Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin strips the puck from Hurricanes forward Jackson Blake in New York’s 4-2 win Wednesday in Raleigh. (Karl DeBlaker / AP Photo)

RALEIGH — The Rangers made the most of the Hurricanes’ mistakes Wednesday night at Lenovo Center. Igor Shesterkin made sure Carolina couldn’t take advantage of his team’s errors.

Shesterkin had double-digit saves in all three periods, 36 in all, and the visiting Rangers handed the Hurricanes their second straight loss in a 4-2 decision.

“You can have 10 good shifts, but it’s that one that you kind of let up, that’s the one that costs you the game,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “So we have to eliminate those.”

New York scored late in both the first and second periods to carry momentum into both intermissions, and the Hurricanes weren’t able to dig out of the hole.

But it was the goal by former Hurricanes center Vincent Trocheck at the start of the third that proved to be the difference.

Leading 2-1 at the start of the final frame, the Rangers then added an insurance goal 45 seconds into the third after Artemi Panarin created space inside the Carolina blue line and set up Trocheck skating through the slot. He beat the glove of Frederik Andersen (14 saves) to make it 3-1.

“Just kind of took a little breather on the third one,” Brind’Amour said. “One-on-three, we just kind of back in, and all sudden, again, you’re giving the best players time. And that’s not what we do. That ended up in the net, and that’s kind of the game, right?”

Carolina found life late in the third when Shayne Gostisbehere passed up a shot in the slot and instead dished to Seth Jarvis in the left circle. He rattled the puck around the post over Shesterkin’s right shoulder for his team-leading 12th goal of the season to bring the Hurricanes within one at 10:53 of the third.

But Carolina — thanks to a sterling performance by Shesterkin — couldn’t get the equalizer, and New York added an empty netter by Will Cuylle at 18:17 of the third.

“We’re getting our looks,” said Hurricanes defenseman K’Andre Miller, who was playing his first game against his old team. “It’s not going to be as easy as, I guess, a snap of the fingers every night. So I think we’re going to have to figure out ways to work for our chances and keep finding ways to put the puck in the back of the net.”

That included  the power play, where Carolina scored for the third straight game — getting a goal from Gostisbehere, his third of the year, to tie the game in the second period — but has yet to score twice in a game this season.

It had plenty of chances Wednesday but was unable to have a breakthrough night.

“You’re going to go through stretches where it doesn’t go well,” Brind’Amour said, “but when it’s going, you need to cash in a little more, and that’s probably where we haven’t succeeded.

New York opened the scoring in the first when an extended shift in the Carolina end resulted in Noah Laba curling into the right circle and unchecked. His shot, past a screen by the massive Adam Edstrom, found the far-side corner for his fourth goal of the year and a lead for the visitors.

Gostisbehere tied the game on the power play, assisted by Aho and Nikolaj Ehlers, but the Rangers reclaimed the lead by scoring again late in the period.

After Aho was thrown out of the faceoff circle in the Hurricanes zone, Trocheck won the draw against Andrei Svechnikov that led to Panarin’s goal that made it 2-1.

“D zone faceoff with a minute to go, we blew the coverage, and you can’t do that against that line,” Brind’Amour said.

Still, the Hurricanes felt it was a step in the right direction after a stinker in Buffalo on Sunday.

“A couple errors here and there kind of cost us, Aho said. “But the way we played was a step in the right direction.”

Notes: Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal missed his second straight game with an illness. … Aho played his 700th career game. … Aho had two assists. … Rangers defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov played a game-high 27:07.