BALTIMORE -- It looked like Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase had pulled it off Thursday night against the Baltimore Ravens.

Throughout the prime-time matchup against their AFC North rivals, Cincinnati's star quarterback and wide receiver linked up for plays when the Bengals needed them most, including a late touchdown that put Cincinnati in position for the game winner.

But the Bengals ended up one play short in a 35-34 loss to the Ravens. A failed 2-point conversion with 38 seconds remaining squandered outstanding performances from both players.

Burrow finished with 428 yards and four touchdowns on 34-of-56 passing. Chase turned in one of the best performances of his career -- 11 catches, three touchdowns and a 264 receiving yards. The efforts, however, were not enough to keep the Bengals from losing their second and final regular-season matchup against the Ravens this season.

"They are the best duo in the league right now, and they show it every week," Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton said. "We just feel like we have to hold up our end, and things could be a lot different. But, it just hasn't gone our way this season."

The Bengals (4-6) led 21-7 midway through the third quarter when Baltimore (7-3) created a huge break to get back into the game. Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey ripped the ball out of Bengals running back Chase Brown's hands. The Ravens recovered the ball and then went on a 21-0 run to take the lead in the fourth quarter.

But Burrow and Chase did just about everything to keep the Bengals in contention. One play after the Ravens went ahead, Burrow immediately responded with a 70-yard touchdown pass to Chase that tied the score at 28.

When the Ravens regained the lead with 1:49 left and Cincinnati needed a touchdown, Burrow leaned on Chase. At one point, Chase tied his career high of 266 receiving yards that was set in 2021. However, a defensive penalty that Cincinnati accepted negated the play.

A couple of snaps later, Burrow found Chase for a 5-yard touchdown pass in the final minute. Cincinnati's 2-point attempt for the potential winning points failed when a Burrow pass for tight end Tanner Hudson sailed a high. Burrow had no qualms with the decision to go for it.

"We knew what situation we were in," Burrow said.

As for Burrow and Chase, who have played with each other for six of the past seven seasons dating to their college days at LSU, they turned in one of their best performances together. Chase deferred to reporters when asked if Thursday night topped that list.

Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Burrow and Chase turned in "incredible" performances.

"I thought Ja'Marr stepped up in a major way," Taylor said. "Anytime we could find ways to get him the ball, I thought Joe did a great job of that. And Ja'Marr finished a lot of those plays for us. I thought they played excellent."

But what happened Thursday at M&T Bank Stadium was a microcosm of the season.

Entering Week 10, Burrow and Chase had been enjoying two of the best seasons in their respective careers. Burrow was second in Total QBR, trailing only Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, who finished the game with 290 passing yards and four touchdowns. Chase was second in the league in receiving yards behind Minnesota's Justin Jefferson, their former teammate at LSU.

So the fact the Bengals are still under the .500 mark through 10 games was befuddling for Chase.

"It's crazy to say that," Chase said. "I would never, in a million years, expect me to play this well and he play this well and we still have a record like this."

On top of that, Cincinnati also had the NFL's leading sack leader, defensive end Trey Hendrickson, coming into Thursday night. That compounded the frustration.

"If you look at how we're playing and you look at Trey Hendrickson, how he's playing, yeah, that's a tough pill to swallow," Burrow said after the game. "But we've had our opportunities.

"Obviously, it's tough when you feel like you're playing well enough to win and you're not. But there's always more to do."

BALTIMORE -- The Ravens were in a predicament Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals, facing a 14-point deficit in the second half with a struggling defense.

So what gave them any hope of a comeback? Lamar Jackson is playing his best football ever.

Jackson produced the best fourth quarter of his career in leading the Ravens to a 35-34 victory. In recording a perfect 158.3 passer rating in the fourth quarter, he threw for 197 yards and three touchdowns -- both personal highs in the fourth quarter -- to record a season sweep of the Bengals and save the NFL's worst pass defense once again.

It didn't matter that the Ravens defense allowed 470 yards and five touchdowns. There was always a belief that Jackson was going to will Baltimore to victory.

"He's special, but we're like the little bros right now," Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey said of the defense. "He's carrying us."

The reigning NFL Most Valuable Player had to shake off his worst start of the season. After throwing for 71 yards in the first half, Jackson began to click once Baltimore trailed 21-7 early in the third quarter.

Jackson threw touchdown passes of 84 yards to Tylan Wallace and 18 yards to Mark Andrews before connecting with Rashod Bateman for the winning, 5-yard score with 1:49 left.

Since 2021, Jackson has three wins when trailing by 14 or more points in the fourth quarter. That's the most in the NFL over that span.

"He brings a different level of intensity and carries the team on his back week in and week out," Andrews said. "And for us, again, it's belief, it's not quitting and understanding that we have the best player in the world on our team and we're never out of it."

It was only last month when Jackson rallied the Ravens from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to deliver a 41-38 overtime win in Cincinnati. This extended Jackson's dominance over the Bengals, improving his record to 10-1 against them.

Jackson also became the only player in NFL history with five touchdown passes and no interceptions in the fourth quarter against an opponent in a single season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

"I just think he took that game on his shoulders like he does," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said.

The Ravens are 7-3 with the NFL's No. 1 offense (440.2 yards per game) and the league's No. 27 defense (367.9).

"I was telling my guys on the sideline, 'We have to score. If they score, we have to score -- that's the type of game it's going to be,'" Jackson said. "We've seen that from the first snap, but I'm proud of my guys because we finished [and] we came through."

Baltimore plays at the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) on Nov. 17 in a battle for first place in the AFC North. If the Ravens get behind in that game, they know they can come back because of one reason.

"We've got Lamar Jackson," Bateman said. "I [am not] going to lie to you -- if [he's] on the field we got a chance to win the game, period."

The message has been clear from Ireland all week: when they face New Zealand on Friday, revenge will not be on the menu.

Hugo Keenan said it last week from the pleasant climes of the Algarve, Ireland's second home, and Andy Farrell repeated it when he spoke to reporters in Dublin on Wednesday.

And while most of the Ireland camp would insist they have moved on from last year's agonising World Cup quarter-final loss in Paris, Tadhg Beirne felt moved to admit that his dreams are still haunted by the experience. Proof, as if it were needed, that the pain remains.

For Ireland, Friday's match - regardless of the result - cannot banish the hurt that hit them like a hammer when, after 37 increasingly desperate phases, their World Cup was ended when Sam Whitelock won a penalty for the All Blacks.

To exorcise the ghosts of Paris, they must wait until 2027.

Friday, however, at least gives the world's number-one side the chance to regain the upper hand in a rivalry that has transfixed the rugby world in recent years.

Indeed, it is a rivalry that has produced a string of memorable fixtures across the globe.

There has been Irish ecstasy in Chicago and Wellington, the scenes of Ireland's first win and first series triumph over the All Blacks, mixed with Kiwi joy in Tokyo and Paris, where they condemned the green machine to their sixth and seventh World Cup quarter-final exits.

There have been stunning individual tries, from Jacob Stockdale's chip-and-chase setting Lansdowne Road alight in 2018, to Ardie Savea's stunner in Auckland in 2022.

It has brought pure emotion to the surface, too, from Peter O'Mahony sobbing euphorically in Wellington to Johnny Sexton staring into the abyss in Paris.

And like any good rivalry, it has seen its fair share of needle, with Sexton and Rieko Ioane's Paris spat ratcheting up the tension for this week.

Supporters of Maccabi Tel-Aviv clashed with apparent pro-Palestinian protesters before and after a Europa League match between their team and Ajax outside the Dutch team's home stadium in Amsterdam on Thursday night, media and officials said.

The clashes reportedly erupted despite a ban on a pro-Palestinian demonstration imposed by Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema, who had feared that clashes would break out between protesters and supporters of the Israeli club.

Details of the incidents remained unclear, but Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called his Dutch counterpart about them.

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, also condemned the violence in a post on the social media platform X.

There were no immediate reports of arrests or injuries from the clashes outside the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam, the city's main arena and Ajax's home stadium.

Ajax won the Europa League match 5-0 after leading 3-0 at halftime.

SAN ANTONIO -- Spurs star Victor Wembanyama said he and his teammates expect Gregg Popovich to return soon after a health issue caused the longtime coach to miss three games, including Thursday night's 118-105 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.

"We don't hear a lot from Pop," Wembanyama said after the game. "They keep us informed as much as we're allowed to know. So, I'm not worried about him. I know he's going to come back soon."

Popovich experienced an undisclosed medical episode last Saturday, about 2 hours before the Spurs' home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. San Antonio acting head coach Mitch Johnson said then that Popovich was "not feeling well" but would not elaborate on what happened hours earlier.

When asked Thursday night if there was any clarity about Popovich returning this season, Johnson could not provide an answer but said Popovich is "doing good."

"We've been talking," Johnson said. "I've had my hands full with this, in trying to stay above water. So, have not talked details and I'm not sure about anything."

Popovich, 75, is the oldest coach in NBA history. In 2020, he passed the previous mark held by Hubie Brown (71) in his final game as Memphis' head coach.

Popovich is the NBA's career leader with 1,390 victories and another 170 postseason wins with five NBA titles. He is in his 29th season, all with San Antonio.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

LOS ANGELES -- Brock Boeser left Vancouver's game against the Los Angeles Kings in the first period on Thursday night after being checked in the head.

Boeser had just played the puck in the neutral zone when the two-time All-Star forward was leveled by Tanner Jeannot, who received a match penalty for an illegal hit to the head. Boeser, who did not appear to see the check coming, spent some time down on one knee but eventually was able to leave the ice and head back to the dressing room under his own power.

Boeser leads the Canucks with six goals and is second on the team with 11 points. He set career highs last season with 40 goals and 73 points.

Conor Garland scored on the five-minute power play assessed to Jeannot, tying it at 1 at 14:20 of the first period.

Matchday 4 of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League is in the books and the 36-team table is starting to take shape.

Shock losses for Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain have set alarm bells ringing, while Viktor Gyökeres' three-goal performance against Manchester City has made the entire football world sit up and take notice.

ESPN writers Gab Marcotti, Mark Ogden and Julien Laurens reflect on some of the burning questions after four rounds.

Are Real Madrid in crisis, and what does Carlo Ancelotti need to do to get this team firing again?

Ogden: Madrid are absolutely in crisis. Back-to-back defeats shouldn't be a big deal, just something that goes with the territory, but this is Real Madrid, where no defeat is acceptable. And when you are hammered 4-0 at home by Barcelona and then lose again in the next game, against a fellow European heavyweight in AC Milan, things have gotten really bad.

There are mitigating factors, such as the retirement of Toni Kroos, Dani Carvajal's season-long injury, Jude Bellingham having to tone down his attacking game to accommodate Kylian Mbappé, and Mbappé himself, who is nowhere near the player Madrid expected him to be. Mbappé's best position is wide left, but the same applies to Vinícius Júnior, so how do you solve that problem?

It's a tough one for Ancelotti, who will know that his job will be on the line if Madrid don't emerge from their slump quickly. Ancelotti has said before that his number-one job is keeping the club president happy -- and Florentino Perez won't be happy right now.

Marcotti: It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Real Madrid are a team made with Panini stickers, and that it would be a challenge to make the pieces fit together. We've said all along that the team was unbalanced and Ancelotti would need to somehow make it work. He hasn't been able to (yet) and, while they have more firepower than anyone and that can paper over a lot of cracks, at some point it catches up to you (especially when Thibaut Courtois isn't between the sticks).

Their possession game hasn't been great and obviously Kroos is a huge loss (as is the fact that Luka Modric is now literally the oldest player in the history of the club and obviously can't give you as many minutes as in the past). Solutions? I'd imagine you'd have to turn to the transfer window in January.

Short-term I think you have to accept that neither Vinícius nor Mbappé will work off the ball, so pressing and winning possession high isn't going to happen. That means you need to control games and hopefully not just end up with a bunch of sterile possession. You can try giving more playing duties to Eduardo Camavinga, or possibly try to get Bellingham to go back to his original spot in midfield. At least that way you'd have some sort of a base. And maybe you can think of a hybrid back three with Aurélien Tchouaméni dropping in there in certain situations, allowing the full-backs to push up (but, again... do you want Ferland Mendy pushing up? I'm not sure).

The only other alternative is seeing if you can get Bellingham to play some sort of center-forward role with Mbappé around him. But that would mean Vinícius in left midfield, which isn't ideal either if he's not going to help his full-back. The ugly truth is that this is a collection of star individuals, not a team. Somebody needs to make a sacrifice. And even that may not be enough.

Laurens: "'Allo Toni? It's Carlo. Please come back, this is a mess! I need you, we need you. I beg you!"

This is what Real Madrid have to do right now. Get on the phone to Kroos and convince him to come out of retirement to sort the unbalance and add some technical leadership to the midfield. Ancelotti, Perez, sporting director Juni Calafat, Antonio Rüdiger, the tea lady, the Bernabéu cleaner, the Ciudad Deportiva groundsman -- I don't care who, but someone needs to make the call and get Kroos to come back. The team is in crisis and while the Germany legend returning would not solve all the problems, at least the team would be better structured and have more control on the ball.

Then there is the small matter of the forward line. Mbappé is not a No. 9 and will never be a proper one. But he can still do a job there if the team around him is set up right. Leave the left side to Vinícius, get Bellingham higher up closer to Mbappé, Federico Valverde on the right, and give more responsibilities to Camavinga at the heart of midfield.

Has Gyökeres proved this season that he can deliver on the biggest occasions and deserves a major move? Or is this just a flash in the pan?

Ogden: He isn't a flash in the pan. Gyökeres scored 43 goals in 50 games for Sporting CP last season having made the leap from Coventry City in the Championship to the Portuguese top-flight, and he is continuing to prove himself as a formidable centre-forward this season.

The big question is whether he can do it at a higher level than the Portuguese Primeira Liga. A Champions League hat trick against Manchester City is an emphatic way to silence his naysayers, but there is no doubt that Gyökeres has enjoyed a meteoric rise. Three years ago, Brighton & Hove Albion let him go for just 1 million to Coventry after unproductive loan spells at St. Pauli, Swansea City and Coventry, who nonetheless saw enough in him to sign the Sweden international permanently. To be nowhere at 23, but a sensation at 26 is remarkable, but my view is that he is the real deal. He is quick, strong, great in the air and a powerful finisher; Sporting will do well to keep him.

Marcotti: He's obviously not a flash in the pan, because he's done it for a while. Then again, Gyökeres being really good would mean that Brighton -- a club known for their skill in spotting and nurturing talent -- got it badly wrong because he was on their books for five years between the age of 19 and 24 and he never played.

There's probably some prejudice against him because there's a whole history of big, strong center-forward types who score a ton of goals in the Portuguese league and don't exactly set the world on fire elsewhere (see Mehdi Taremi, Darwin Núñez, Carlos Vinícius... heck even Simon Banza scored 21 last year). Last year, he scored three goals from open play in the Europa League, this year he has three from open play in the Champions League. With Sweden, he has 10 in 24. He's a serviceable striker, sure, but I think teams are going to be reluctant to pay Erling Haaland-type money, given he's already 26 and is still rough around the edges.

Laurens: 66 goals in 66 games in all competitions for Sporting is not a fluke. But the Champions League is the best arena to judge him and his hat trick against Manchester City on Tuesday (albeit including two penalties), and five goals in four games (one against Lille and one against Sturm Graz) shows he can do it there too.

He is a proper finisher, clinical in front of goal, strong physically, and can run in behind too. Is he ready for the Premier League, the best and toughest league in the world? Probably yes. He will need to step up though as the Portuguese league is too easy for him. He needs to work on his link-up play and become a more complete all-round striker, but at 26, he has plenty of time for that.

Are Barcelona a force again on the European stage while their biggest rivals Real Madrid are in crisis mode?

Ogden: Barcelona are probably the best team in Europe right now, but it's still only early November and the best teams tend to come good at the business end of the season. Hansi Flick has done better than anyone would have expected, especially with so many young players and the injuries that hit his squad. And don't forget, Ilkay Gündogan jumped ship for a return to Manchester City late in the transfer window. Maybe Barça are just on the crest of a wave right now -- Raphinha certainly is -- but I would still back Madrid, City and Liverpool against Barcelona in the knockout stages. Let's not overlook the fact that two of Barcelona's wins have been against Young Boys and Red Star Belgrade, so not the toughest tests.

Marcotti: I mean, they were in the quarterfinals last year and beat Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg before self-destructing at home. So, I wouldn't say "again". Flick has done really well, but -- before we get too excited -- two of their four wins have come against Red Star and Young Boys. Another was against Bayern, sure, in a game that could have gone the other way. They play high-risk, high-reward football and it works for them. I think -- and we saw at the weekend against Espanyol as well -- they need to add a dimension to their game now that the injured guys (Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Andreas Christensen, Ronald Araújo) are either back or coming back. I don't think they can sustain this intensity or this style of play without doing that.

Laurens: Absolutely Barcelona are a force, but there is a "but" as well. They are because they have the best front three in Europe (along with Liverpool) in Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha. They have great variety and depth in the midfield positions with Marc Casadó, Pedri, Fermín López, Dani Olmo, Gavi and De Jong. They have a clear identity, great momentum and confidence too, while more injured players are going to come back soon. They play the offside trap better than anyone and have already caught opponents 108 times offside so far this season.

However, the "but" is that they play a very risky brand of football with their all-attacking style and super-high defensive line. Red Star took advantage of it to score and make it 1-1 on Wednesday and, once teams have worked them out, they will concede many more chances, especially against good sides. Bayern got demolished but threatened massively in the first half. Real Madrid also had their moments too, despite their heavy Clasico defeat.

Now at the halfway stage of the league phase, what do you like -- or dislike -- the most about the new format?

Ogden: I'd be surprised if any of the big teams miss out on qualification -- even PSG, who are stuck beneath the trapdoor right now -- but the best element of the new format is the opportunity it has given to the likes of Brest, Aston Villa and Celtic to give themselves a chance of a place in the knockout stages. The old group stage made it tough for outliers to qualify, especially if they had two big clubs in the group, but every team knows they have chances to win games now and many of the less fancied teams have worked that out and started strongly. Celtic, for instance, have struggled to compete in the group stage in recent seasons, but they have now won two and drawn one and have a great chance of qualifying. That's what we want: surprises and new stories.

Marcotti: I think it's been great. Just this midweek we've had Manchester City, Real Madrid, Arsenal, PSG and Bayer Leverkusen all losing. Oh, and RB Leipzig have lost four in four, which is hilarious. We've seen some great goals and some good games. To me, that's just as important in this phase of the competition, especially given two thirds of the teams are going to advance. And, by the way, we have Sporting, AS Monaco and Brest in the top five and VfB Stuttgart, Leipzig, Bologna, Girona and, yes, PSG currently missing out on the next round. So much for all that nonsense about big leagues and big teams dominating.

Laurens: Apart from my beloved PSG's results so far in the competition, I'm loving everything about this new format. We are halfway through this league phase, and we have seen big games every week, big teams struggling, small teams excelling. Some big stars haven't been good, some more unknown players are emerging. There has been late drama and controversy. Now, the second part will start to make things even more interesting and properly tense as every point will now really count. We will start looking at all the different scenarios on who needs what to do what. It will be fun!

BALTIMORE -- Lamar Jackson's dominance over the Cincinnati Bengals continued Thursday night -- as did his flair for the dramatic.

Jackson's 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Rashod Bateman with 1:49 left in the game lifted the Baltimore Ravens to a 35-34 victory and improved his career record to 10-1 against the Bengals.

The outcome came down to the final minute as the Ravens needed their defense to force a Joe Burrow incompletion on a 2-point conversion with 38 seconds remaining to preserve Jackson's 12th career game-winning drive. There will be debate about whether a penalty should have been called on the 2-point try.

Jackson has had two game-winning drives this season, and both have come against the Bengals. He helped Baltimore to a 41-38 overtime win in Cincinnati last month.

The NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player needed to shake off his worst start of the season. After being limited to 71 yards in the first half, Jackson completed 15 of 19 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns.

The Ravens scored 28 points in the second half, the most by any team in a second half this season.

The Ravens (7-3), who have swept Cincinnati in back-to-back seasons, are now in a virtual first-place tie atop the AFC North with the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2).

Baltimore Ravens (7-3)

QB breakdown: Jackson was dominant in the fourth quarter, completing 11 of 13 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns. It was the second-most passing yards in a fourth quarter this season. Jordan Love had 202 in Week 4 vs. the Vikings. With two on Thursday, Jackson has nine touchdown passes from outside the pocket, four more than any other quarterback this season. Burrow is second with five.

Eye-popping stat: Wide receiver Tylan Wallace picked an opportune time to record his first career touchdown catch. With Baltimore down 21-14 in the fourth quarter, Wallace took a short out pass from Jackson and turned it into an 84-yard touchdown by somehow staying in bounds while running down the left sideline. Wallace gained 78 yards after catch over expected, which is the second-most YACOE on a reception since 2018, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

Troubling trend: The Ravens' pass defense, which is the worst in the league, looked like it in the second half, when Baltimore was without All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton (ankle). The Ravens allowed touchdown passes of 67 and 70 yards to wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase. For the season, Baltimore has now given up a league-high 28 completions of 25 or more yards.

Most surprising performance: Justin Tucker. The seven-time Pro Bowl kicker hooked an extra point wide left that would have tied the game at 21 in the fourth quarter. Tucker had made 75 straight extra points prior to that miss. He had some struggles earlier in the season, but he entered Thursday having made 10 of his previous 11 field goals.

Next game: at Steelers (1 p.m. ET, Nov. 17)

Cincinnati Bengals (4-6)

Eye-popping stat: Ja'Marr Chase had his sixth career game of at least 150 receiving yards and a touchdown. That ties Lance Alworth for the third most by a player under the age of 25 in league history, according to NFL Research. Only Randy Moss and Justin Jefferson had more, with each having seven. Chase finished with 11 catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns.

Pivotal play: Cincinnati was in control of the game until Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey stripped Bengals running back Chase Brown for a fumble that Baltimore recovered with 7:05 left in the third. That sparked a 21-point run that allowed the Ravens to not only get back in the game but eventually take the lead. It compounded the Bengals' rushing game woes on a night where they struggled to get much going.

QB breakdown: Burrow had a strong performance. Despite facing pressure all night and not having wide receiver Tee Higgins, Burrow extended plays and consistently found Ja'Marr Chase. His 70-yard touchdown pass to Chase in the fourth quarter immediately halted Baltimore's momentum after the Ravens had scored 21 straight points to take the lead. It was Burrow's ninth career game with at least 350 passing yards and three passing touchdowns (he finished with 428 and four), extending his own lead for most in Bengals history. It might not have been a coincidence that Burrow turned it up after Hamilton went down with the ankle injury. Burrow was 15-of-21 for 243 yards and three touchdowns after Hamilton left the game with 1:17 left in the second quarter.

Next game: at Chargers (8:20 p.m. ET, Nov. 17)

NEW YORK -- Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin was pulled in the second period against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night after giving up five goals on 12 shots.

The 28-year-old Russian, who entered the contest with a 6-2-1 with a 2.22 goals-against average, allowed a goal by Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin 26 seconds into the game.

He then gave up four goals in the second period - including three in a span of 2:12 span - as the Sabres took a 5-0 lead. Dylan Cozens, Tage Thompson, Jordan Greenway and Sam Lafferty scored in the middle period before Shesterkin was replaced by Jonathan Quick with 6:09 to go after Lafferty scored.

The Sabres went on to beat the Rangers 6-1.

"It really unraveled in the second, Rangers defenseman and captain Jacob Trouba said. "Our goalie has kind of kept us in this thing for the first 12 games. We've got to be better and give up less quality chances."

The Rangers, who fell to 8-3-1 this season, have been winning largely because of Shesterkin's stellar play.

"This certainly was not our best, Rangers defenseman Adam Fox said. "We left him out to dry. It's not good enough."

Shesterkin won the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender in 2021-22 when he was 36-13-4 with a 2.07 goals against average. He won 37 games in 2022-23 and 36 last season as the Rangers finished with the NHL's best record.

Shesterkin is in the final season of a four-year, $22.67 million contract and there has been talk of him wanting to be the highest-paid goaltender in NHL history.