PITTSBURGH – Eight days before the Feb. 25 trade deadline, Mats Zuccarello and Kevin Hayes continued to raise the Rangers’ asking price for them. Zuccarello scored the Rangers’ first two goals of the game and Hayes added one in the third as the Rangers dropped a 6-5 decision Sunday to the Penguins.
Two goals each by Evgeny Malkin and Kris Letang provided what the Penguins needed to win the game, but the Rangers – who lost defenseman Neal Pionk late in the second period after he was cut by a high stick from Sidney Crosby – showed some fight in getting late goals from Hayes and Mika Zibanejad after falling behind 6-3.