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NEW YORK -- Ryan McDonagh helped move the New York Rangers into second place in the Metropolitan Division on Monday night.
After picking up two assists in regulation, McDonagh scored 1:56 into overtime to lift the Rangers to a 4-3 victory against the Phoenix Coyotes at Madison Square Garden.
Brad Richards, Derick Brassard and Dan Girardi scored for the Rangers (40-29-4) and Henrik Lundqvist made 18 saves after being honored for becoming the franchise's all-time winningest goaltender in a pre-game ceremony.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Jeff Halpern and Kyle Chipchura scored for Phoenix (34-26-12), which failed to hang on to 2-0 and 3-2 leads. Mike Smith stopped 25 of 27 shots before Thomas Greiss made seven saves in relief.
McDonagh won it for New York when he was left in alone in front of the net and tapped Girardi's rebound past Greiss. With the victory, the Rangers moved ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers for second place in the Metropolitan. They have a one-point lead over the Flyers, who have two games in hand.
Phoenix, meanwhile, remains in possession of the Western Conference's second wild-card spot for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Coyotes moved three points ahead of the Dallas Stars, who were playing the Winnipeg Jets later Monday.
Following a back-and-forth second period that left Phoenix leading 3-2 after 40 minutes, the third started off timidly with each team firing a single shot in the opening 8:30. The game took a turn with 7:34 remaining in regulation when Smith was hurt after Brassard fell on him following a scramble in front. Smith appeared to be favoring his right leg and was helped to the dressing room.
Greiss made some big stops late, but there was little he could do when Girardi tied the game 3-3 with 3:28 left in regulation. Down low at the tip of the crease, Girardi deflected a McDonagh slap shot from the side of the net past Greiss for his fifth.
After coming back from a 2-0 deficit in the second to tie the game, New York continued to press in the waning moments of the period. Chris Kreider made a perfect pass to Derek Stepan at the left wing, but Smith came across and robbed him with a glove save with 3:34 remaining in the second. Kreider tried to make a similar heads-up play in his own end 30 seconds later, but the attempt backfired.
As Chipchura sped down the left wing and centered a feed toward Antoine Vermette in the slot, Kreider stuck out his stick to break up the pass. But the rookie forward accidentally redirected the puck between Lundqvist's legs to give Chipchura his third of the season and Phoenix a 3-2 lead at 16:51.
The deflating play sapped New York of some energy after the Rangers had staged an impressive second-period comeback.
Trailing 2-0 and stymied time and time again by Smith, the Rangers finally solved Phoenix's goaltender 6:10 into the second. Hagelin circled along the blue line before unleashing a rising wrister that Richards deflected low glove side for his 17th of the season and first in 11 games. The goal sparked the Rangers, even after McDonagh was whistled for hooking at 7:52.
Less than 10 seconds into the penalty, Coyotes defenseman Keith Yandle coughed up the puck to Rick Nash in his own zone. Nash made a quick move, but couldn't beat Smith.
Brassard made the most of New York's next opportunity, tying the game 61 seconds after McDonagh's minor expired. Finding the puck low in the right circle, his initial shot was blocked by Chris Summers. But the center stayed with the puck and snapped another shot that beat an out-of-position Smith high for his 17th at 10:53.
Richards almost gave New York the lead with 7:21 remaining in the second after a yeoman's effort from Kreider, who fought off two defenders in the right corner before finding Richards alone in front. Richards had to adjust to the unexpected pass but still managed a quality shot that was stopped and swallowed up by Smith.
It was a stark contrast to a first period in which Phoenix dominated.
Ekman-Larsson opened the scoring 4:40 into the game while Nash served a tripping penalty. The scoring play was facilitated by Yandle, who made a perfect pass to hit Ekman-Larsson in stride down the right wing. The Swedish defenseman took a few strides before snapping a shot from the right dot past Lundqvist's glove for his 13th of the season.
Halpern gave Phoenix a 2-0 lead at 8:22 after Michael Stone sent the puck behind the Rangers net from the point. Chipchura found the pass and pivoted before finding Halpern streaking through the slot. The former Ranger one-timed the feed past Lundqvist low to the glove side for his fifth of the season.
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