<p>The New York Rangers knew they would get a desperate effort from the Washington Capitals in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden.</p>



<p>And by all accounts, the Capitals came to play. They kept things close, but the Rangers skated out to a 4-3 victory to improve to 2-0 in the series. That was more like the effort most expected from the Caps, especially after playing must-win hockey against teams like the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Islanders down the stretch.</p>



<p>Scoring the first goal of Tuesday night’s game was crucial for the Washington Capitals.&nbsp;</p>



<p>“I think the first goal, especially on the road, is very important – in playoffs in general, if you can get that first goal – that means you got momentum on your side,” T.J. Oshie said before the game. “Playoff games are all about momentum shifting back and forth. The longer you can keep it – the better.”</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="153"></div>



<p>The Capitals had as strong of a start to the game as they would have liked, but a couple of mistakes would end up costing them shortly. </p>



<p>“That’s the frustrating part, we’ve been so good in those situations all year,” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said. “This is a whole different animal – playoffs, opponent, and all that stuff.”</p>



<p>To the Rangers’ credit, instead of letting the poor start affect them mentally, the group showed a ton of resilience. Vincent Trocheck was a big reason why. The veteran forward was the recipient of the 2024 Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award, a fan vote for a Ranger that goes above and beyond the call of duty. Trocheck has been that X-Factor all year, and he got them going tonight a little less than three minutes after falling behind.&nbsp;</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="138"></div>



<p>His goal and assist in the first period helped uplift the team, while – along with linemates Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere – brought loads of energy.</p>



<p>“There’s going to be times that we go down in the playoffs, but we can’t let that affect the way you play your game – especially if it’s an early deficit,” Trocheck said. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">PLAYOFF HOCKEY<a href="https://t.co/TMPRjwBTmY">pic.twitter.com/TMPRjwBTmY</a></p>— Jonny Lazarus (@JLazzy23) <a href="https://twitter.com/JLazzy23/status/1782943207933772066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 24, 2024</a></blockquote><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>You always look for different guys to step up offensively in the playoffs. At the trade deadline, the Rangers felt they could use a little boost to their top line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. They went with Jack Roslovic, who tallied his first career playoff goal in a critical moment of the game. Roslovic had a beautiful catch-and-release power-play goal at the 12:26 mark of the second period to give the Rangers the lead back.&nbsp;</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="2" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="140"></div>



<p>“That’s a high, high-end elite play. You got to tip your cap,” Carbery said about the Roslovic goal.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">"He's the type of player that can bring everything. He can bring the physicality. He can bring the good defense. He can jump into a hole and find the right offense as well, at the right time."<br><br>– Peter Laviolette on K'Andre Miller <a href="https://t.co/uWhVeSFz13">pic.twitter.com/uWhVeSFz13</a></p>— Rangers Videos (@SNYRangers) <a href="https://twitter.com/SNYRangers/status/1782961996314349759?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 24, 2024</a></blockquote><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>The difference in this series thus far has been the Rangers big-time players showing up. Zibanejad, Trocheck, and Lafreniere each recorded three points while Panarin and Kreider have a goal apiece. On the flip side, the Capitals are still waiting for Ovechkin to get going, with one of the league’s all-time best goal-scorers registering just one shot through two games. </p>



<p>“I thought the first two games he looks a little bit off, he’s struggling,” Carbery said. “There’s two things that I notice when he’s struggling. In a game, 5-on-5 and even I group the power play with him – he should on a nightly basis get four or five looks. Whether they go in or not, that’s the first part is he’s not getting those looks. The second thing I see is his shot are getting blocked. That’s where I say, “Ok, it’s off just a touch.”&nbsp;</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="3" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="209"></div>



<p>While the Capitals are heading home in a tough spot, Carbery still has a ton of hope for his group.</p>



<p>“He’s been through so many situations like this – I expect him to step up big time in Game 3,” Carbery said about Ovechkin. “I liked our start. I’m going to focus on a lot of the positive things that we did and try to build off that at home in Game 3.”&nbsp;</p>



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