Rangers 2 - 5 Blue Jackets
Final
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Nash, Rangers take on hosting Blue Jackets

Oct 11, 2014 - 3:05 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - Rick Nash was the offensive hero for the New York Rangers in their season-opening win, and the winger will try to keep his hot start going when the Blueshirts visit his old club, the Columbus Blue Jackets, in Saturday's clash at Nationwide Arena.

Nash netted a pair of goals, including a tie-breaking score with just 1:50 remaining that lifted the Rangers to Thursday's 3-2 victory in St. Louis. Nash, who also added an assist on Chris Kreider's third-period tally, led New York with 26 goals last season, but only scored three times in 25 playoff games during his club's run to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Although Nash was dealt to New York in the summer of 2012, this will mark only his second trip back to Columbus, where he spent his first nine NHL seasons. All told, the 30-year-old has two goals in three career games against his former club.

New York was able to win its opener against the Blues, but the club did not get out of the game unscathed as defenseman Dan Boyle broke his hand in the contest and expects to miss 4-to-6 weeks. Boyle was making his debut with the Rangers after signing a two-year, $9 million deal in the offseason.

Kreider finished Thursday's win with a goal and an assist, while Martin St. Louis chipped in a pair of helpers for the defending Eastern Conference champions.

Henrik Lundqvist made 23 saves for New York and had a shutout working through two periods, but was reached for two goals in the third that pulled the Blues even prior to Nash's late marker.

"A win is a win," said Lundqvist. "You don't really care who you're playing. It was an important game for us."

After wrapping a two-game trip to start the season, New York will play its next four games on home ice, beginning with Sunday's opener at Madison Square Garden versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Columbus also posted a road victory to open the season, downing Buffalo by a 3-1 score on Thursday. Cam Atkinson's go-ahead goal in the third period helped the Blue Jackets beat the Sabres at First Niagara Center.

Jack Skille and Artem Anisimov both scored and Sergei Bobrovsky made 21 saves for the Blue Jackets. Ryan Johansen, who agreed to terms on a three-year contract Monday after missing all of training camp, assisted on Atkinson's momentum-shifting goal with 7:15 remaining in regulation.

"We didn't have any passengers tonight. It was a total team effort," Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards said. "Once we got the puck on our stick, I thought we did some good things."

Columbus is coming off the most successful season in franchise history, as it made the playoffs for only the second time in 2014 and also picked up the club's first two postseason victories.

The Blue Jackets played New York tough in 2013-14, as the teams split four meetings during the regular season. The Rangers, however, have won five of the last eight encounters in the series and have claimed two in a row and three of four in Columbus.






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