Alexis Lafreniere scores twice as Rangers beat Lightning 4-1

NEW YORK (AP) — Alexis Lafreniere scored twice and Dylan Garand made 25 saves as the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 on Tuesday night for their fifth straight home win.

Will Cuylle and Mika Zibanejad also scored for the Rangers, who snapped Tampa Bay’s four-game winning streak. The Lightning hadn’t lost since falling to the Rangers 5-1 in New York’s home opener on Oct. 1.

Lafreniere scored 62 seconds into the game, beating Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy from in close.

The 25-year-old Lafreniere, the first pick in the 2020 NHL draft, scored again at 12:47 of the first, his team-leading seventh goal.

Ty Kartye assisted on both of Lafreniere's goals. Kartye also scored twice in New York’s previous game, a 6-2 home win over Vancouver.

Tampa Bay’s Zemgus Girgensons narrowed the deficit to 2-1 with his first goal of the season late in the first.

Cuylle made it 3-1 late in the second, redirecting a shot by Sean Durzi from the point past Vasilevskiy for his third goal.

Zibanejad had an empty-netter at 17:16 of the third.

Lafreniere, who had a hat trick in a 5-2 home win over the Islanders on Oct. 6, has goals in four straight games. His career high in goals was 28 in 2023-24.

It's just the third time the Rangers have won five straight home games to start a season. They won six straight in 1983-84 and eight in a row to begin the 1990-91 campaign.

Garand won his second straight since starting goaltender Igor Shesterkin was injured last Friday at Washington and declared out for the season the next day.

The 24-year-old was serenaded with chants of “Dylan, Dylan,” after he made several key saves in the third period.

Vasilevskiy made 19 saves.

Rangers: At New Jersey on Thursday.

Lightning: Host Seattle on Thursday.

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