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April 6 (UPI) -- New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning players participated in a handful of fights and combined for 70 penalty minutes in a slugfest of a matchup at Madison Square Garden. Rangers winger Chris Kreider scored twice in the 6-3 victory Wednesday in New York. Center Mika Zibanejad logged three assists for the Rangers.
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"It was a chippy game, but it was a good game," Rangers coach Gerard Gallant told reporters. "I thought our team competed and played hard. It got a little bit chippy at times, but we are getting ready for the playoffs."
The game featured 43 hits. Lightning center Ross Colton totaled a game-high 17 penalty minutes. Wingers Alex Killorn and Brandon Hagel each registered a goal and an assist for the Lightning.
"Obviously we don't want to be in the [penalty] box as much," Hagel told reporters. "But it was guys sticking up for guys. ... Obviously we want to be a little bit more disciplined about it. But it is what it is."
Rangers defenseman Ben Harpur and Lightning forward Pat Maroon each received 5-minute majors for fighting with 2:51 remaining in the first period. Maroon skated up to Harpur at the start of that exchange. They exchanged soft shoves before dropping their gloves and exchanging punches.
Another dustup occurred early in the second after Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin denied a shot from Lightning center Anthony Cirelli.
Hagel attempted a follow up, which also was denied. Killorn then flew into the area and slammed into Shesterkin. Rangers players took issue with the late hit and piled on Killorn. Several other players also came into the area to participate in the melee.
Lightning forward Corey Perry and Rangers forward Vincent Trocheck received two more 5-minute majors for fighting with 3:47 to go in the second.
The Rangers recovered the puck behind their own blue line at the start of that sequence. Perry and Trocheck got into a collision nearby, sparking additional punches. Both players crashed to the ice during that melee.
Colton and Rangers defenseman Braden Schneider were flagged for another fight about 3 minutes later. That fight occurred after Schneider made a huge hit on Lightning forward Nicholas Paul. Colton skated into the area and exchanged punches with Schneider in response to the hit.
Harpur and Perry were penalized for a final fight at the end of the game. That fight occurred after the buzzer sounded after Harpur pushed Perry in the back. Perry was then shoved for a second time and fell to the ice.
The Rangers (46-21-11) will face the St. Louis Blues (36-35-7) at 8 p.m. EDT Thursday in St. Louis. The Lightning (45-27-6) will battle the New York Islanders (39-30-9) at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Elmont, N.Y.
