Rangers 6, Panthers 1
Derek Stepan scored two goals and set up another as the New York Rangers continued their strong play at home with a 6-1 victory over the Southeast Division-leading Florida Panthers on Sunday.
Marian Gaborik and Artem Anisimov each had a goal and an assist for New York, which improved to 8-1-1 in its last 10 games at Madison Square Garden.
Stepan gave the Rangers a 3-1 lead less than six minutes into the second period with what nearly was New York's third shorthanded goal in two nights.
The 21-year-old skated down the right wing and maneuvered around Florida rookie defenseman Erik Gudbranson in the faceoff circle before firing the puck into the top left corner of the net just one second after teammate Brandon Prust exited the penalty box.
New York scored a pair of shorthanded goals in Saturday's win at Buffalo.
Defenseman Steve Eminger scored midway through the second, and Gaborik and Stepan tallied 55 seconds apart late in the session to provide the final margin.
Gudbranson netted his first career goal and Jose Theodore allowed six tallies on 22 shots over two periods before being pulled for Florida, which lost in regulation for just the third time in 12 contests (7-3-2).