Rangers 3, Flames 1: Zibanejad scores twice, Korpisalo stops 30 in Calgary
Two second-period goals from Mika Zibanejad and a 30-save night from Joonas Korpisalo gave New York its fourth win in five games.
The New York Rangers beat the Calgary Flames 3-1 on Wednesday night in Calgary, with Mika Zibanejad scoring both of the goals that mattered and Joonas Korpisalo turning aside 30 shots at the other end.
A scoreless first, then Zibanejad
Neither side scored in the opening period, though Korpisalo was the reason on at least one occasion. The Canadian Press described him abandoning his stick to stop a wraparound attempt from Flames defenseman Zayne Parekh with his blocker hand.
Zibanejad broke the deadlock 59 seconds into the second period. According to Field Level Media, he came out from behind the net and slid the puck into the equipment of Calgary goaltender Devin Cooley, and it went in from there. It was Zibanejad's first goal in eight games.
His second came around the midpoint of the period and proved to be the winner. Thirteen seconds into a Rangers power play, Pavel Dorofeyev sent a cross-ice pass that Zibanejad one-timed from the left face-off dot for a 2-0 lead, per the Canadian Press. It was his first multi-goal game of the season. Alexis Lafreniere finished the night with two assists.
Calgary's push
The Flames got one back on a power play of their own, Adam Klapka redirecting the puck in from the edge of the crease at 7:41 of the third period. That left Calgary more than 12 minutes to find an equalizer, and Field Level Media noted that Korpisalo was at his best in the first and third periods. The tying goal never came, and Kartye sealed it into an empty net with seven seconds left, his seventh goal of the season.
Cooley made 21 saves in the loss. He fell to 5-4-0, and the defeat ended a five-game winning streak on home ice for him, according to the Canadian Press.
What it means
For the Rangers, this is a road trip that has steadied a shaky away record. New York had won just one of its first seven road games; it has now taken two of three on this trip, which finishes Friday in Vancouver. The win moved the Rangers to 11-8-1, and they have won four of their last five.
Korpisalo is a quiet part of that story. The 32-year-old missed the first six weeks of the season with a lower-body injury and was activated from injured reserve last Friday. He is 2-0-0 since returning.
The Flames dropped to 8-10-1 and went 1-2-0 on a three-game homestand. They have won twice in their last six games and now begin a three-game road trip Saturday in Los Angeles.
Two smaller notes from the Canadian Press report: Glenn Gawdin, who began his NHL career with Calgary, made his Rangers debut as the fourth-line centre, his first NHL game since March 2024. And Flames defenseman Jake Middleton played his 400th NHL game.