap out of their funk.

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