Point, Kucherov each has 3 points in Lightning win against Rangers

TAMPA -- Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov each had a goal and two assists, and the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the New York Rangers 6-2 at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

Anthony Cirelli and Jake Guentzel each had a goal and an assist for the Lightning (20-11-2), who scored twice short-handed and have won six of seven. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 42 saves.

"We won a game 6-2 tonight,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “If anyone was in the building it wasn't probably a 6-2 game. I think we caught a team that has been a little up and down lately. We were able to … get out of a first period where they controlled a lot of the play with the lead. That was fortuitous for us.

"We came out in the second period and did our thing -- got the lead and found a way through the game. The goalie was outstanding for us. We executed on special teams. Is that a recipe to make the playoffs and go far in the playoffs? No."

Vincent Trocheck had a goal and an assist for the Rangers (16-18-1), who have lost six of seven and 14 of 18. Igor Shesterkin allowed five goals on 13 shots before he was pulled at 8:08 of the second period, and Jonathan Quick made 11 saves in relief.

"Right now, it's just frustrating,” New York coach Peter Laviolette said. “We're in the business of winning hockey games and we're not getting it done right now, so it's tough to sit here and tell you good things. We're losing hockey games, we need to win hockey games and we're not getting that done.”

Kucherov gave Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 2:27 of the first period, scoring on a chip-in from close range off a pass across the slot by Point.

Artemi Panarin tied it 1-1 at 9:23, scoring with a wrist shot from the left hash marks after Trocheck found him open.

Ryan McDonagh made it 2-1 for Tampa Bay with a short-handed goal at 18:11. It was also his first goal of the season. He scored with a shot from the right circle that got under Shesterkin’s arm on a 3-on-1 rush.

"I found a loose puck and some space in front of me, so I started skating with it," McDonagh said. "I don't have the hands that [Brandon] Hagel showed he did on the 2-on-1, so I pretty much had my mind made up. I was putting something on the net and it squeaked through. It was fortunate for me to get that one."

Point extended the lead to 3-1 at 3:35 of the second period, scoring on the backhand from in tight off a pass from Kucherov out of the left corner.

"We were getting good looks,” Point said. “I think it was just one of those nights where we were shooting and it went in. If it can continue, that would be great. We gave up a lot of chances and ‘Vasy’ was phenomenal tonight, only giving up two and all the chances we gave up."

Cirelli made it 4-1 at 5:02 with a short-handed goal, finishing a 2-on-1 off a pass from Brandon Hagel, who started the play by forcing a turnover in the defensive zone.

"It's nice to get a goal on the PK,” Cirelli said. “It gets us momentum and it was a great play by [Hagel] as well. Obviously first and foremost is to make sure they don't score, but it's a bonus when we can get a goal."

Guentzel pushed it to 5-1 on the power play at 8:08 when Point's shot deflected off his skate, chasing Shesterkin.

Trocheck cut it to 5-2 with a short-handed goal 13 seconds into the third period. He kept the puck on a 2-on-1 and scored with a low shot from the left circle.

"Result-wise this is not what we wanted," Rangers center Mika Zibanejad said. "We can talk about a reset, we can talk about whatever, but if the result is not there it's not going to matter. I don't think it was a 6-2 game. Special teams kind of got to us. We don't score on our power play (0-for-4) and we let in two goals. We put ourselves in a bad spot."

Nick Paul scored at 14:12 for the 6-2 final.

"I can't put my finger on it right now, probably have to watch this a couple of times," New York defenseman K'Andre Miller said. "I feel like the energy after those penalties just drained us. We couldn't get a good rhythm in the game due to lines and changes and all that stuff. It was kind of a weird game.

"I think we played pretty good. ... Maybe we gave up a little bit more than we'd like to, but I mean for the most part our first period was one of our best periods all year in terms of energy, execution and outworking our opponent. We came out ready and hungry, but unfortunately we lost that in the second period."

NOTES: Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman played his 1,083rd NHL game, passing Steven Stamkos for the most in Lightning history. ... Cirelli scored his 15th career short-handed goal, passing Rob Zamuner for second in Tampa Bay history behind Martin St. Louis (28). ... Kucherov has seven games with three or more points this season. ... Miller returned to the lineup after missing six games with a lower-body injury. He was minus-1 with four shots on goal and four hits in 21:54.