Rangers Send Chytil to Canucks in Blockbuster trade for Miller

Posted on January 31, 2025 by Derek

On the day the NHL and NHLPA announced the salary cap bumps for the next three years, the Rangers swung a blockbuster trade to reacquire J.T. Miller from the Canucks. The news broke over an hour ago on Twitter/X when Frank Seravalli was first to report that Miller had waived his no-trade clause to go to New York.

When the two teams arrived at the deal, the Rangers sent Filip Chytil, Victor Mancini, and a lottery protected top 13 first round pick to the Canucks in exchange for Miller, Erik Brannstrom, and prospect Jackson Dorrington.

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As part of the agreement, the Canucks retain no salary on Miller’s existing contract that pays him $8 million on average through 2030. He will turn 32 on March 14. That means he passes the age requirement to be a New York Ranger. If you’re at least 30 years or older, you will fit right win.

Miller joins Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad as a trio of 31-year-old centers on the current roster. It should be fun to see how Peter Laviolette juggles this circus act. With it apparent that Chris Drury is so desperate to get this bunch of underachievers into the playoffs, there’s no price on the future. As flawed as they are, they’re all in on this season. Zibanejad still has yet to crack 10 goals. He has nine in 50 games while being paid top dollar as the team’s number one center. Those who’ve watched his decline know better. If he isn’t behind Miller and Trocheck when the Rangers play the remainder of their 32 games, something’s wrong. Zibanejad has no business being on the top power play unit. We’ll see what coach Lavy decides.

A year ago, Miller had a career season in Vancouver by pacing them in goals (37), finishing second in assists (66), and leading them in points (103), even strength points (61), and power-play points (40). Teamed with Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes, and Brock Boeser, Miller played at a high level to help lead the Canucks to a 50-23-9 record with 109 points. After defeating the Predators in six games, they were eliminated in the second round by the Oilers in seven. They couldn’t quite get the better of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in a hard fought seven-game series. A third period rally just fell short against Edmonton, who eventually lost in the Stanley Cup to Florida.

In 2024-25, the Canucks have underperformed to fall out of a playoff spot in the West. With a rift between Miller and Pettersson proving to be an unnecessary distraction, they finally decided to pull the plug. Miller went from hearing his name chanted by the crowd in last year’s postseason to finally deciding it was time to move on. Both he and Pettersson had been rumored for a while. Eventually, it was Miller who accepted a trade to return to the Rangers after nearly seven years away.

He also took a personal leave of absence between mid-November and mid-December. After tallying eight assists in nine games after he returned, Miller has 11 points in January. Even with the Canucks posting their third straight win by defeating Nashville on Jan. 29, it became obvious that Miller would be the first player to go.

With Miller reporting to Dallas for tonight’s game, he was held out of the lineup due to trade discussions between the Canucks and Rangers. A rumored deal that originally had the Rangers offering Zibanejad was rejected by Vancouver. After coveting defenseman Braden Schneider, they settled on Mancini, who surprised many by making the roster and scoring his first career NHL goal. In 15 games with the Rangers, he recorded a goal and four assists while averaging 15:05 of ice time. How Drury reached this decision is puzzling. How did Mancini go from a camp surprise with a bright future to getting packaged with Chytil and a conditional first round pick for another aging player?

If there’s a sad part involving the deal, it’s saying goodbye to Chytil. It was back in 2017 that the Rangers selected him with the number 21 pick in the first round. A likable player with a good personality, the 25-year-old center never reached his ceiling on Broadway. Concussions and multiple injuries have curtailed his progress thus far. An explosive skater with a good shot and plenty of skill, Chytil has shown flashes during his career. It comes down to whether or not he can stay healthy long enough to find the consistency. In 41 games this season, he has 11 goals and nine assists for 20 points.

In 2022-23, he was a key player on the Rangers following the success he had with Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere as part of the Kid Line in the team’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals the previous season. Without their contributions, which included Chytil scoring seven goals and adding two helpers, they don’t get that far under former coach Gerard Gallant. No sequence was better than the one the trio combined on with Chytil finishing off a K’Andre Miller pass to highlight a Rangers’ 6-2 win in Game 1 over the Lightning in the Conference Finals on June 1, 2022.

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The Rangers eventually lost the series to the Lightning in six games. The following season, Chytil established career bests in goals (22), assists (23), points (45), plus-minus (15), and games played (74). He was rewarded during the season with a contract extension. The $4.44 million cap hit remains affordable for the Canucks. It all hinges on whether or not Chytil can avoid the injury bug and produce consistently. Maybe moving to Vancouver will be the best thing for him.

Ironically, the Rangers’ most effective line at five-on-five this season was the one centered by Chytil before an upper-body injury sidelined him. Along with Will Cuylle and the now departed Kakko, they outscored opponents 13-2 via Natural Stat Trick. If only he didn’t miss some time. The chemistry was a bit off when they were reunited during a low point that led to Laviolette breaking it up. Kakko was soon a healthy scratch and dealt to the Kraken for Will Borgen, who’s since signed a five-year extension. Since the trade, Kakko has 15 points in 20 games with the Kraken.

For better or worse, this is who the Rangers are. They’re a frustrating organization who doesn’t have the patience to properly develop most young players. Somehow, Matt Rempe’s survived an eight-game suspension to fit into the lineup on the fourth line with Adam Edstrom and Sam Carrick.

Zac Jones didn’t survive Christmas. He was last seen on Dec. 23 in a lopsided loss to the Devils in which the so-called leaders no showed. Jones became the odd man out. Urho Vaakanainen has replaced him on the third pair with Schneider. Jones’ value is more diminished than Pete Alonso’s.

With 32 games remaining in the season, including a yawner against the Bruins on Saturday afternoon, can the Rangers turn it around and reach the postseason? If teams around them keep winning, there’s no guarantees. Based on how both the Senators and Blue Jackets have played, they look like the best of the teams the Rangers are competing with. Neither has great goaltending or a particularly strong defense. The Rangers’ biggest strength is in net due to Igor Shesterkin. The defense remains sketchy thanks to how lackadaisical the forwards are. Ex. Panarin, Artemi.

For a team with good skill, they don’t score consistently. I’ve documented Zibanejad’s issues. Trocheck’s been better, but his screw up cost them a potential tying goal in a 4-0 loss to the Hurricanes. It’s the veterans who continue to make the glaring mistakes. The younger players always pay for it. If yesterday’s practice was any indication, Jonny Brodzinski could replace Arthur Kaliyev in the lineup tomorrow. Make it make sense. Kaliyev’s the same age as Kakko. If you’re 24 or younger on the Rangers, you’re an endangered species.

Who will Miller play with? It better start with Chris Kreider, who’s had a season from hell. But his 15 goals still tie him with Trocheck for second best on the roster. He can’t play with Zibanejad anymore. Laviolette had been sticking with Cuylle and Reilly Smith.

Even if they somehow make the playoffs, what are they? Almost everyone has underperformed except the fourth line and Cuylle, who took a downturn last month. Can they seriously compete with an older roster against the likes of the Devils, Capitals or improved Hurricanes? The blue line remains unproductive aside from Adam Fox, who has to do the heavy lifting. They still lack a power play quarterback for the second unit. Jones remains the only option but he’s in purgatory.

Adding Miller could likely spell the end for Zibanejad soon. Kreider is likely going bye -bye in the off-season. Ryan Lindgren might have bought some time but it’s highly doubtful he’ll re-sign. Unless they lose enough games before the deadline in March, the Rangers will look to upgrade the roster.

I have my doubts about this being the right move. Once, a cocky Glen Sather doubled down by trading for Alexei Kovalev in 2002-03. He’s always been my favorite player. Hence. The Kovy274hart moniker for his career season in 2000-01. It was the wrong move the wrong time. In true Rangers’ fashion, they played Kovalev out of position and didn’t utilize him the right way on the point on the power play. It was a disaster. Over a year later, he was sent to the Canadiens for Jozef Balej. Of course, he rediscovered the game that made him successful in Montreal by becoming a fan favorite. Balej turned into scrub Fedor Fedorov.

It feels like it’s happening once again. Groundhog Day is around the corner. Cue ole Phil up.

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Canadiens Show Class in Fleury’s Final Game at Bell Centre

Posted on January 31, 2025 by Derek

On Thursday night, Quebec native Marc-Andre Fleury made his last start in Montreal. The 40-year-old legendary goalie is in his final season with the Wild. A future first ballot Hall of Famer, he had a memorable game by shutting out the hometown Canadiens 4-0 at Bell Centre.

Fleury made 19 saves to record the 76th shutout of his career. That included an acrobatic pad save to rob Josh Anderson of a goal with the Canadiens trailing the Wild 2-0 in the third period. Fleury’s athletic stop drew some cheers from an appreciative Canadiens crowd. He’d also make another save on Anderson from long distance that kept his team up by two.

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With the crowd still buzzing, the Wild took advantage of a turnover to take a 3-0 lead on the opposite end. After receiving a pass from Marco Rossi, Devin Shore beat Habs rookie Jakub Dobes from the slot with 14:03 remaining. His first goal of the season put the game away to guarantee Fleury’s 572nd win. He ranks second on the all-time list in wins, trailing only Devils legend Martin Brodeur, who holds the record with 691.

During a stoppage, the Canadiens paid tribute to Fleury’s outstanding career by paying tribute with a message on the video board congratulating him. For over a minute, the crowd stood and applauded loudly as Fleury waved in his net. When play finally continued, he heard “Fleury, Fleury, Fleury!” chants in an emotional scene.

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After Frederick Gaudreau scored into an empty net to put the finishing touches on the Wild victory, the Canadiens congratulated Fleury by shaking his hand at center ice. Martin St. Louis waited by the bench to give him some kudos. Fittingly, Fleury was selected as the game’s first star in his final game in Montreal. It was quite the send-off.

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The class exhibited by Montreal is second to none. It was a great gesture by an organization that gets it. We’ve seen all the wonderful tributes teams have been doing for Sam Rosen, who’s in his final season as the voice of the Rangers. He’s received so many gifts and compliments from coaches who have enjoyed having him around to cover games. What the Canadiens did was awesome for Fleury. That’s what makes the sport so special.

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Canes Dash Any Rangers’ Playoff Hopes

Posted on January 28, 2025 by Derek

A storm hit the Big Apple. The Hurricanes were way too strong for the Rangers in a 4-0 whitewash at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night. They handed the Rangers their second straight defeat in regulation.

It’s looking bleak on Broadway. Despite all the good they did for most of the month, they ended January with a collective thud by losing to the two best teams they faced. Unlike the gut-wrenching fashion in which they lost to the Avalanche, they were never really in it against the Canes. Carolina played their usual swarming forechecking and defensive style to blanket the Rangers in what was another epic fail against an opponent they used to handle. They fell to 0-3 in the season series with all three decided in regulation.

If there’s been a toxic trait this season, it’s been the Rangers’ inability to start games on time. Before a minute had expired, Andrei Svechnikov scored to put the Canes ahead to silence the home crowd. The main culprit was again Artemi Panarin, who was last seen watching helplessly as Artturi Lehkonen scored the winner for the Avalanche after overstaying his shift. Panarin tried to skate through the neutral zone one on two which led to a turnover. Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Taylor Hall combined to find Svechnikov open in the slot for a wrist shot that beat Igor Shesterkin top shelf at 56 seconds in. Fittingly, it was Hall’s first point with his new team.

Sam Carrick went after Riley Stillman for a hit on a previous shift, leading to the two squaring off briefly. Each went off for five minutes. It wasn’t that they didn’t have opportunities to tie the game. But the Rangers couldn’t capitalize on an early power play that Filip Chytil drew on Jordan Martinook for slashing. Unless you think an Adam Fox shot from a sharp angle along with an unscreened Mika Zibanejad shot were good chances on Freddie Andersen. There wasn’t enough from the top unit on that particular sequence against the Canes, who remain the top-ranked penalty kill in the league for a reason.

If you like suffocating defense and tight checking, then you should watch Rod Brind’Amour’s club. They remain successful due to the consistency in his well-structured system that also leads to plays in transition and scoring chances.

The best opportunity for the Rangers came from the fourth line. Matt Rempe threw the puck in front for an Adam Edstrom deflection which Andersen handled. The line anchored by Carrick continues to be the one that stands out in these games. While that’s nice, it doesn’t say much for the Rangers’ best players.

The top line had a frustrating night. Aside from Panarin’s costly mistake, he didn’t distinguish himself with the Canes limiting him to two shots. Alexis Lafreniere took an undisciplined cross-checking minor on Svechnikov, who predictably embellished it to draw the power play. At least the Canes didn’t score on it. Vincent Trocheck also had a tough game against his former team. He only had one shot and made a critical mistake that led directly to Svechnikov getting his second of the game with 31 seconds left in the second period.

Before that point, Shesterkin did everything possible to keep the Rangers in the game. He turned away Eric Robinson on a breakaway and denied Svechnikov earlier in the second. He made several big saves when the Canes threatened to run away with it. There were the familiar, “Ig-or-, Ig-or!” chants from the crowd. He certainly did his part to give his team a lift.

It really wasn’t until Ryan Lindgren was off for cross-checking that things got interesting. Following a Shesterkin stop on Sean Walker, Chris Kreider later came out with a loose puck to start a two-on-one with Zibanejad. Kreider’s shorthanded bid was denied by Andersen, who was sharp when called upon. He finished with 22 saves to pick up the shutout.

On the same penalty kill, Trocheck stripped Shayne Gostisbehere at the blue line and pushed the puck ahead for a shorthanded breakaway. As he picked up the loose puck and moved in on Andersen, it looked like he’d take the shot. Instead, he got too cute and tried a low percentage back pass for the trailing K’Andre Miller that didn’t work. When the puck was turned over, it spelled doom. Jackson Blake moved the puck up for Mikko Rantanen, who then fed Svechnikov for a tap in to score a backbreaker that made it 2-0 at 19:29.

In that moment, the game was over. It didn’t matter that the Rangers were only down two with a period left. It was the way it happened. Facing a stingy opponent that’s as tough to play against like the Hurricanes, they weren’t coming back from that. Trocheck has been a very vocal leader who’s done a lot of good things over the past month. But on that particular play, he could only hang his head in frustration. It really stung. Boos rained down on the Rangers when the buzzer sounded.

As if to confirm the obvious, Peter Laviolette went to the hat trick and mixed up his lines. Of course, it predictably backfired right away at the start of the third period. After Trocheck took a shift with Will Cuylle and Reilly Smith, Chytil was in between Panarin and Kreider. Initially, Kreider hustled back to break up a Canes’ chance. However, his turnover led directly to Sebastian Aho scoring at 1:04 to make it 3-0. At that moment, I’d seen enough. You just can’t make the kind of mistakes this team does. They beat themselves on the first three Canes’ goals.

Adding insult to injury, they left Seth Jarvis wide open in front to make it 4-0 only 1:26 later. How bad were the Rangers? They only mustered three shots in the final period. If they wanted to be taken seriously, they had to win either against the Avalanche or tonight against the Canes. Instead, they managed to lose both games. Even with teams ahead of them losing, it doesn’t matter.

There are 32 games remaining this season. At this point, it looks over. Why should anyone get their hopes up? If they can’t beat quality teams, there’s no realistic chance of making the playoffs. I think it ended tonight. They dug themselves too big a hole and now must climb over too many teams.

Chris Drury, what’s your next move? It better not be giving another five-year contract out with a no-trade clause to a veteran.

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Rangers Suffer Crushing Loss to Avalanche

Posted on January 26, 2025 by Derek

For almost the entire third period, the Rangers did everything they could to come back and win against the Avalanche. Twice in a back-and-forth game, they rallied back from a pair of two-goal deficits to tie the score.

After Artemi Panarin scored his team-leading 21st goal to tie the game back up with 4:58 remaining, they had a power play with a chance to win it late. Instead, a costly mistake led to the Rangers suffering a crushing 5-4 loss to the Avalanche in regulation. It was their first regulation defeat in 11 games. After coming out of the box, Cale Makar intercepted an errant Will Borgen pass inside his own blue line and then set up Artturi Lehkonen for the game-winner with 14.7 seconds left.

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At that moment, K’Andre Miller moved the puck up top for an open Borgen at the right point with 21 seconds to go. He had enough time and space to make a better decision. The recently re-signed defenseman made an error in judgement by trying a low percentage pass across the blue line that went behind his intended target, Panarin who was still on during a long shift. That didn’t excuse him from quitting on the play defensively. He let Lehkonen skate by him and finish off a three-on-one by scoring his 20th from Makar at 19:45 of the third period.

While Borgen messed up on the play, he got back but couldn’t take the pass away. Vincent Trocheck also came back hard to take away the middle option. Had Panarin not given up completely, we’re not talking about a bad loss in regulation. The game would’ve at least gone to overtime. Twelve days ago, it was Lehkonen who scored the tying goal to force OT in a game Colorado won 3-2 on a Devon Toews goal. He again delivered a crushing blow but only this time, the Rangers didn’t get a point. They threw it away and got nothing out of a winnable game. The second one they’ve had against the Avalanche in two weeks.

It’s inexcusable at this point of the season for this team to make these kinds of mistakes in big games. Every point matters. They’re locked in a tight playoff race battling with several teams for the wild card. Even more frustrating is that had they come back and won, they could’ve been eight behind the Devils for third place inside the division. If you’ve watched the Devils lately, you know that’s not insurmountable. Especially with Jacob Markstrom expected out for at least the next month due to an MCL sprain. Instead, the Rangers remained 10 points behind the Devils and failed to gain any ground on the Blue Jackets, Lightning, and Senators.

Even worse, they hadn’t played since Thursday when they defeated the Flyers. The Avalanche were playing their second consecutive game after losing to the Bruins on Saturday. They should have been ripe for the pickings. Instead, a rested Rangers team made several mistakes that cost them against a tired opponent who clearly were on the ropes late in the third period.

For Colorado, it was their second game with new acquisitions Martin Necas and Jack Drury, who both came over from Carolina in the three-team blockbuster trade that sent popular star Mikko Rantanen to the Hurricanes along with former Blackhawk Taylor Hall in a three-team trade. Both Necas and Drury were factors against the Rangers. Necas recorded a pair of assists while Drury scored his first goal with the Avalanche.

It was the explosive Avs’ offense that got off to a quick start. Following a nice deflection goal from Drury on a Keaton Middleton shot that put them ahead, Nathan MacKinnon and Necas combined to find Makar open at the point for his 17th goal to give the Avalanche a 2-0 lead. They struck twice within a 43-second span to put the Rangers down two. On the Makar tally, neither Mika Zibanejad nor Reilly Smith covered the vacated area.

Trailing by two, the Blueshirts got back in it thanks to another positive contribution from the fourth line. On some sustained pressure down low, Matt Rempe came out and got a tough backhand on Mackenzie Blackwood that he couldn’t control. That allowed Sam Carrick to pounce on the rebound for his fifth at 7:10. Urho Vaakanainen picked up a secondary assist, giving him helpers in three straight. He’s quietly played well while teamed with Braden Schneider on the third pair.

Less than two minutes later, the Rangers evened the game thanks to the top line. On a play started by Panarin in his end, he sent Alexis Lafreniere and Trocheck in on a two-on-one, with Lafreniere patiently waiting for Sam Girard to go down so before passing across for an easy Trocheck tap in at 8:36.

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With the game tied and Adam Fox off for holding Parker Kelly, it took the Avalanche only 23 seconds to retake the lead on another blast from the point from Makar on the power play. Once again, it was the combination of Necas and MacKinnon who found Makar open for his 18th goal, which leads all NHL defensemen this season. He can’t be given any room because he is so lethal. Makar loves to get the puck and move to the left and shoot against the grain. Igor Shesterkin stood no chance on the Makar rocket that made it 3-2 Avalanche with 5:24 left in the period.

Filip Chytil and Arthur Kaliyev came close to tying it before the period expired. But Blackwood stopped Kaliyev on the doorstep to keep his team in front. It wasn’t the last time he would stone Kaliyev. Early in the second period, with the third line buzzing, Blackwood again turned away Kaliyev twice and Chytil. Despite being caught on for two goals against, that line generated scoring chances. Along with Chris Kreider, who no longer looks like he misses Mika Zibanejad, the Chytil line is starting to find chemistry. They look like they’re close to breaking out. Maybe it’ll happen in the next game against the Hurricanes on Tuesday.

For a while, the game remained 3-2 in favor of the Avalanche. The Rangers had a bit of luck thanks to the Avs hitting the goalpost. That included Necas firing a laser off the crossbar with Colorado on the power play. Considering how good Rantanen was, Necas looks like he’ll fit right in with MacKinnon and Makar. He hasn’t scored much lately but that’s bound to change as long as he continues playing on the top line.

On another effective shift from the fourth line, Rempe got off a good shot right on Blackwood, who managed to kick it out. Since returning from the eight-game suspension, Rempe’s playing with much more confidence. He’s making the most of his shifts by being more impactful on the forecheck. The trio of Rempe, Carrick, and Adam Edstrom have been getting it done both offensively and defensively. That’s allowed Peter Laviolette to trust them more in close games.

The Avalanche took advantage of a Panarin fanned clearing attempt to surge back ahead by two with 3:59 remaining. After Borgen sent the puck around to Panarin, he failed to clear the zone, resulting in Casey Mittelstadt picking it off and feeding Jusso Parssinen for a quick one-timer that beat Shesterkin for a 4-2 lead.

But the Rangers were able to respond just over two minutes later. With less than two minutes left, some superb work along the boards led to Borgen cutting the deficit back to one. Will Cuylle centered the puck from behind the net for a Reilly Smith shot that rebounded right to Borgen who buried it for his second goal as a Ranger with 1:55 remaining.

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In the third period, the Rangers controlled almost the entirety. However, they blew a chance to tie the game on the power play. In fact, a Fox turnover nearly led to Logan O’Connor scoring shorthanded. Fortunately, his backhand attempt missed its target.

Makar thought he had the second hat trick of his career when he beat Shesterkin again. However, both refs immediately waived it off due to Miles Wood being in the crease where he made contact with Lafreniere by shoving him into Shesterkin, who had no chance to make a play on the puck. They got it right for a change, negating what would’ve been Makar’s third goal of the game. He dominated it like the elite defenseman he is.

As the third moved on, the Rangers kept getting closer and closer to finding the equalizer only for Blackwood to make the big saves. That finally changed with under five minutes left. On a good read from Lafreniere, he came off the ice for Smith on a line change. Smith carried the puck into the offensive zone where he centered for a Trocheck shot that bounced right to Panarin for the game-tying goal at 15:02.

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With the game tied at four, it looked like the Rangers would find a way to come back and win it. With Makar off for holding the stick of Lafreniere, out came the number one unit. Following a Blackwood freezing the puck with 1:20 left, Laviolette used his timeout to rest his best players. At worst, they should have come out with at least a point. There was still 56 seconds remaining on the five-on-four.

The best chance came when Panarin got the puck into Zibanejad’s wheelhouse for a one-timer from the left circle that Blackwood made a clutch glove save on with Kreider standing in front. He was unable to tip it in or distract Blackwood enough on the scoring chance with exactly a minute left. On the final part of the man-advantage, Zibanejad made one of those telegraphed passes to the middle of the ice for an easy Avs’ clear, which basically killed any chance of them taking the lead.

When Miller and Borgen came on the ice to replace Fox and Zibanejad, it looked like they were in good shape. Miller had the puck down low and made a good pass up top for Borgen, who was open. He could’ve taken a shot at that point. Any shot towards the net isn’t a bad play with 20 seconds remaining in a tie game. Instead, he overthought it by going for a cross-ice pass to a spent Panarin, who should’ve gotten off the ice when he had a chance to. Instead, he overstayed his shift, which is something he’s done before. The end result was disastrous.

With nobody communicating with Borgen that Makar was coming back from serving the penalty, the explosive Avalanche defenseman picked off the errant pass and took off like a jet into the Rangers’ zone for a three-on-one. With Trocheck hustling back and Panarin not even in the picture, Makar perfectly dished across for a Lehkonen one-timer upstairs that ended the game.

There wouldn’t be any overtime this time. It was about as bad a loss as it sounds. One of the worst the Rangers have suffered in recent memory. Combined with the Senators winning over Utah HC to vault past the Bruins, Lightning and Blue Jackets up to 56 points, the Rangers are three behind the Bolts for the second wild card with one more game played (49-48) and one more regulation win (22-21). They trail the Bruins by four points but have two games in hand and four more RW. The problem is that they still are behind the Blue Jackets and Canadiens with the Red Wings lurking right behind. Even the Islanders are up to 49 points thanks to a four-game winning streak.

It’s anyone’s guess who will squeak in. When you play as poorly as the Rangers did for a six week stretch, there isn’t much margin for error. Games like Sunday could come back to haunt them. There’s still a lot of time left with the Rangers having 33 games remaining. Today’s loss hurt but it’s not the end. If they can respond well by beating the Hurricanes and then taking what amounts to a big game against the Bruins next Saturday to conclude January, that would show a lot of character.

They didn’t play poorly against the Avalanche. However, the execution was a little bit off. Compared to what we’ve seen lately with the improved team defense that had allowed Shesterkin to get hot, they beat themselves. You can’t allow as dangerous an opponent like the Avs to get those kinds of chances. They’ll make you pay.

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Canes’ Blockbuster with Avalanche for Rantanen Flips Script

Posted on January 25, 2025 by Derek

On Friday night, the Avalanche and Hurricanes made a blockbuster trade involving Mikko Rantanen and Martin Necas as the main players getting moved. In a stunning trade that first was broken by Frank Seravalli, the Hurricanes and Avalanche made a three-team deal that also involved the Blackhawks.

Elliotte Friedman had the full details on the trade that made Rantanen a Hurricane for at least the rest of the season and saw Necas wind up in Colorado. The Hurricanes also were able to acquire Taylor Hall from the Blackhawks.

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Somehow, the Hurricanes got the Blackhawks to pick up half of Rantanen’s salary. Instead of having to pick up the full tab of the $9.25 million, the cap hit is $4.625 million. Considering the high caliber player they received in the multi-talented Rantanen, they made out like bandits.

On an expiring contract that made him too rich for the Avalanche to keep, Rantanen can become an unrestricted free agent in the summer. For a decade, he formed a potent dynamic duo with Nathan MacKinnon. Even without injured captain Gabriel Landeskog, they became the deadliest scoring combination in the league. While MacKinnon leads the league in scoring with 75 points, Rantanen is sixth with 64 points, which would pace 29 other teams including his new one in Carolina.

A versatile player, who can shift to center and take faceoffs, the 28-year-old Rantanen is looking to cash in when he hit the open market. Rumored to command a salary that could reach as much as $14 million, it was too much for the Avalanche, who already pay MacKinnon $12.6 million. The rating Hart winner is worth his salary that keeps him in the Rocky Mountains through 2031.

Whether or not Rantanen will be worth his next contract remains to be seen. The question is whether or not he can duplicate the success he’s had without MacKinnon, who’s considered by many to be neck and neck with Connor McDavid as the game’s best player. Rantanen joins a strong nucleus in Carolina that includes Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, Andrei Svechnikov, Jordan Staal, Jaccob Slavin, and goalie tandem Pyotr Kochetkov and Freddie Andersen. Coached by Rod Brind’Amour, it doesn’t seem to matter who they lose. They’ve successfully plugged Jack Roslovic and Eric Robinson into their disciplined forechecking system.

Rantanen should help give the Canes a jolt on the power play, where they rank 17th in the league at 21.2 percent. Of his 64 points, he has 19 power-play points and 45 even strength points. Compared to Necas, who’s in the first year of a multi-year contract with a $6.5 million cap hit, he’s a more explosive and proven commodity. At the time of the deal, Necas was leading the Canes in scoring with 55 points. He was on pace to set new career bests in goals, assists, and points. His previous career highs came in 2022-23 when he had 28 goals, 43 assists, and 71 points.

The Canes also added Hall in the trade. While the former MVP isn’t what he once was, Hall is still a good top nine forward who can chip in offensively. Playing in Chicago didn’t do much for him. In 46 games this season, he has nine goals and 15 assists for 24 points. Back on a playoff contender, he should be extra motivated. Hall doesn’t boast a lot of postseason experience but he’s put up 29 point in 39 career games. Eight came in a Bruins’ first round defeat to the Panthers in 2023. With his contract set to expire, Hall should have plenty of reasons to do well.

After a hot start to the season, when Necas totaled a dozen goals and 25 helpers for 37 points over the first two months, he’s cooled considerably. After only tallying eight points in December, he’s bounced back with 12 in January. However, Necas only has two goals over his last 23 games. He joined the Avalanche for their 3-1 loss to the Bruins this afternoon. He finished a minus-three in his Avalanche debut. Necas’ new team will be back in action tomorrow afternoon when they visit the Rangers.

While Necas is the focal point for Colorado, they also got Jack Drury as well. A fourth line center who’s good on faceoffs with a 58.8 success rate this season, he should fit in nicely there. They can use another checking forward who’s reliable defensively.

In addition, the Avalanche received a 2025 second round pick and a 2026 fourth round pick. Considering that they weren’t going to be able to re-sign Rantanen, they got a nice haul. I’m curious to see what else they decide to do. If you believe NHL insider, they might not be done. I’m not buying the Crosby to Colorado talk. We’ll have to wait and see what else general manager Joe Sakic has up his sleeve.

What did the Blackhawks get out of the deal? A third round pick. They did the Canes a favor with Rantanen’s contract. Hopefully, that’s remembered in the future. What must Connor Bedard be thinking? The Blackhawks remain one of the league’s worst teams. Bedard’s picked it up lately but he needs help.

So, who won the trade? On paper, it’s the Hurricanes. They got the best player. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll work out. Remember Jake Guentzel last year. Obviously, Rantanen’s a better player. The Canes are chasing the Stanley Cup. Now, they’re going all in again. Is a roster that includes a spotty goalie tandem and questionable defense good enough to come out of the East? I’m not even sure it makes them the best team in the Metropolitan Division. They improved but would you trust Andersen or Kochetkov in a big spot? They lost Brett Pesce to the Devils, who he’s certainly helped. I’m not sold on the Canes.

The Metro got a lot more interesting. With the Rangers starting to heat up, it’s going to be fun to watch.

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Devils’ Markstrom Expected Out Four to Six Weeks With MCL Sprain

Posted on January 25, 2025 by Derek

On Thursday, Jan. 23 during a 5-1 win over the Bruins, Devils’ starting netminder Jacob Markstrom left the game at 3:09 of the second period when Justin Brazeau lost his balance and fell into him to cause an injury. After struggling to leave the ice, he was replaced by backup Jake Allen, who made 16 saves in relief to earn the victory.

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Following the game, Markstrom was in good spirits despite the injury that occurred. Yesterday, an MRI revealed that he suffered an MCL sprain and is expected to miss four to six weeks. In addition to being out for at least a month, he also won’t be available to play in the 4 Nations Face-Off which takes place between Feb. 12-20. Originally, he was selected by Sweden on their official roster where he was slated to be the number one goalie. Instead, they’ll likely turn to the Wild’s Filip Gustavsson. Sweden also is expected to be without Senators’ starter Linus Ullmark.

https://twitter.com/NJDevils/status/1882805718987764115

Markstrom’s Big Season Proves Fitzgerald Right

When Devils team president and general manager Tom Fitzgerald decided to acquire Markstrom from the Flames in exchange for Kevin Bahl and a top 10 lottery protected 2025 first round pick on Jun. 18, 2024, it was with one thing in mind. The Devils’ biggest downfall in 2023-24 was inconsistent goaltending.

With both Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid underperforming, they failed to make the postseason. By the trade deadline last year, Vanecek was dealt to the Sharks for Kaapo Kahkonen. Fitzgerald also acquired veteran Jake Allen from the Canadiens for a 2025 conditional third round pick. Both trades occured on Mar. 8. He wasn’t done making changes to the roster.

After dealing for Markstrom, Fitzgerald packaged Schmid and Alexander Holtz to the Golden Knights in exchange for Paul Cotter and a 2025 third round pick on Jun. 29. In what’s been a successful season at this point with the Devils sitting in third place in the Metropolitan Division with 60 points, Cotter’s been a solid contributor on an improved roster looking to contend this postseason.

The biggest reason for their success has been the outstanding play of Markstrom. After an up and down first two months, he earned the NHL’s third star of December thanks to posting an 8-1-1 record with a 1.30 goals-against-average (GAA), .937 save percentage, and two shutouts. Prior to the injury he suffered on Thursday night, he’d done his part in January by posting a 2-2-3 record with a 2.39 GAA and .910 save percentage. In most of his starts, with the Devils struggling more defensively, Markstrom’s made plenty of big saves to keep them ahead of opponents. There have been some highlight reel stops with a lunging glove save denying Brayden Point of a goal in a 3-2 overtime win over the Lightning on Jan. 11.

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A former finalist for the Vezina, Markstrom’s made a strong case to be considered as one of the league’s best goalies this season. He ranks amongst the league leaders in games played (36), wins (21), GAA (2.20), and shutouts (3). With reigning Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck having another dominant year, Markstrom and surprising contender Logan Thompson are right behind.

Devils Turn to Allen

Without Markstrom, the Devils will turn to Allen. A former starter with the Blues and Canadiens, the 34-year-old brings plenty of experience to the net. Having recently won career game number 200, Allen’s 6-8-1 with a 2.66 GAA and .901 save percentage in 15 appearances.

His best season came with the when he won a career best 33 games and posted a 2.42 GAA, .915 save percentage, and four shutouts for the Blues in 2016-17. Now a backup, Allen will need to provide steady play to keep the Devils in a strong playoff position. They trail the Hurricanes by three points for second place in the division and remain seven up on the Blue Jackets and eight clear of the Rangers for third.

Poetically, Allen makes the start with the Devils visiting Bell Centre for a big game against the Canadiens on Hockey Night In Canada. With the team on the road for four of its next five, they’ll need Allen to be on top of his game.

Poulter Gets Call from Utica

Isaac Poulter got the call from Utica on Friday. In 19 games with Utica, he’s 8-7-3 with a 2.90 GAA and .897 save percentage. His eight victories lead the Comets. With former backup Nico Daws struggling, Poulter is the best option available for the Devils to be the backup.

With the Devils not having any back-to-backs, coach Sheldon Keefe will lean heavily on Allen over the next stretch. Starting tonight, they have seven games before the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Aside from a home match against the Golden Knights on Feb. 6, the other six are against teams with worse records. That includes a pair at the Canadiens, a home and home with the Flyers, and visits at the Sabres and Penguins.

From that standpoint, the schedule is reasonable. They should be able to hang in there without Markstrom. It’ll be up to a roster led by the trio of Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt to maintain their place in the standings.

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Resurgent Rangers Get Key Contributions in Latest Win over Flyers

Posted on January 24, 2025 by Derek

Things are starting to look up on Broadway. Since the turn of the calendar year, the Rangers have been playing a better brand of hockey. They continued their surge in the standings with a methodical 6-1 win over the Flyers at 33rd and 7th. Combined with the Blue Jackets losing to the Hurricanes and the Bruins defeating the Senators, they now sit just a point out of the second wild card.

The biggest reason for the turnaround has been the stellar play of Igor Shesterkin. He won his fourth straight start by turning aside 33 of 34 shots in another strong showing. He’s only permitted one goal on 81 shots over the last three games. Since he returned against the Devils on Jan. 9, Shesterkin is 6-0-1 with a 1.39 goals-against-average (GAA), .948 save percentage, and two shutouts. He was on his game in a busy second period stopping all 17 Flyers’ shots.

With Shesterkin holding up his end of the bargain, he got plenty of support from his teammates. In fact, all six defensemen registered a point in the win – making it the first time that’s happened for the Rangers in a game since Dec. 8, 2019. K’Andre Miller had his best game of the season, scoring a goal and picking up an assist to lead the way. He was strong defensively along with partner Will Borgen, who continues to provide a steady presence on the blue line.

Braden Schneider scored his first goal since Oct. 22. It came at a crucial time in the first period. With the Rangers already trailing the Flyers on the scoreboard due to Owen Tippett finishing off a three-on-one rush just 85 seconds in, Schneider answered by pinching down and having his pass for Reilly Smith bank in past Samuel Ersson to tie the game at the nine-minute mark. Arthur Kaliyev made a strong play on the wall to keep the play alive for Schneider, who has points in two straight games.

Following the goal, the fourth line made an impact again. On a strong forecheck from all three forwards, Adam Fox got the puck over for a Ryan Lindgren point shot that Adam Edstrom tipped in for a 2-1 lead at 10:24. Both he and Matt Rempe were camped out in front of Ersson, who never saw the shot. It’s been the play of that line that’s been at the center of the Rangers’ resurgence.

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Sam Carrick was again very effective at even strength finishing with four shots in 11:51 of ice time. The chemistry he has with Edstrom and Rempe has provided exactly what Rangers coach Peter Laviolette wanted. They get pucks in deep and make things happen. For that reason, they each have seen an increase in ice time, with Rempe logging 9:29 and Edstrom getting a lucky 11:11. What makes them so effective is that they are willing to do the dirty work. There aren’t many skaters on the roster that can bring that to the table. The Flyers had problems with that line all night.

Similar to the start, the Flyers looked to jump on the Rangers when the second period began. After a close call from Bobby Brink, Shesterkin aggressively came out to stop Cam York and then Travis Sanheim. In the process, his mask came off. With him out of the net and the Flyers still in possession, play continued until the Rangers got possession for a stoppage. The rule is that a play is allowed to continue if there’s a scoring chance. Once the opponent touches the puck, then they blow it dead. It was a dangerous moment for Shesterkin, who likes to gamble.

Kaliyev made a good read in his end to send Filip Chytil into the offensive zone. After he toe dragged a Flyers’ defender, he waited before sending the puck across for a Chris Kreider one-timer that just missed from a tough angle. They had Ersson dead to rights, but Kreider couldn’t finish it off. Since Kaliyev has started to get more comfortable, that line has become more of a threat offensively. Chytil’s game-breaking speed makes it tough on opponents. He’s by far the Rangers’ most explosive center. They tend to get favorable matchups, which they can exploit.

On a dominant shift from the top line, Artemi Panarin danced around the Flyers’ zone before threading a pass to Will Borgen. He then found Miller, who let go of a shot that beat a screened Ersson to increase the lead to 3-1 at 4:44. On the play, Vincent Trocheck went to the front of the net and battled legally without making any contact with Ersson, who never saw Miller’s shot. That’s exactly the kind of play the Rangers are now doing. There was a long stretch where they didn’t make it hard on goalies. That’s no longer the case.

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On the next shift, they nearly made it 4-1. But Ersson stopped Will Cuylle after making a save on Mika Zibanejad. The Flyers began to press the action. They had the puck in for an extended shift that produced a couple of scoring chances. But Shesterkin wasn’t about to allow the gritty Garnet Hathaway beat him from in close. He’d later come up with a big save on Brink. He continued to make timely stops to keep the Flyers from cutting the deficit to one.

Despite outplaying the Rangers and holding a 17-8 edge in shots, the Flyers still trailed 3-1 after two. The third was a different story completely.

Having come close earlier, Chytil finally got one when he deflected in an Urho Vaakanainen shot to make it 4-1 at 5:15. Miller helped set it up to pick up a secondary assist. It was his second two-point game of the season. Very quietly, he has a three-game point streak (1-3-4). If they ever needed a player to heat up, it’s Miller. He’s been more active on both sides of the puck. In what’s been a down season for him, there’s still some time left to finish strong and help the team make the playoffs.

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The top line had a dominant shift when they had the Flyers on fumes. The passing from Panarin was on point. Both Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere were denied by Ersson. When an exhausted Hathaway finally got the puck out of the zone, Panarin took a bad interference minor. At times, he will take undisciplined penalties. Even though it didn’t matter, he has to avoid those in the future. With the Avalanche visiting on championship Sunday, that’s advisable. If they finally want to win three in a row for the first time in two months, they’ll need to stay out of the box. We’ll see if they can put together a winning streak.

With Flyers coach John Tortorella lifting Ersson for a six-on-four, Fox had his shot go into the empty net for a shorthanded goal with 3:07 remaining. Judging from his reaction, he had no interest in celebrating. It was his third goal of the season. Two of which have come into vacated cages. While he’s back to putting up points, it’s his defensive play that’s really picked up. Fox is coming back and making much better reads in his zone. When he’s on his game, that makes the Rangers a much better team.

On a late power play drawn by Trocheck, the second unit struck to turn this one into a laugher. Lafreniere had his wrist shot stopped by Ersson, who didn’t know where it was. The puck was still loose, allowing Reilly Smith to jam it home for his 10th. Both Lafreniere and Chytil picked up helpers.

For at least one night, the season looks back on track. There’s still a lot of work to be done. It will get harder when the Avalanche come in this weekend for one of those 1 PM matinees. Then, the Hurricanes pay a visit next Tuesday. If you want to use a measuring stick, those are two games to go by. Let’s see exactly where the Rangers are. The test starts in two days.

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Devils finally have a return of good form on Lemaire night

Posted on January 23, 2025 by hasan4978

Last time I blogged I termed the Devils’ slump a mini-crisis, it certainly became a major one since then – no doubt about it. After a troubling 1-4-1 road trip, the Devils did return home and put up a good enough performance against Tampa in a 3-2 win, but until last night that was pretty much the highlight of the last month as the team backslid into yet another four-game losing streak, each one more troubling than the last. Yes, the Devils have had and still had illnesses to speak of during this most recent part of the malaise, whether it’s norovirus or whatever I have no idea. That said, my patience for this team heading into last night’s game was at a season low given how poorly they were playing, don’t tell me this team’s automatically going to bounce back out of it when they’ve had plenty of seasons spiral out of control in recent memory.

Sure, gutting out a shootout loser point against a Florida team looking for revenge after we beat them twice down in the Sunshine State was fine. Even an OT point at Toronto was okay-ish though blowing a late lead certainly wasn’t ideal. Losing at home in regulation back to back against second-division Flyer and Senator teams however, that was alarming. I don’t want to hear about guys being sick at this point, not when you’ve been playing poorly for almost a month. And not when – let’s face it, we’re in January – it’s not like we’re the only team in the league with sick players! Seemed like Sheldon Keefe had enough of the excuses heading into yesterday’s game as well:

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From that perspective, last night’s ceremony honoring former coach Jacques Lemaire couldn’t have come at a better time, both for giving the players a little reminder of the standard which used to be the norm here and just for giving the fans a bit of an upper after watching, listening or just looking at highlights and scores have been a complete downer the last few weeks. Honestly, the only games I’ve watched are ones I’ve been at the last few weeks since the cable blackout on Optimum, I could bother to go to pirated sites, bars, whatever or listen to the radio but given the way this team’s played since the blackout ironically it’s been easier to just go cold turkey for the moment. But just from what I’ve watched and heard about, the effort and execution just hasn’t been there since Christmas, whatever you want to attribute it to within a specific time period.

Of course last night was one of the home games I went to (along with the Flyer disaster over the weekend), and I already gave my thoughts on Jacques and the ring of honor ceremony when it was announced. That said, it was about what you could have expected from a fifteen-minute ceremony – see above clip. Jacques was his usual charming self, doesn’t seem like he aged a day really…but a cynic could say well he always looked old as a coach at least haha. I was pleased to see Lou Lamoriello and Larry Robinson there, obviously no two men are more joined at the hip with Jacques’ tenure(s) here than his longtime boss/GM – though Jacques needled ‘buddy’ Lou during the speech saying he worked with him and not for him haha – and long-time assistant, along with players like Stevens, Niedermayer and Brodeur, all of whom were there too.

As good as I felt during the ceremony, the first ten minutes of the game were like a wet cloth as the Devils squandered a golden chance to score on their first shift, and eventually their first mistake defensively wound up in the net putting us behind at home yet again. Even as the team’s play improved throughout the period I was still a grumpy gus down 1-0 at intermission thinking here we go again and already thinking in terms of selling my Flyers ticket next week and trading in my Vegas home game ticket in two weeks to peace out of going to home games for the next month with the contrived Four Nations tournament interrupting the season Olympic-style. A break that actually seems somewhat well-timed for us now, but I’ll get to that in a moment.

Maybe the team also reached their ‘we’ve had enough’ stage as well in the second period last night as the goals and attacks came fast and furious. First, Dawson Mercer got a just reward for jumping on a turnover at the blueline and scored on a turnaround slapshot off a Nico Hischier feed to tie the game at 1:24. Yay, a goal finally….but more was to come. Dougie Hamilton dialed up the glory days of yesteryear (i.e. two years ago) with one of his patented power play bombs to give the Devils the lead less than three minutes after tying the game. Ironically the Devils’ best sequence actually came when they didn’t score a goal when back-to-back dominant shifts got the late-arriving crowd out of its seat and firmly back on the team’s side to an extent even the goals didn’t. Or at least it felt that way to me specifically.

Finally the Devils got rewarded (more) for a dominant second period in a twelve-second stretch that put the game away. Stefan Noesen scored a typical Noesen goal, a jam shot of a rebound in front at 16:01. Then on the very next shift, Mercer also channeled 2022-23 by scoring his second of the night, getting to the net to finish off a nice tic-tac-toe play from Timo Meier and Justin Dowling (really!) to make it 4-1 and conclude an almost perfect second period.

Of course, the downer was a potentially serious injury to goaltender Jacob Markstrom, a fluke play caused by Brendan Dillon and Justin Brazeau jostling for position in front, with the latter landing on top of the Devils goaltender and getting whistled for goaltender interference.

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As ominous as that sequence looked, apparently the outlook on Markstrom is somewhat improved as he was reportedly in good spirits after the game. I suppose at this point a best-case scenario would be him missing the next two weeks and coming back after the break, but until official word comes we’re not out of the woods yet. In the near term, the Devils probably go with Jake Allen but I’d be lying if I said I was confident in him considering his recent poor play (albeit his relief appearance last night was spotless). There isn’t much choice at the moment though, we’ve seen how hard it is to get goalies in-season, and you’d still rather give Allen the first crack at it than trust a kid like Isaac Poulter to take the puck and run with it.

At least last night was a good start in terms of the team finding its game from early in the season, hopefully they’ll be able to keep it up through the break and get back some of the cushion they lost through this stretch of shaky play.

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Rangers’ Dominant Win over Senators Comes at Right Time

Posted on January 22, 2025 by Derek

Entering play, the Rangers knew what was ahead of them. In what’s become a logjam for the wild card, they have to take care of business. Coming off a disappointing 5-4 overtime loss at Montreal, they posted a dominant 5-0 win over the Senators to keep pace with the Canadiens (3-2 winners over the Lightning).

Facing an opponent that’s currently in wild card position with 52 points – they made this one easy on themselves. Rather than get frustrated over having two goals reversed due to successful coach’s challenges by Senators coach Travis Green, they kept attacking. Along with playing a tight checking system that forced the Senators into turnovers, they methodically outplayed the Senators to get an important victory in regulation. Considering that they started Tuesday four points behind Ottawa, it came at the right time.

Alexis Lafreniere broke open a scoreless game when he put in a rebound of a Vincent Trocheck shot to score for a second straight game. The goal was a good response to having a Carrick goal wiped out due to Matt Rempe being offside with 2:31 left in the first period. Over a minute later, Lafreniere kept a play alive behind the net for Adam Fox. Eventually, Fox had a shot redirected by Trocheck off Senators goalie Leevi Merilainen right to Lafreniere, who sent a backhand into an open net for a 1-0 lead with 72 seconds remaining.

Less than two minutes into the second period, Arthur Kaliyev notched his second goal as a Ranger. Off a Filip Chytil faceoff win, Braden Schneider fed Urho Vaakanainen for a shot that deflected right to Kaliyev, whose turnaround shot beat Merilainen from a sharp angle to make it 2-0.

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The Rangers continued to dictate the terms by leading in shots 16-5 at one point. Igor Shesterkin wasn’t tested until Brady Tkachuk got to the rebound of his own shot only for it to be snapped up by Shesterkin. He continues to be dialed in this month. Although he didn’t face many tough chances, he stopped all 20 shots to pick up his second straight shutout. He also didn’t allow a goal in a 1-0 shootout win over the Blue Jackets on Jan. 18. He’s heating up at the right time.

Kaliyev nearly had his second of the game on his next shift. On some splendid work from Chytil, Kaliyev came off the wall and fired a pea by Merilainen. Green again challenged for offside. On the Rangers’ entry, Chris Kreider was just ahead of the play to negate the goal. Despite the score remaining 2-0, Green decided to pull Merilainen for Anton Forsberg. The rookie netminder had provided the Senators with good goaltending in a recent win over the Devils. However, he was way off on Tuesday night. That made it the right move from Green, who was hoping putting in Forsberg could spark his team.

After Tkachuk initiated the contact to draw a weak interference call on Will Borgen, the Rangers easily killed off the penalty. Back at even strength, Tkachuk finally got a good look, but his shot was gloved out of mid-air by a sharp Shesterkin, who heard the chants of “Ig-or, Ig-or” from the crowd.

Following serving a penalty, Chytil put on a couple of moves to get in on Forsberg, who made two superb saves including one with his stick on a rebound to keep it out. The great individual effort drew a penalty on Tim Stutzle. Peter Laviolette opted to go with his first power play unit. Outside of Forsberg stopping Panarin, they were brutal. There was too much passing and not enough shooting. The best chance came when Mika Zibanejad had a one-timer blocked by a diving Nick Jensen.

Entering the third period, it was still a two-goal game. Following a key Shesterkin save on Tkachuk, the Rangers got a big contribution from the fourth line. Humming throughout the night, they finally got rewarded. After Carrick made a good play in his own zone to Adam Edstrom, Edstrom passed the puck ahead to himself to break ahead and lead to a two-on-one. He then sent Rempe in on Forsberg for a breakaway. On it, Rempe scored a goal scorer’s goal by faking to the forehand and going to the backhand for a sweet finish that made it 3-0 at 3:34.

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After Will Cuylle had a goal wiped out for a high stick, things got juicy when Tkachuk bumped into Shesterkin after he made a save in tight to get a stoppage. Tkachuk knew what he was doing, but probably didn’t expect a furious Shesterkin to leave the crease and connect with his blocker behind the net. Tkachuk then went after Rempe, who was ready and willing. They’d had a run-in earlier in the game. The scrum resulted in the teams combining for 14 penalty minutes. Shesterkin got two for leaving the crease. Rempe received four minutes for roughing. Ryan Lindgren got a minor for roughing. Tkachuk earned six minutes with four for roughing and two for goaltender interference. Shane Pinto also received two for roughing.

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The refs got it right with Tkachuk getting the extra two for bowling over Shesterkin, who was okay after being in pain. That put the Rangers on the man-advantage. During it, Michael Amadio accidentally collided with Shesterkin behind the net. He also went to the penalty box for goaltender interference, which put the Rangers on a five-on-three.

On the two-man advantage, Panarin took a feed from Fox and rifled home his 20th past Forsberg to increase the lead to 4-0 at 9:01. Still on the power play, the Rangers connected again on the five-on-four thanks to the second unit. K’Andre Miller moved the puck over to Lafreniere, who got the puck down low for Cuylle, who came out and beat Forsberg for a power-play goal that made it 5-0 with 10:03 remaining. That gave Cuylle goals in consecutive games. If he can get going, it would really help the Rangers over this next stretch.

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Rempe nearly had a second goal but had his backhand stopped by Forsberg. In the final minute, Laviolette made certain to have his fourth line out to keep things calm. The Rangers skated away with their third win in their last four.

Up next come the Flyers. They defeated the Red Wings in overtime 2-1 on an Owen Tippett goal with less than 26 seconds left. The Flyers and Rangers are tied in the standings with 50 points. But the Rangers are ahead due to having more regulation wins (21-13) and playing one less game. They remain two points out of the wild card, with both the Senators and Canadiens each having 52 points. The Bruins also have 52 but have played one more game and have only 16 wins in regulation. The Blue Jackets have 51 and 17 regulation wins. The Penguins, Red Wings, and Islanders are hanging around.

Even the Lightning aren’t out of the woods after falling to the Canadiens in overtime. They’re in third place in the Atlantic Division with 53 points. It’s anybody’s guess what will happen.

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Rangers’ Recent Stretch Lacking Something

Posted on January 20, 2025 by Derek

If you’re an eternal optimist, things are looking up for the Rangers. They have picked up points in eight consecutive games. After coming back to defeat the Utah Hockey Club on Jan. 16, they took three out of a possible four points against the Blue Jackets and Canadiens over the past weekend.

In a 1-0 shootout win over the Jackets, Igor Shesterkin provided stellar goaltending by stopping all three Columbus shooters to preserve the victory against a team they’re chasing for the wild card. Vincent Trocheck scored the only goal when he beat Daniil Tarasov five-hole in the second round on Jan. 18. After Mika Zibanejad was denied by Tarasov, Shesterkin made a clutch stop to turn away Blue Jackets leading goal scorer Kirill Marchenko to give the Rangers a big extra point.

On Sunday night, the Rangers fell in overtime 5-4 to the Canadiens at Bell Centre. They blew four one-goal leads in the frustrating loss. However, it was the second game of a back-to-back on the road. They managed to earn a point against an explosive opponent. Most encouraging is that struggling forwards Alexis Lafreniere and Will Cuylle both scored their 12th goals in the first period. Neither has been playing well. If they can regain confidence, that would bode well over the remainder of the season. The Rangers need better production from each to make the playoffs.

Dating back to a 2-1 win over the Bruins on Jan. 2, the Rangers are 6-1-3 so far in the new calendar year. By getting points in almost every game this month, they’ve given themselves a chance to hang around in the wild card race. With 48 points, they trail the Senators by four for the first wild card and the Blue Jackets by three for the second wild card. The hard part is that they still must leapfrog other teams to qualify for the postseason. Entering play on Martin Luther King Day, both the Canadiens and Bruins each have 50 points. The Rangers are tied with the Flyers with 48. The Red Wings and Penguins each have 46. The Islanders are clinging onto hope with 43. With just 39 points, the Sabres probably can be counted out of the race.

Valuable Points Lost During Run

Despite playing better hockey, the Rangers have lost some valuable points during their run. In overtime losses to the Stars, Avalanche, and Canadiens, they were all games they blew leads in. On Jan. 7, they blew a 4-3 lead to the Stars late in regulation. After a Vincent Trocheck power-play goal put them ahead with 7:04 remaining, they allowed Thomas Harley to tie the game with 2:39 left. Jamie Benn won it in overtime on the power play.

Seven days later, they were in complete control with a one-goal lead on the Avalanche. Rookie Adam Edstrom had put them up 2-1 when he converted on a breakaway in the second period. For most of the third period, they limited the Avs’ chances to the outside. However, with the goalie pulled, Artturi Lehkonen took advantage of a bad rebound left by Shesterkin to force overtime with 1:13 left in regulation. After they blew several chances to win it, Devon Toews buried a one-timer in the final minute to give the Avalanche a 3-2 comeback win.

It was a similar script last night. In an eventful second period that featured a heavyweight tilt between Matt Rempe and Arber Xhekaj, the Rangers and Canadiens combined for four goals and 24 shots. After Zibanejad scored on the power play to put them ahead, Nick Suzuki tied the game with 4:55 remaining. Over a minute later, Chris Kreider buried an Adam Fox feed to put the Rangers back in front 4-3. They were unable to hang on in the third period. A breakdown in coverage allowed Juraj Slafkovsky to put in a rebound to tie the score with 7:08 left in regulation. Despite Jonathan Quick’s best efforts in another failed attempt to win number 400 in his illustrious career, it was Patrik Laine who got the winner at 3:20 of overtime.

While it’s easy to blame the schedule due to traveling up north for the second game of a back-to-back, the Canadiens also played for the second straight day. Even if they remained on home ice, they bounced back from blowing a 3-0 lead in a disappointing 7-3 loss to the Maple Leafs. They showed character by rallying to defeat the Rangers, who really needed to come away with two points against a team they’re chasing in the standings. Had they played a better third, they could’ve gotten the win in regulation and passed the Canadiens.

Big Games Coming Up

As the schedule continues to pick up before the two-week break for the 4 Nations Face-Off in mid-February, there are big games coming up this week. When they return to action on Tuesday, the Rangers will host the Senators at Madison Square Garden. The Senators are coming off back-to-back wins over the Bruins and Devils. Currently locked into the first wild card due to having more regulation wins and fewer games played than the Bruins (6-3 winners over the Sharks on Monday), the Senators are one of the teams the Rangers must beat out for the playoffs.

The recent trend has seen them require extras in three of their last five games. A three-point game against the Senators wouldn’t help as much as being able to get a victory in regulation. Every point matters. The league has encouraged parity with a flawed point system. In a season when there isn’t one clearcut Stanley Cup favorite, anything can happen. Even the East’s best teams like the Capitals, Maple Leafs, Panthers, Devils, and Hurricanes are all flawed. Out West, the Jets, Golden Knights, Oilers, Stars, and Avalanche are front and center. There isn’t a single great team.

For the Rangers, the job is simple. Take care of business at home, which is where they’ll be for most of the next two weeks. The Flyers visit 33rd and 7th on Thursday. The last game against them was a dismal 3-1 loss on Nov. 29, which made it five straight losses in regulation. It took them over a month to recover. If they plan on making the playoffs, the next two games are must wins. They conclude a four-game homestand with tougher tests against the Avalanche on Jan. 26 and the Hurricanes on Jan. 28.

Offense Still Inconsistent

In the 5-4 overtime loss to the Canadiens, it marked the second time over the last three games that the Rangers scored at least four times. However, the offense remains inconsistent.

With even Artemi Panarin having a down year, it’s hard to predict the Rangers from game to game. Sometimes, even their best players disappear for stretches. Zibanejad scored for just the ninth time in 46 games this season. He’s on pace for the fewest goals since getting 14 in 56 games during 2016-17, which ironically was his first season as a Blueshirt. Injuries have limited Kreider to 15 goals and only two assists in 38 games.

Since recording his eighth goal on Nov. 21, Lafreniere only has four goals over the last 28 games. Unless he can heat up, it’s highly unlikely that the Rangers can survive without Lafreniere turning his season around. He still plays with Panarin and Trocheck on the top line. After picking up his game with six points during a four-game point streak, Trocheck is without a point over the last four. Peter Laviolette relies on that line for more consistency. There’s been too many instances when they haven’t buried their chances.

At least for the time being, Laviolette’s sticking with Cuylle on the second line. He’s replaced Kreider with Zibanejad and Reilly Smith. Kreider has continued to play on the third line with Filip Chytil and Arthur Kaliyev, who continues to get an extended look in the top nine. Due to the returns of Chytil and Kreider last week, Brett Berard was sent down to the Wolf Pack. He’ll continue to develop in Hartford where he can play top minutes.

Carrick’s Strong Work Gets Rewarded

Meanwhile, Sam Carrick continues to provide the fourth line with a combination of grit and energy. Laviolette has continued to find more minutes for Carrick, whose strong work ethic and character have made him an effective player. Brought in by Chris Drury to replace Barclay Goodrow, he’s done a good job doing what the coaching staff wants. Since Rempe rejoined the line with Carrick and Edstrom, they’ve established themselves on the forecheck.

Carrick’s best moment of the season came when he scored the overtime winner against the Devils on Jan. 9. His takeaway on Jack Hughes led directly to him burying a Smith pass for the winner. In an overtime loss at Colorado, he scored a shorthanded goal and assisted on an Edstrom goal. Carrick picked up two assists in a 5-3 win over the Utah Hockey Club on Jan. 16.

With four goals and nine helpers and a plus-1 rating in 46 games, Carrick’s been a pleasant surprise. Drury deserves some kudos for that signing.

Lack of Offense from Blue Line

If there’s been a sore spot for the Rangers, it’s been the lack of offense from the blue line. Aside from Fox, who leads all Rangers’ defensemen with 36 points (2-34-36), offense has been hard to come by.

Since Laviolette decided to make Zac Jones a healthy scratch, it’s limited the offense from the back end. After Fox, Braden Schneider is second in scoring among Rangers’ defensemen with 11 points (2-9-11). A third pair defenseman who gets no power play time, Schneider isn’t going to contribute regularly. His main job is to play well defensively while paired with Urho Vaakanainen, who came over from the Ducks for Jacob Trouba. Vaakanainen has two assists in 16 games since joining the Rangers.

With a secondary assist on Sunday, Ryan Lindgren tied Schneider in points with his 11th of the season. Lindgren remains a defensive defenseman who provides the nuts and bolts. His physical style has started to show some signs of decline. An unrestricted free agent after the season, Lindgren’s future remains uncertain.

If there’s been a colossal disappointment this season, it’s been the play of K’Andre Miller. Once considered an untouchable in the organization, that might no longer be the case. After struggling mightily in the first half, his play has been a bit steadier since being partnered with Will Borgen, who was acquired for Kaapo Kakko. However, Miller’s offense has plummeted under Laviolette.

It was only two years ago that he posted career highs in goals (9), assists (34), and points (43). That came while playing for Gerard Gallant. Following an eight-goal, 22-assist, 30-point season, Miller has only two goals and six assists in 40 contests. With Laviolette even giving Miller some time on the second power play unit, it’s hard to fathom what’s happened to him. He still averages 21:41-per-game being used mostly in a shutdown role with Borgen. However, his inconsistency has been puzzling. When he isn’t making defensive mistakes that cost the team, his lack of offense hasn’t helped, either.

It’s hard to find many teams with a worse blue line from an offensive standpoint. If Fox isn’t getting involved, they have nobody else who can contribute consistently. It’s all but made the Rangers’ offense one-dimensional.

Jones continues to sit out until he’s dealt. In 26 games, he has a goal and seven assists for eight points, which is the same amount as Miller. Jones last played on Dec. 23 against the Devils.

Igor Back in Form

The biggest reason for the recent turnaround has been the play of Shesterkin. After a forgettable December that saw him post a 3.43 goals-against-average (GAA) with an .892 save percentage, Igor’s back in form. In five starts in January, he’s 4-0-1 with a 1.73 GAA and .934 save percentage.

That was highlighted by stopping all 27 shots and three shootout attempts in a 1-0 shutout over the Blue Jackets on Jan. 18. Aside from a slipup against the Avalanche, Shesterkin’s been on top of his game. He bounced back from a tough first period to make 28 saves against Utah HC in a 5-3 win on Jan. 16. He was at his best when he stopped 29 of 30 shots in a 2-1 victory over the Golden Knights on Jan. 11.

When he’s right, it gives the Rangers a chance of winning.

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