BOSTON (AP) - Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist hopes his teammates take some time to think about how well they’ve played going into a long break.
He’ll also have some time to reflect on his climb up the NHL’s career wins list.
Lundqvist made 27 saves to take over sole possession of sixth place in wins and New York beat the Boston Bruins 3-2 Saturday night.
“I’m very proud to be on that list,” Lundqvist said. “It’s not something you think about when you start your career or seven, eight, nine years into your career. When you reach top 10, that’s probably the first time you look at that list.”
Mika Zibanejad scored two goals and Filip Chytil had the other for New York, and Lundqvist got his 446th win to break a tie with Terry Sawchuk and move eight behind Curtis Joseph for fifth. It was New York’s fourth win in five games, and its eighth in the last nine meetings against Boston.
The Rangers will now be off for nine days for their bye week and the All-Star break.
“I think it’s good to get a break and reflect why did we have a good week here,” Lundqvist said. “Maybe we can do that on the beach somewhere and come back recharged.”
Danton Heinen and Brad Marchand scored for the Bruins, who lost in regulation for just the second time in 10 games (7-2-1). Boston also lost starting goalie Tuukka Rask to a concussion late in the first period.
“He’s concussed and that’s all I know, so he’ll go into the protocol,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy said. “Best case scenario for those is next day he’s up and running.”
Rask was hurt in a hard collision with Chytil, who was sent flying into his head by Boston defenseman Charlie McAvoy after scoring a goal charging the net at full speed with 1 1/2 minutes left in the opening period.
The hit sent Rask onto his back, where he was down for a while before being helped to the bench and down the tunnel to the locker room. He entered tied with Cecil “Tiny” Thompson as the winningest goaltender in club history with 252 victories and was 6-0-1 in his previous seven starts. Rask had six saves and backup Jaroslav Halak finished with 11.
“It was scary,” McAvoy said. “He seemed down and out. You saw firsthand the force that the guy went right into him. It didn’t look good right away. I just wanted to make sure he was OK. He came back to and we got him off the ice. Just hopefully he’s feeling all right.”
Zibanejad scored the go-ahead goal on a power play with wrist shot from the top of the left circle with 10:55 left in the third.
“You want to go into the break with a good feeling especially when you’re sitting with this game for nine days,” he said.
He became the second player in team history to score the winning goal in three straight games. Rod Gilbert did it in 1966.
New York coach David Quinn, who led Boston University the last five seasons and played at the school, was back in TD Garden for the first time with the Rangers. Hanging above the ice was the Hockey East tourney championship banner the Terriers won last March.
Trailing 2-1, Boston tied it on Marchand’s goal when banged in a shot from the top of the crease off David Pastrnak’s feed 3:24 into the third.
With both teams facing the long layoff, the first period was somewhat surprisingly lackluster with limited hits, chances and rushes until Boston took a 1-0 edge on Heinen’s goal with 2 1/2 minutes remaining.
Chytil’s goal tied it a minute later and Zibanejad redirected Brady Skjei’s shot by Halak to give the Rangers the lead at 5:22 of the second.
NOTES: Rangers D Adam McQuaid got a video tribute and a standing ovation, waving to the crowd twice midway into the opening period. He played his first nine NHL seasons with Boston before being traded to New York in September. … New York F Kevin Hayes missed his ninth straight with an upper-body injury. … Boston D John Moore, a member of New York’s 2014 Stanley Cup finalist team, was a healthy scratch.
SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP
Bruins D Matt Grzelcyk, who played three seasons for Quinn at BU, said after the morning skate that he developed a great relationship with him.
“He certainly means a lot to me,” he said. “He’s still a close friend. It’s obviously nice to have that connection. It’s going to be fun to see him tonight.
“He seems to really care for each and every player. He’s fully invested in their lives and helping them become better on and off the ice. A lot of players really appreciate that.”
McAvoy and Boston F Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson also played for Quinn at BU.
UP NEXT
Rangers: Off until they host Philadelphia on Jan. 29.
Bruins: Off until a home game against Winnipeg on Jan. 29.
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