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First Posted: 11/27/2013

(AP) Rick Nash scored his second goal of the season and Henrik Lundqvist rebounded from a poor game with 31 saves to lift the New York Rangers over the Florida Panthers 5-2 on Wednesday night.


Mats Zuccarello, Brad Richards and Derick Brassard also scored for the Rangers. Carl Hagelin added an empty-net goal with 24 seconds left.


Nick Bjugstad and Scottie Upshall scored in the third period for Florida. Tim Thomas allowed four goals on 21 shots.


After the Panthers scored twice to cut their deficit to one, Zuccarello’s power-play goal made it 4-2 with 1:28 left.


The Rangers won for the third time in four games and improved to 3-1 on their five-game road trip. The five goals tied their season high.


Lundqvist was back between the pipes after getting pulled from a 5-0 loss at Tampa Bay on Monday, when the 2012 Vezina Trophy winner gave up four goals in two periods.


Florida is 3-2-1 in its last five games and 0-2 against the Rangers this season.


Nash’s third-period goal put New York ahead 3-0. Nash, who missed 17 games with a concussion this season, got control of the puck in the neutral zone and his wrist shot from the slot beat Thomas on the stick side at 5:32.


Trailing 3-0, the Panthers scored twice in the third period.


Florida made it 3-1 on Upshall’s goal. Upshall backhanded in the puck from in front with 7:32 left. Upshall has eight points in his past eight games.


Bjugstad brought the puck through the neutral zone and put the puck in the net from the left side at 16:17.


The Rangers took a 1-0 lead on Brassard’s power-play goal in the first. Brassard took a pass from Zuccarello in the slot and tipped it past Thomas’ glove at 12:13.


Brassard’s goal was his fifth of the season and second in 10 games. The Rangers were 0 for 9 on the power play in their previous two games.


New York stretched its lead to 2-0 on Richards’ goal late in the second period. Richards’ shot from the right circle went through the legs of two Panthers defenders and Thomas at 18:53.


Richards has a team-high seven goals.


NOTES: Rangers forward Taylor Pyatt returned to the lineup after missing eight games with a concussion. … Panthers C Jesse Winchester missed his third game with a lower-body injury.


Associated Press