RALEIGH, N.C. — Chris Kreider scored a hat trick in the third period to help the New York Rangers overcome a two-goal deficit and defeat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 in Game 6 on Thursday night, securing their spot in the Eastern Conference Final.
Kreider single-handedly turned around a 3-1 Hurricanes lead entering the final period. The decisive goal came when Kreider positioned himself in front of Jalen Chatfield and tipped in Ryan Lindgren’s pass to make it 4-3 at 15:41.
This comeback allowed the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers to eliminate the Hurricanes, who had clawed back with two consecutive wins after being down 3-0 in the best-of-7 series. The Hurricanes seemed poised to force a Game 7, but couldn’t withstand Kreider and the Rangers’ late-game surge.
Barclay Goodrow sealed the victory with an empty-net goal in the final minute, sparking celebrations on the Rangers’ bench.
The Rangers advance to face the winner of the Boston-Florida series, where the Panthers hold a 3-2 lead.
Kreider’s first goal came after he pounced on a rebound from Frederik Andersen’s save on Mika Zibanejad at 6:43, narrowing the score to 3-2. He then tied the game by tipping in an Artemi Panarin shot at 11:54.
Igor Shesterkin, under heavy pressure in the first two periods, made 33 saves and delivered crucial stops against Jordan Staal and Andrei Svechnikov in the third period. Vincent Trocheck also scored for the Rangers off a second-period deflection.
Carolina’s goals came from Martin Necas, Seth Jarvis, and Sebastian Aho, with Andersen making 19 saves.
The Hurricanes missed several key opportunities to extend their lead, including efforts from Jordan Martinook and Jake Guentzel that hit the post. A significant chance arose in the third period when Aho found himself in a 1-on-1 with Shesterkin after two Rangers collided, but his shot went wide.
This loss marks a bitter end for the Hurricanes, who were in the playoffs for the sixth straight season under coach Rod Brind’Amour and aimed to win the Stanley Cup.
New York Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck celebrated Kreider’s goals against Carolina’s Frederik Andersen during the third period in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup second-round playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., on Thursday, May 16, 2024.
