NEW YORK, NY -- With Henrik Lundqvist watching from the bench for the third game in a row, backup goaltender Antti Raanta helped the New York Rangers extend their winning streak to three with a 5-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden.

Raanta stopped all 19 shots he faced, earning his second straight shutout and sixth of his career. In backstopping consecutive wins over the Winnipeg Jets, Chicago Blackhawks and Devils this week, Raanta surrendered only one goal on 63 shots.

"If you can rob three games in a row from a guy like Hank (Lundqvist), it's always pretty special; and to get a couple of shutouts in a row, it's even more special," said Raanta.

While the first-place Rangers are surging, the Devils' struggles continue to mount. The loss was New Jersey's third in a row; and the Devils have been outscored 14-3 in those three defeats.

To add to their woes, the Devils went 0-for-5 on the power play Sunday, while also surrendering a shorthanded goal and two power play goals to New York.

"Obviously (Sunday) night special teams were a big part of the game," said Devils center Adam Henrique.

Perhaps in a sign that it was not going to be New Jersey's night, an apparent goal by Henrique just 69 seconds into the game was taken off the board following video review after the officials determined he had kicked the puck under Raanta's pads and into the net.

Devils head coach John Hynes said after the game that the officials made "the right call" and Henrique said "there's nothing you can do once they make that call except come back and keep pushing."

Instead of leading 1-0, the Devils eventually fell behind by that score late in the first period. New York's Chris Kreider opened the scoring at 16:43, snapping a right-wing shot past Devils goaltender Cory Schneider. Kreider's eighth goal was assisted by Mats Zuccarello, who won a puck battle with New Jersey defenseman Andy Greene before making a slick feed to Kreider in front.

Raanta made two sparkling saves early in the second period to help the Rangers maintain their one-goal lead. First, he made a clutch blocker stop after Vernon Fiddler had gotten behind the Rangers' defense at 3:31. Then six minutes later Raanta made a quick glove save to deny an open Kyle Palmieri during a New Jersey power play.

"He made that timely save at the beginning of the second period that I thought was a difference-maker in this game," said Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault.

New York then added two backbreaking goals late in the second period.

At 16:07, J.T. Miller converted a two-on-one feed from Kevin Hayes for a shorthanded goal after Palmieri had fallen in the neutral zone. Then, with 2.5 seconds remaining in the period, Brady Skjei scored the first goal of his National Hockey League career, a slap shot that deflected off Palmieri and past Schneider, to give the Rangers a 3-0 lead heading into the second intermission.

"It was an unbelievable feeling, I've been dreaming about it since I was a kid," Skjei of his first NHL goal. "It was a big time in the game, too, I thought, so it made it an even greater experience for me."

New York added third-period power-play goals from Brandon Pirri, his first goal in 13 games, and Jimmy Vesey to put the game away. Pirri and Kreider each finished the night with a goal and an assist; and Raanta upped his record this season to 8-1-0 in 11 appearances with an outstanding 1.52 goals against average and .945 save percentage.

"I think I've been playing at a really consistent level all year, not just these past three games, and that makes me very happy," said Raanta.

NOTES: Dating to Dec. 17, 2006, Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist had started the last 25 games played between New York and New Jersey at Madison Square Garden before he served as G Antti Raanta's backup on Sunday. ... The Rangers lost C Josh Jooris earlier in the day after he was claimed on waivers by the Arizona Coyotes. ... RW Rick Nash (groin), C Mika Zibanejad (fractured fibula), RW Pavel Buchnevich (back) and LW Matt Puempel (concussion) all remained out of Rangers lineup with injuries. ... The Rangers healthy scratch was D Adam Clendening. ... D Jon Merrill, who had been a healthy scratch the previous five games, replaced rookie D Yohann Auvitu in the lineup for New Jersey. ... Devils C Pavel Zacha (facial lacerations) skated in the morning, but missed his fourth consecutive game, while C Jacob Josefson also was scratched by New Jersey.