It didn’t take long for Gerard Gallant to rip up the lineup card. 

That’s not unusual for the Rangers head coach this season, but it was particularly noticeable in the 4-3 overtime victory against the Devils on Monday night at Madison Square Garden. The lineup that took the ice at the start had been intact for three straight games, which had only happened two other times this season. The team’s sluggish start, however, forced his hand. 

“I change the lines too much,” Gallant said. “I wasn’t happy and I just wanted to see what would happen. I thought it went better. I’m tired of changing the lines, I really am. You’ve got to do something when you’re a coach. I want the lines to stay the same, but I didn’t like what I was seeing. 

“I’ve told you how many times now? I want to keep the lines the same. I want to let them go and give them a chance, but I wasn’t liking what I was seeing.” 

Gallant flipped his top two centers, Mika Zibanejad and Filip Chytil, which reunited the Kid Line once again. The forward lines weren’t the only changes made, either. Jacob Trouba had a particularly rough first few shifts, which included a failed clearing attempt that Devils forward Dawson Mercer ended up burying for the 2-0 lead in the first period. 

Gallant bumped Trouba to the bottom duo with Libor Hajek, while K’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider paired up. 

The Rangers lineup hasn’t had much continuity this season. 

Whether it was the early string of injuries for Vitali Kravtsov, the constant back-and-forth between defensemen Zac Jones and Hajek or the rearranging of line combinations, the Blueshirts haven’t had much of a chance to develop their chemistry. 

Not only did the lineup that started this game take wins over the Pacific Division-leading Golden Knights and the Avalanche, the reigning Stanley Cup champions — albeit depleted versions of both clubs — but they’ve simply played a more cohesive team game. Plus, the re-promotions of Alexis Lafreniere and Kaapo Kakko to the top six, in addition to Chytil getting a crack at the No. 2 center job, are moves the organization has to give a chance if it considers those three to be part of the team’s future. 

“I don’t want to change my lines,” Gallant said after practice on Sunday. “I want to keep them going. I’ve got guys playing good. I look at our lineup, it’s pretty consistent, those top three lines. We know what our fourth line is and what they do for us and they did a good job lately, but our top three lines, any given night you can say, ‘This is our best line.’ That’s what it should be. Consistency, play well and go through your whole team and your whole lineup playing well. I like our team.” 

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Chris Kreider’s first-period goal extended his home point streak to 11 games (seven goals, four assists). The last Rangers player with a run longer than Kreider’s current streak was Jaromir Jagr in 2006-07 (12 games).