Rangers 5, Penguins 1
NEW YORK -- Center Brian Boyle scored his first goal of the season and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist made 28 saves as the New York Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-1 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
Defenseman Ryan McDonagh and forwards Ryan Callahan, Derick Brassard and Derek Stepan also scored for the Rangers, who have won four of five.
Defenseman Kris Letang scored the Penguins' lone goal while goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 20 of 25 shots.
The loss snapped the Penguins' four-game win streak.
After the Penguins dominated early, the Rangers took control over the final portion of the first period and were rewarded with two goals in a span of 1:05.
McDonagh was the beneficiary of dogged work behind the net by center Brian Boyle for the first goal. Boyle boxed out a defender and dove to get the puck to McDonagh in the left circle for a wrist shot that beat Fleury to the stick side.
A turnover in the neutral zone led to Stepan's fourth goal of the season and put the Rangers ahead 2-0. Mats Zuccarello lobbed a pass from the attacking blue line to the slot, allowing Stepan to skate to it and snap a quick shot that snuck under the crossbar with 47 seconds remaining in the period.
Boyle made it 3-0 at 13:10 of the second when he finished a pass from center Brad Richards with a wrist shot that once again got past Fleury on the stick side.
The Penguins cut the lead to 3-1 on Letang's third goal of the season at 14:34, but Callahan scored his fourth goal of the season 1:04 letter to restore the Rangers' three-goal advantage.
Brassard capped the scoring with his third of the season midway through the third period.
NOTES: Penguins LW James Neal, who has been out with an upper-body injury since Oct. 3, skated Wednesday morning. There is no timetable for his return. ... RW Beau Bennett (lower body) also practiced with the Penguins and could return this weekend. ... Rangers LW Rick Nash (concussion) missed his 12th consecutive game and there continues to be no timetable for his return. ... Rangers C Dominic Moore (oblique) took part in the team's optional morning skate and was unsure if he would travel with the team for a road game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.
