ST. LOUIS — Pointing a finger at the uncertainty surrounding the lineup lately would be easy, but the Rangers know it should be directed inward.
The Blueshirts may have lost their No. 1 center minutes before puck drop.
They may have already had two AHL call-ups dressed due to mounting injuries.
But the Rangers were plagued by the same issues they’ve struggled with over the last month or so in an uninspired, empty-net-aided 5-2 loss to the Blues on Thursday night at Enterprise Center, marking the first time the club has lost three in a row all season.
While the Rangers have dropped off in recent weeks, losing six of their last 10, the rest of the Metropolitan Division has closed in on the once-gaping gap.
Between their loss and the Hurricanes’ victory over the Ducks on Thursday night, the Rangers’ lead in the division standings has dwindled to just three points.
Building the cushion was the easy part, maintaining it was always going to be the challenge.
The Rangers’ decline has been steady and relatively consistent.
Odd-man rushes against and other rush opportunities have repeatedly burned the Rangers, who have continuously racked up scoring opportunities to no avail due to how much they’ve given up.
Mika Zibanejad’s late scratch, due to the same illness that sidelined him in practice on Wednesday, forced the Rangers to go with 11 forwards and seven defensemen at the last minute.
Dressing a lineup that was already jumbled in response to the recent losing streak, the Rangers still managed to score first on a goal from Adam Fox and outshoot the Blues in the opening frame.
St. Louis, however, received three goals from Jordan Kyrou, and two of their four goals were off the rush to secure the victory.
The Rangers did not have an answer for the Blues on the attack and lost an early lead because of it.
After the Blues capitalized on an end-to-end play, St. Louis scored off a zone-entry rush on the power play in the first period.
The Blues’ power play, which is ranked dead last in the NHL, actually scored twice in their 21st win of the season.
It wouldn’t have been possible if not for the Rangers taking three penalties in the span of 5:03 in the second period.
Odds were on the Blues side at that point, and they capitalized on their opportunity.
Brandon Saad notched St. Louis’ second goal with the man advantage in the middle frame, when the Blues forward caught a centering pass and swept it in for the 3-1 lead.
The hats came raining down on the Enterprise Center ice after Kyrou beat Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin on a breakaway just over seven minutes into the third period.
Blues fans jumped to their feet as the puck went right under Shesterkin’s stagnant glove.
Shesterkin gave up three or more goals for the 14th time this season in his 26th start of the season.
The Rangers lost the special teams battle despite Vincent Trocheck’s 4-2 score at the 10:58 mark of the final frame.
Alexis Lafreniere filled in for Zibanejad on the first power-play unit, but they could only capitalize on one of their three man-advantage opportunities.
That cushion the Rangers worked for in the standings has thinned out.
It gets late early in the NHL.
Time is ticking for the Rangers to get back on track.