Mika Zibanejad finds defect in NY Rangers' powerplay unit after 3-2 OT loss to Alex Ovechkin's Capitals

The NY Rangers lost 3-2 in overtime to the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. Alex Ovechkin scored his 885th career goal, moving 10 away from Wayne Gretzky’s record. He tied the game 2-2 in the third period with a power-play goal.

It was his 1,599th NHL point and his 32nd goal in 46 games this season. Tom Wilson won the game for Washington with an overtime goal at 4:07, finishing a 2-on-1 with Dylan Strome.

Sam Carrick and Artemi Panarin scored for the NY Rangers. Igor Shesterkin made 23 saves but could not stop Washington’s comeback. The Rangers took a 2-1 lead in the second period when Carrick scored off a pass from K'Andre Miller.

Ovechkin’s goal in the third changed the game. The Capitals scored on their only power play, while the Rangers failed on multiple chances. The Rangers have a 20.4% power-play success rate, ranking 20th in the league.

Mika Zibanejad, in the third season of an eight-year, $68 million contract, played 25:44 minutes. He finished with a -2 rating and one shot on goal. In the post-game media conference, he spoke about the NY Rangers' power-play struggles. He said the team needed to improve on special teams and five-on-five play.

"They took advantage of their power play, but I don’t know if that’s the one power play opportunity we should focus on," Zibanejad said (2:30 onwards). I think we should be able to do more with all the power play chances we have. It could have helped us, but I think five-on-five play and a lot of things on our PK that we do well, also mattered.

"We had a couple of chances in OT too, but that’s how it goes. It’s a good team we’re playing against, but still, there are things we need to work on," Zibanejad added.

Peter Laviolette addresses NY Rangers' power play struggles ahead of Senators game

Head coach Peter Laviolette also said the power play has been different lately, and the team is working through changes.

"It’s been different, so we’re working through it a little bit. Even with that, they had point-blank chances to score, and we didn’t find the back of the net," Laviolette said (1:16 onwards).

The NY Rangers had won their last two games by a combined 8-0 score. They must improve their power play to take advantage of key opportunities.

The NY Rangers (31-26-5) will next face the Ottawa Senators (31-25-5) at 12:30 PM EST on March 8.