Canucks fall 6-2 to Rangers at Madison Square Garden after late collapse

The Story

The Vancouver Canucks surrendered three goals in the third period and fell 6-2 to the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.

The scoring began 30 seconds into the game when Tye Kartye put New York ahead 1-0 at 00:27. Vancouver responded at 17:04 when Jake DeBrusk scored his third goal of the season, assisted by Jonathan Lekkerimäki.

In the second period, Will Cuylle made it 2-1 Rangers at 2:09. Elias Pettersson then tied the game for Vancouver at 16:56, finishing a shorthanded situation with Brendan Gallagher and Drew O'Connor credited with the assists at 16:56 (SHG). Kartye added another at 18:25 to push New York’s lead to 3-2 heading into the third.

New York scored three more times in the final frame to complete the win. Alexis Lafrenière scored at 1:04, Gabe Perreault at 5:57, and Cuylle at 15:22, extending the Rangers to a 6-2 final.

Kevin Lankinen took the loss for Vancouver, allowing six goals on 25 shots and finishing the night with a .760 save percentage.

Manny Malhotra said after the game that starting 30 seconds in “is not an ideal start,” adding the Canucks showed “resiliency” to get back into it and that in the second he felt Vancouver “started to swing the momentum” but “just didn’t sustain it long enough to have a lasting impact.”

Despite the loss, Pettersson had a strong game for Vancouver, scoring shorthanded while also recording four hits.

Guillaume Brisebois also returned to the NHL for the first time since January 11, 2025, and recorded two shots, two hits, a blocked shot and a penalty.