Rangers rollin’ with the King

Two of the Rangers’ younger players helped veteran goalie Henrik Lundqvist get a big milestone victory.

Filip Chytil and Brett Howden scored to back Lundqvist’s 437th career win as the Rangers beat the Canucks, 2-1, Monday night. Lundqvist tied Jacques Plante for seventh place on the NHL’s alltime list.

“The guy knows how to win hockey games,” alternate captain Marc Staal said of the 36-yearold Lundqvist. “You have to be an elite competitor and elite goaltender to have that many wins, it’s that simple. He is brought that his entire time here.”

The Rangers improved to 6-0-1 in their last seven, getting their longest points streak since an 11-0-2 run Oct. 18 to Nov. 15, 2015.

Lundqvist stopped 25 shots, including two big saves on Vancouver’s rookie sensation Elias Pettersson in the closing seconds to preserve the win.

“We have to keep the same mindset as when we started the season,” Lundqvist said. “A lot of teams in the league are in the same boat. It will come down to how hard you want to work. It’s about being consistent — you can beat any team in the league”

Nikolay Goldobin scored and Jacob Markstrom made 25 saves for the Canucks, who snapped a six-game point streak (4-0-2).

The 19-year-old Chytil tied the score, 1-1, with 7:18 left in the second on a rebound from the left side for his first of the season. After earning a spot on the roster out of training camp, he struggled to find the back of the net in the first 18 games. Rangers coach David Quinn said earlier in the day he had not lost faith in the talented teenager and was rewarded for his patience. Chris Kreider and Neal Pionk assisted on the play. The 20-year-old Howden got the game-winner with 8:41 left in the third when he snapped a wrist shot past Markstrom. Jimmy Vesey and Jesper Fast assisted on the play. Howden missed one game earlier in November for precautionary reasons after a scary collision with the end boards against Buffalo.

“You can play your young players and win. That’s what we have done so far,” Quinn said. “We want to win right now. That was our goal from day one and that is our goal right now.”

It was the first time two players 20-years-old or younger scored for the Rangers since Daniel Goneau and Christian Dube did it in October 1996.