A day after earning a 6-2 win over the Blackhawks, the Rangers made some news off the ice by claiming Arthur Kaliyev off waivers. The former King will join the team when they host the Stars tomorrow night at 33rd and 7th.

Kaliyev returns home to play for the Rangers. Born in Uzbekistan, Kaliyev, his family moved to Staten Island, New York when he was two years old. They relocated to Michigan when Kaliyev was 13. In his first year playing for the Hamilton Bulldogs in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), he scored 31 goals. Following a successful second season that saw him produce 51 goals and 51 assists for 102 points, the Kings selected him in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft with the 33rd pick.

It was in 2020 that Kaliyev represented Team USA at the World Junior Championships (WJC). He had four goals and two assists during the tournament. The following year, he was part of USA’s featured scoring line that carried them to a gold medal. Kaliyev played with future King Alex Turcotte and Trevor Zegras. It was in the WJC semifinals that he scored the game-winner late in regulation to stun Finland 4-3, sending USA to the final against Canada. They’d go on to defeat Canada 2-0 to win the gold medal on Jan. 5, 2021.

During the Covid shortened season, Kaliyev made his NHL debut against the Ducks on Feb. 2, 2021. Less than a month after capturing gold, he scored his first career goal in his first NHL game. It came in a 3-1 loss at Staples Center. He spent most of that season with the Ontario Reign in the American Hockey League (AHL) where he totaled 31 points (14-17-31) in 40 games.

In his rookie season, Kaliyev registered 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points in 80 games during 2021-22. The following year, he had 13 goals and 15 assists for 28 points in 56 contests. 2023-24 was a down season for Kaliyev, who only scored seven goals and added eight helpers for 15 points in 51 games.

After re-signing with the Kings for 2024-25, he broke his clavicle during training camp. That kept him out of action with Los Angeles. Kaliyev posted a goal and an assist in a five-game conditioning stint with the Reign in December prior to the Kings placing him on waivers. He’s yet to play in an NHL game this season.

For the Rangers, it’s worth a gamble. Kaliyev possesses a lethal shot that can beat goalies. Of the 35 career goals he’s totaled, 18 have come on the power play. Considering how bad the Rangers have been on the man-advantage, adding Kaliyev can certainly help their chances. Once a team strength, the Rangers have fallen to 26th in the league on the power play, going a dismal 18-for-105 (17.1) in 39 games this season. They’ve also given up three shorthanded goals.

In their win over the Blackhawks on Sunday, Jan. 5, they were without Chris Kreider due to an upper-body injury. He scored a goal in a losing effort against the Capitals on Jan. 4. Kreider’s listed as day-to-day by the Rangers. Jonny Brodzinski took his place and scored a goal to tie the game during the first period. After trailing 1-0, the Rangers erupted for five straight goals. Will Borgen notched his first as a Blueshirt to give them the lead.

Filip Chytil scored the first of a pair to increase the lead to 3-1. Mika Zibanejad sent in Reilly Smith for a breakaway goal that made it 4-1. It was a milestone for Zibanejad, who recorded his 400th career assist. For his career, Zibanejad has 302 goals and 400 assists for a total of 702 points in 887 games. Vincent Trocheck and Chytil added goals in the victory to pull the Rangers within four points of the second wildcard held by the Penguins.

In the victory, Louis Domingue made 28 saves in his return to the NHL. That included an unorthodox save to deny Taylor Hall when he threw his stick in the direction of the puck to make the save. He was fortunate not to get penalized for the play.

By picking up Kaliyev off waivers, the Rangers had to make a coordinating move to stay cap compliant. They sent down forward Matt Rempe to the Hartford Wolf Pack. He’d served seven games of an eight-game suspension for elbowing and boarding Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen on Dec. 20. That means when he comes back up, Rempe will still have to complete the suspension by serving one more game.

With an assist on Brodzinski’s goal in the first period, Adam Fox tied Brad Park for fourth place on the franchise’s all-time assists list among defensemen. He’d later pick up another assist to move past Park for third place. In 396 career games, Fox has 54 goals and 284 assists for 338 points. Even in a down season so far, he has a goal and 29 assists for 30 points. The 29 assists rank fifth among all defensemen in 2024-25. The 30 points put him in a tie for sixth among defensemen in scoring with the Oilers’ Evan Bouchard.

After returning home on Tuesday night to host the Stars, the Rangers will then take on the Devils this Thursday at Madison Square Garden. Following that, they’ll head out West for a three-game road trip with stops at Vegas, Colorado, and Utah.