Rangers finally get revenge on Islanders \u2014 and are tied for first

A Broadway exorcism on the eve of Thanksgiving.

So it was with the Rangers being able to finally put down the Islanders in a 5-0 blowout victory on Wednesday night at the Garden that marked just their second win against their rival in the previous 14 games, going back three-plus years. It also was the first career shutout from 22-year-old backup goalie Alex Georgiev, who made 29 saves in front of his parents, in town for the American holiday.

“It couldn’t be better,” said the affable Bulgarian, swimming under the Broadway Hat and with the commemorative game puck safely stowed away.

It also felt great for the Rangers (12-8-2) as a whole. They are now 9-1-1 in their previous 11 games — the only regulation loss coming to the Islanders (10-8-2) last Thursday in a 7-5 drubbing at Barclays Center, where they still haven’t won. That night, the Rangers couldn’t defend the front of the net and were exposed. This night, they were defensively stout for most of the game and it resulted in the first rivalry revelry in quite some time.

“It was getting a little ridiculous,” alternate captain Marc Staal told The Post. “Obviously that building is a lot different. But the fact that we couldn’t even win [more than once] in our own building? They’re supposed to be one our biggest rivals, and to keep laying eggs, it wasn’t sitting well.”

This game also continued the Rangers’ improbable ascension up the standings. With Thanksgiving a traditional holiday marker for league-wide assessment, the Blueshirts are tied with the Blue Jackets with 26 points atop the Metropolitan Division (with Columbus holding one game in hand). Only four points behind are the Islanders, who on this night were just bereft of execution despite getting a handful of good chances that either missed the net or were stopped by Georgiev.

“The execution and the details early weren’t good,” said Islanders coach Barry Trotz, who was missing key pieces in Cal Clutterbuck, Casey Cizikas, Matt Martin and Andrew Ladd — even though the latter three missed last week’s game, as well. “Couldn’t get it back on the rails close enough.”

The game always seemed to be in the Rangers’ hands, beginning just 29 seconds in when Filip Chytil scored his fifth goal in as many games to continue his historic teenage hot streak. It was followed by a redirected goal from Cody McLeod at 3:30, and then a power-play goal from Neal Pionk on 8:04 that had the Blueshirts holding a commanding 3-0 lead before half the people in the lower bowl had even reached their seats.

The Islanders contingent of the 17,297 in attendance were washed out, and the shouts of “Potvin Sucks!” only got louder. Late in the second period, Kevin Hayes was afforded the opportunity to walk unabated towards the Islanders net — set up by Kevin Shattenkirk, who played his best game of the season while collecting two assists — easily beating goalie Robin Lehner with a deft backhand along the ice to make it 4-0.

“When they got the fourth one,” Trotz said, “they were pretty well done.”

Yet that’s when Georgiev was forced to be at his best. In a span of five minutes late in the third period, he made terrific saves on Mathew Barzal, Jordan Eberle and Tom Kuhnhackl to preserve the shutout.

“Great time to get a shutout,” Georgiev said. “Big win for the boys against our rival team. Just very grateful.”

This game had a little more bite than the first one, with McLeod eventually agreeing to fight Ross Johnston midway through the second period. And there might be more snarl in the two more games left between these two, a back-to-back that starts on Jan. 10 at the Garden followed two nights later for what might be the last-ever meeting in Brooklyn.

By then, it might be less about exorcisms and more about the standings. On this night, it was about both.

“I think eventually when you lose so often to someone, eventually you’re going to win one. Odds were just in our favor,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “And when you do breakthrough and win a game, it usually happens like that.”