Rangers 3, Predators 0
NEW YORK -- Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist continued his brilliant season by stopping 31 shots in the New York Rangers' 3-0 victory over the Nashville Predators at Madison Square Garden on Monday.
Lundqvist leads the league with 12 wins and was tops in both goals against average and save percentage before registering his second shutout Monday.
Left wingers Rick Nash and Kevin Hayes and center Derek Stepan scored their sixth goals of the season for the Rangers, who have won 11 of 12.
The Predators, meanwhile, were blanked for the third straight game and have not scored a goal 213 minutes, 47 seconds.
Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne stopped 16 shots.
After a scoreless first period in which the Rangers took four minor penalties and were outshot 14-3, Nash converted an odd-man rush for his fourth goal in two games.
Nash carried the puck down the left wing on a 4-on-1 break and beat Rinne with a wrist shot to the short side to put the Rangers ahead 1-0 at 4:32. The goal came on the Rangers' fifth shot of the game.
Through two periods, the Rangers had seven shots, one of which came from the opposite end of the ice as the first period expired. The Predators had five power-play chances over the first 40 minutes but failed to score on their 11 shots.
Predators right winger Filip Forsberg had a golden opportunity to tie the score during the second period. Lundqvist vacated his net but misplayed the puck. Center Mike Fisher moved the puck to Forsberg, who shot wide of the mostly empty net.
Stepan extended the lead to 2-0 with his sixth of the season at 4:23 of the third period. Defenseman Marc Staal took a feed from left winger Kevin Hayes down low and threaded a pass to the doorstep for Stepan, who tapped the puck through Rinne's legs.
Hayes made it 3-0 with a power-play goal 6:15 later. His wrist shot from about 55 feet deflected off the stick of Predators defenseman Barrett Jackman and past Rinne.
NOTES: Predators LW James Neal played in his 500th career NHL game. ... Predators G Pekka Rinne made his ninth consecutive start. ... The Predators scratched D Anthony Bitetto, D Victor Bartley and RW Miikka Salomaki. ... Rangers D Dan Girardi played in his 672nd career game with the club, moving him into 13th place on the Rangers' all-time list. ... The Rangers scratched D Dylan McIlrath and RW Emerson Etem.