Back to the varsity.
The Rangers had a rude awakening when the powerful Stars rolled into the Garden and rolled over them to the tune of a 5-3 loss on Monday night at the Garden.
The Rangers (25-22-4) had feasted on the last-overall Red Wings this weekend, sweeping a home-and-home to give them some confidence coming out of their nine-day break that encompassed All-Star weekend and the bye week. But the Stars (30-18-4) were a different animal, far more skilled and taking advantage of the chances the Rangers handed them through a plethora of puck-management issues.
It led to goalie Henrik Lundqvist giving up four goals on 15 shots through the first two periods, enabling Dallas to take a 4-2 lead into the third.