With the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs less than two weeks away, the New York Rangers aren't playing like a team that wants to be there.
The lowly Buffalo Sabres looked more like a playoff team Saturday night in putting the Rangers' hopes of clinching a playoff berth on hold yet again with a 4-3 victory that was keyed by Ryan O'Reilly's two first-period goals.
Zemgus Girgensons and Matt Moulson also scored on a night the Sabres sent Henrik Lundqvist to the bench in less than 21 minutes and had the sellout crowd at Madison Square Garden booing several times.
"We know down the stretch teams are trying to finish on a high note," Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh said after the team failed to clinch a playoff spot for the second straight game. "It doesn't matter where you are. We're trying to fine-tune our game and certainly can't put ourselves in a big hole like that."
