The Rangers put out the Blue Jackets

One shootout goal snuffs the Columbus flame

Two walls at the Garden

Nobody scored. Not once. In a Gauntlet semifinal at Madison Square Garden, with four candles left on the shelf, the losing club would go dark one round short of the final. The Columbus Blue Jackets finished 29th of 32 last season and had already snuffed the Maple Leafs, the Penguins and the Lightning. The New York Rangers finished 1st of 32 and had burned through the Canadiens, the Senators and the Sabres.

Igor Shesterkin stopped all 27 Columbus shots. Daniil Tarasov stopped all 26 New York shots. Two shutouts in the same game, and neither one could settle it.

Three trips, no damage

Adam Fantilli went off for slashing at 11:06 of the first. Mika Zibanejad answered with a slash of his own at 17:31. Zibanejad went back to the box in the third for holding the stick at 10:36. Neither team scored on any of them, so it went to a shootout.

Trocheck finds the gap

Artemi Panarin missed. Kent Johnson missed. Then Vincent Trocheck scored, the only goal anyone managed all night. Fantilli missed, Zibanejad missed, and Kirill Marchenko had the last Columbus attempt. He missed too, and the Blue Jackets' flame went cold. A year ago the Rangers were knocked out in the round of 16. Now they're one of three clubs still burning.