What we learned from the Ducks’ 2-1 loss to the New York Rangers

The Ducks ventured into the other side of the spectrum Wednesday, and it wasn’t a pleasant trip.

One game after they scored seven goals against New Jersey, they took a 2-1 loss to the New York Rangers in a tight contest that saw only 55 total faceoffs and 23 shots apiece.

Here’s what we learned:

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Hockey can be a funny game ... with no excuses. The Ducks surrendered the game-winning goal on a rush after they spent an extended sequence in New York’s zone and appeared on the verge of scoring.

The Rangers scored on a pass from Eric Staal that went between a Ducks player’s legs and off Hampus Lindholm’s skate before Kevin Klein tapped it home.

Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau said it didn’t matter.

“We can talk about it going off Hampus and onto their stick, but we had them stopped at the blue line,” Boudreau said. “It’s a three-on-three. You can’t allow that to happen. We didn’t play it right, so it probably deserved to go into the net.”

The goalie rotation is working. It was John Gibson’s turn in net, and he kept the Ducks in the game with 21 saves. Boudreau has been alternating between Gibson and Frederik Andersen for two games at a time and he can’t argue with the results.

Anaheim has allowed two or fewer goals 11 times in the last 13 games. How long will the rotation be in place?

“I’m sure decisions are coming down the road, but they’ve both played very well and made it tough for anybody to decipher that one’s better than the other,” Boudreau said. “So far it’s worked, so there’s no need to change it right now.”

Follow Curtis Zupke on Twitter @CurtisZupke