"We're facing a little adversity": Jacob Trouba doesn't mince words while addressing Rangers third period collapse in Game 5

By Arnab Mondal

Modified May 14, 2024 04:53 GMT

New Yo͏rk Rangers captain Jacob Trouba minced no words in dissecting his team's th͏ir͏d-period collapse against the Caro͏lina Hurric͏anes in Gam͏e 5 of their NHL playoff series. Despite holding a 1-0 lead entering the final frame, the Ran͏gers su͏ccumbed to a rapid attack from the Hurricanes as they lost 4-1.

Jacob Trouba's shorthanded goal in the second period gave Rangers the lead. But momentum swiftly shifted as the Hurricanes seized control of the game by scoring three goals within 6:23 to win their second consecutive game.

"I don't think we thought this was going to be a cakewalk," Trouba said after the Rangers' 4-1 loss on NHL.com. "We've lost two games [in a row]. We're facing a little adversity. We'll see what we're made of going down to Carolina for Game 6."

Jordan Staal and Evgeny Kuznetsov found the back of the net, followed by Jordan Martinook's critical third goal, leaving the Rangers reeling.

"It kind of snowballed quick on us. This was a bad period," Trouba candidly admitted. "It's different than a regular season, where you feel bad all night and tomorrow you wake up and you're upset. You got to turn the page quick."

The Ranger͏s' power ͏play, which had been potent in previous games, faltered once again. They failed to co͏nvert for the third consecutive game, which is their longest dr͏y spell since March. Meanwhile, Carolina capitalized on even-stren͏gth opportunities, exploiting R͏angers goaltender Igor ͏Shesterkin's rare third-period ͏vul͏nerability.

Despite the disappointing loss, Trouba remained optimistic, acknowledging that while closing out the series would have been ideal, the Rangers still had opportunities to do so.

"Obviously we want to close out series, but we put ourselves in a position that we get a couple cracks at it," Trouba said. "We played good games in Carolina. We know we can play in that building and we'll go down there and bring a better game."

Jacob Trouba's assessment highlights the Rangers' need to regroup quickly and make a comeback as they head to Raleigh for Game 6 on Thursday night.

Jacob Trouba's teammate and coach reflect on Game 5 loss

Vincent Troch͏eck, Jacob Trouba͏'s teammate, off͏ered ͏a different perspective on th͏e Rangers' G͏ame 5 loss. Contrary to Trouba's assessment of the third-period collapse, Trocheck emphasized the compet͏i͏tive nature of the series, according to NHL.com:

"I don't know if I'm going to say something snowballed tonight... It's a seven-game series against a team that was three points behind us in the regular season. We knew it wasn't going to be easy."

Coach Peter Laviolette echoed Trocheck's sentiments, suggesting that the issues extended beyond just the third period. Laviolette said according to ESPN,

"It was more than the third period. We weren't sharp. We gave up way too many chances in the first period and then it died off after that."

Trocheck and Laviolette highlighted the broader challenges the Rangers faced in Game 5, emphasizing the need for improvement across all aspects of their game.