Capitals vs. Rangers: Boone Jenner's Steal Breaks the Tie After Igor Shesterkin Exits Hurt

The worst sound in a hockey arena is not a goal horn. It is the hush that settles over the building when a star goalie stays down. Capital One Arena got that hush at 8:20 of the second period Friday night, when Igor Shesterkin scrambled back toward his net, jammed his right leg into the post and crumpled. He was helped off without putting any weight on it.

About nine minutes later, Boone Jenner made the New York Rangers pay for the chaos. He picked off a clearing attempt and scored his first goal as a Capital with 2:22 left in the second, and the Washington Capitals hung on for a 3-1 win that ended New York's four-game winning streak.

A Rangers Night, Until It Wasn't

For one period, this looked like New York's kind of game. Alexis Lafrenière gave the Rangers the lead on a power play at 10:17 of the first. J.T. Miller found him, Lafrenière walked the puck laterally and then beat Logan Thompson from the high slot, with Pavel Dorofeyev grabbing the second assist. That made four goals on the season for Lafrenière, and all four have come in the past two games, starting with a hat trick in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Islanders. The man is on a genuine heater.

The Rangers also kept a quirky defensive streak alive. According to NHL.com, New York has not allowed a first-period goal in any of its first six games, this one included.

Washington evened it at 6:08 of the second. Timothy Liljegren, acquired from San Jose on March 6, teed up a one-timer from the left point that found its way through traffic for his first goal in a Capitals sweater. Dylan Strome and Ryan Leonard picked up the assists.

Then came the moment that changed the mood in both benches. Per the AP, Shesterkin had come well out of his crease to challenge a shooter, lost his footing on the way back and slid skate-first into the right post. He stayed down for several minutes clutching his right knee before teammates helped him to the tunnel. Dylan Garand took over in a 1-1 game with a building that suddenly sensed an opening.

The Turning Point: One Bad Clear

The winning goal was born from pressure and a rookie mistake. Cole Beaudoin, a 20-year-old in his second NHL game, tried to clear the zone. Jenner got a stick on it, kept it, and at 17:38 ripped a shot past Garand from between the faceoff circles. Unassisted, unglamorous, decisive.

"It stems from the forecheck," Jenner said. "They rim it around and Vinny (Desharnais) does a great job staying in there. He's right in that guy's pockets, and I'm able to get a bounce off it and bury one."

Outside of that goal, Garand was sharp, stopping 11 of the 12 shots he faced in 29:45. The trouble for New York was at the other end. Thompson did not allow anything after Lafrenière's goal, and Tom Wilson sealed it by scoring into an empty net with one second remaining. Desharnais, fittingly, got the assist.

Thompson, Jenner and a Rangers Captain's Frustration

Thompson finished with 21 saves on 22 shots, a .955 save percentage, and he did not crack when the Rangers leaned on him late. New York outshot Washington 7-5 in the third period, per NHL.com, but never found the equalizer.

Jenner played just 13:37 and still left the biggest fingerprint on the game. He also won five of his nine faceoffs. Liljegren logged 19:14 on the blue line, while Desharnais did a little of everything in 21:15 with four hits, three blocked shots and the helper on the clincher.

Wilson, meanwhile, has turned the Rangers into his personal highlight reel. NHL.com noted he has nine points (five goals, four assists) in his past six games against New York.

On the other side, Miller, the Rangers captain, summed up what it felt like to play against this group.

"That's a really good hockey team," Miller said. "They're big, fast and strong. There wasn't a lot of room, it felt like."

The Rangers out-hit Washington 35-22, so they were hardly shy about contact. They just could not turn it into offense. Mika Zibanejad liked the push in the third but rued the misses.

"We had a few more chances there and if we connect on one, we're right back into the game, but that's unfortunate that we didn't get it," Zibanejad said.

Stats That Matter

• 19 to 9: Washington's giveaways versus New York's, which makes the Capitals' win more impressive and the Rangers' loss more maddening.
• 21 of 22: Thompson's saves. Nothing got past him after the first-period power play.
• 35-22: Hits, Rangers over Capitals. Plenty of contact, very little payoff.
• 0 for 3: Washington's power play. The Capitals won this at even strength and into an empty net.
• 13-1-2: The Capitals' record in their past 16 games at Capital One Arena dating to last season, per NHL.com.

What It Means

Washington improves to 3-1-0, 2-0-0 at home, and NHL.com noted the Capitals are now 3-0-0 against Metropolitan Division opponents. That clearly registers in the room.

"Doesn't matter what time of year, obviously when they're in the division, they're a little bit bigger," Jenner said.

The Rangers fall to 4-2-0, and the standings are not their biggest concern. Shesterkin, the 2022 Vezina Trophy winner, had opened the season with a 3-1 record and a 1.76 goals-against average, per the AP, and last week he became the first Rangers goalie to score a goal. NHL.com reported there was no update on his condition after the game.

"That's a tough one, right?" Rangers coach Mike Sullivan said. "When you see arguably your very best player (leave), that's a tough loss for our team. I thought we fought hard. I thought we battled."

New York hosts Vancouver on Sunday. Washington hosts Seattle the same day.

The Takeaway

Every season has an early night that quietly rewrites the plot, and the Rangers may have just lived through theirs. The Capitals did not need to be dazzling. They needed one smart read on the forecheck and one clean finish, and Jenner supplied both. Liljegren put it plainly.

"Not a perfect game by any means, but we found a way to get two points and we'll move forward," he said.

For New York, the uneasy wait on Shesterkin starts now, and it will hang over everything until there is news.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details from the Associated Press and NHL.com; postgame quotes as reported by NHL.com.