Game #6: Rangers respond with a good 3-2 shootout win over the Avalanche

Posted on October 17, 2018 by Derek

David Quinn wanted to see more tenacity and grit from his team. He sure got it from the Rangers, who last night posted a good 3-2 win in the shootout over the Avalanche at The Garden before 17,251. Attendance is down due to James Dolan not lowering prices. While they didn’t go up, beer now costs at least thirteen bucks just for a can. That’s absurd. I won’t be donating to that cause at the few games I’m at.

With expectations down, only the true fans still show up. Luckily, that includes one of our favorites Anthony Cinque from Long Island. A longtime season ticket holder who’s been attending games since the early 90’s including when the team won the Stanley Cup, he still gets out to some games when he’s not busy driving his son to play in tournaments with Tom Poti’s kid. It’s funny too considering how fans treated Poti. Apparently, there is no better guy who gives back to the hockey community. Anthony’s son is only eight, but you can feel the excitement over how his kid is doing. When he’s not busy cracking jokes about our two four million dollar forwards that are signed for two years, he’s always telling stories. It makes the games more fun. Especially when our team hits a lull.

Tuesday was not one of those games. Quinn all but begged his team for more simplicity and stronger play around the net. What he got was 18 skaters who were fully committed to what he wanted. They played their best period of the season in a rousing first that saw them fire 19 shots on Colorado starter Semyon Varlamov, including several more attempts. On a night they totaled 43 shots, they also had 76 attempts. That included every skater. Even Cody McLeod, who played an inspired game in nine active shifts. He even pick pocketed Nathan MacKinnon at the Rangers blueline and broke in before having a shot blocked. That’s the kind of yeoman effort Quinn rewards.

Without Pavel Buchnevich, the Rangers played a more aggressive offensive game, attacking the Avalanche net every chance they got. That’s how they have to play to be competitive. Chris Kreider broke the ice with his first power play goal of the season by parking himself in front and redirecting a Kevin Shattenkirk point shot for a 1-0 lead. Shattenkirk had a better night, picking up two assists and scoring the shootout winner. A great response from the veteran who found himself scratched a couple of games ago.

Mats Zuccarello also was his old self. Reunited with Kevin Hayes on the second line with rookie Filip Chytil, the popular Ranger gave a superb effort throughout along with his cohesive linemates. The trio were the best line at even strength. Zuccarello assisted on both Ranger goals including a beautiful cross ice feed for a wicked Hayes one-timer that was wired top shelf inside the crossbar for a 2-1 lead in the second.

For a second consecutive game, Quinn opted to have the top line of Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Jesper Fast go head to head against a tough opponent’s top scoring line. The trio did a great job neutralizing the very dangerous MacKinnon line that includes Gabriel Landeskog and Mikka Rantanen. Even though they did wind up with both Colorado goals, neither came against the Zibanejad unit. They were aggressive throughout with Fast just missing on two point blank opportunities. On one, the puck bounced on him. The other, it looked like his attempt was blocked by a player. He could’ve had two goals. Kreider was more active during shifts driving the net. Exactly where he needs to be. Zibanejad attempted several shots, but didn’t beat a sharp Varlamov.

Meanwhile, Brett Howden centered Vladislav Namestnikov and Jimmy Vesey. It was a good defensive play by a hustling Howden that allowed Vesey to get a clean breakaway. He blocked a shot and then had the presence to recover and pass the puck to an open Vesey, who got behind the Colorado defense. He made a good move, but was denied by Varlamov on a deke. Vesey would get another big chance in the third thanks to a nice centering pass from Zibanejad, but he fanned on it to blow a goal. It seems that he gets chances every game, but only has two goals to show for it. At some point, Vesey needs to bury some of these, or he’ll never be more than a 16-17 goalscorer. The effort is there, which is why he stays in the lineup.

The Avalanche picked it up in the second. They got the benefit of a questionable call on Hayes for a late tripping minor. Taking full advantage of it, Landeskog redirected a Tyson Jost shot from Tyson Barrie to tie the contest. However, the Rangers responded quickly. Only 2:40 later, Shattenkirk moved the puck across to Zuccarello, who found enough space in the middle to make a sweet dish for an open Hayes, who notched his first with a great one-timer that Varlamov stood no chance on. He indicated to Al Trautwig between periods that it was about time. His game was very good all night.

Henrik Lundqvist was again sensational, finishing with 31 saves along with two of three stopped in the shootout to pick up his second win. In all five starts, he’s allowed two goals, posting a 1.99 goals-against-average and .939 save percentage. He made two spectacular saves that led to the trademark, “Hen-rik, Hen-rik,” chants from an appreciative crowd. It’s easy to recognize how much work he’s put in. The 36-year old emotional leader looks more comfortable staying back in his net. The patience is paying off.

Unfortunately, following a ridiculous save on a Avalanche rebound for highway robbery, the Rangers iced the puck. It led directly to a Colorado face off win in which MacKinnon was able to deflect home a Landeskog shot from Rantanen at 19:47. Showing frustration, Lundqvist sticked the puck out of the net. Who could blame him? He made such a great save only to give one up that sent the team to the locker room tied.

In a good game that also saw the return of rookie defenseman Neal Pionk, who replaced vet Adam McQuaid, he paired with Brady Skjei on the top pair. But it was the experienced tandem of Marc Staal and Brendan Smith that drew the tough assignment on the MacKinnon line. They did a good job. Staal keeps it simple while Smith’s improved skating even allowed him to take a power play shift in overtime. Something nobody would’ve predicted.

Shattenkirk worked with Fredrik Claesson for the first half before Quinn went down to five. Claesson has been fine in his three games. He is solid in his end, and even dropped the gloves against the always pesky Matt Calvert, who won the fight with a few rights and a knock down. Claesson only played 10:50.

The third was interesting. Nobody scored despite some opportunities. There were two iffy calls back-to-back. First on Chytil for a phantom hook. Then on Rantanen for holding Staal. Both were tacky. You had your share of big saves by each goalie. Neither team backed off. That’s what made it a compelling game. It was hard fought.

In the three-on-three which Anthony referred to as, “Bettman hockey,” Skjei got behind the Avalanche for a break in to draw a penalty. However, the video replay clearly showed that MacKinnon made a good defensive play getting his stick on Skjei’s stick to block his shot.

It was just as well. The four-on-three power play was so predictable and stale that it looked like it was in slow motion. They’re not instinctive enough. The shots were easy ones for Varlamov to save. That included Zibanejad with two unscreened shots. I would’ve liked to have seen Chytil get a look over Ryan Spooner. God Almighty. Four million dollars.

We didn’t stay for the shootout. I hate them. But I was able to catch the tail end passing a bar on Eighth Avenue walking back to the car. I saw Rantanen score to beat Lundqvist. But Shattenkirk was able to walk in and go short side on Varlamov. What I didn’t know was that old reliable Zuccarello scored in the opening act. Lundqvist poke checked MacKinnon and stacked the pads on Landeskog to clinch the victory.

It was a nice win. They deserved it. Now, the question is does Buchnevich return tonight in D.C. to face the defending champion Capitals. I don’t know. The effort was so good, I wonder what Quinn will decide. I didn’t think Namestnikov was too good. Maybe he comes out. Spooner spends too much time on the perimeter.

One thing I’m certain of is Lundqvist will get the start in back-to-back. They don’t play again til Sunday at home versus Calgary. While they’ll be big underdogs tonight, the game against the Flames is winnable. They’re 2-4-0 so far. Every game has been competitive. We’ll see what tonight brings.

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Game #4 – Devils 3, Stars 0

Posted on October 17, 2018 by hasan4978

After winning their first three games in impressive fashion, the Devils’ challenge last night against the Stars was to avoid a dreaded letdown against a middle of the pack Western Conference team playing on a back-to-back.  My challenge, apparently was just to get TO Prudential Center.  Generally weeknight trips take an hour from Morristown to Newark with rush hour traffic so I left at 5:30, but there are also scenes from the upcoming movie ‘The Joker’ being filmed in Newark and some streets were closed off – just my luck one of those streets closed off was the one I usually turn onto to get to the front entrance my lot.  So from 6:30 till after 7 I basically crawled around Newark when as it turned out, I could have just avoided that whole mess by squeezing in the back entrance to my usual parking lot.  Eventually I wound up back there, relieved that entrance was still open and barely got in the building for puck drop.

Still annoyed over the whole ordeal and taking over an hour and a half to drive and park, the game itself helped relax me as the Devils got off to another fantastic start and cashed in with a familiar name on the scoresheet – Kyle Palmeri with his seventh goal in four games scoring a rocket one-timer on a PP mere minutes after I got to my seat.  Unfortunately the momentum of the first half of the period got stalled in unusual fashion, with the Devils about to go on a 5-on-3, Taylor Hall for reasons known only to him decided to flip the puck into his own bench on the delayed penalty and wound up getting thumbed on a delay of game to cancel out the Stars’ second penalty.  Now I admit I’ve never seen the delay of game be applied in that manner before.  Then again players are usually smart enough to just throw the puck to the other team or go offside if the idea was to get the extended 5-on-3 (which it was).  I thought delay of games only applied to pucks over the glass or closing your hand in the crease but apparently I was wrong as Steve pulled a Doc mid-game and explained the wording of the rule on Twitter.

While the team’s momentum stalled after losing that power play, the Devils avoided the costly mistake against and the game remained 1-0 into the second period.  Then Blake Coleman did what he does, sparking the team with a well-timed goal – making a couple moves in traffic and firing a wrister past Anton Khudobin.  Khudobin’s troubles as it turned out, were just beginning.  If the delay of game penalty was the first ‘you don’t see that every day’ moment of the night, what happened later in the period was the next, when Khudobin’s stick got broken and somehow nobody on the bench or the ice noticed it, while the entire crowd of 12,808 saw the goalie gesticulating while doing jumping jacks in the crease trying to get someone to notice he didn’t have a stick for half a minute.  Defenseman John Klingberg literally skated past the goalie’s broken stick with the puck but instead of icing it or keeping it long enough for someone to notice and get the goalie a stick, he turned the puck over to the immortal Jean-Sebastian Dea who fired a shot past Khudobin the one place he might not have been expecting…glove-side.  Dea admitted he didn’t realize Khudobin lost his stick either or he would have shot the puck someplace else.  Pity.  My former seatmate on the other side of the arena (who I sat with for the third period) had thought it was a clever psychological gamble.

With one exception the third period brought back memories of late ’90’s hockey where the team shut the door on a lead in convincing fashion.  There was even a good old-time fight between Miles Wood and Jamie Benn early in the period – no strategy or probing, just wailing on each other that ended with a Wood takedown of Benn.  I don’t really know what Benn was doing in the first place since the Stars were down three early in the third period, and trying to make that comeback with one of their better offensive players missing a couple of shifts was not ideal.  Maybe the Stars already knew this wasn’t going to be their night.  They rarely came close to scoring until the final minute where a botched power play gave the Stars a couple of good shorthanded chances but Keith Kinkaid stopped them all to preserve a shutout, and finally a well-deserved star after being denied by the attending media in the previous two home games despite 37 saves against the Sharks and another shutout against the Caps.

Unfortunately the reason for that botched power play could have serious reprecussions going forward as Will Butcher was not on the ice, having been taken out by a likely uncalled boarding penalty minutes earlier with a suspected collarbone/shoulder injury.  I had visions of Mirco Mueller’s collarbone injury last year which led to him missing three months.  Although the power play’s been streaky so far this year, losing Butcher could cripple it.  It won’t do us any favors 5-on-5 either having to replace Butcher with either the uninspiring Eric Gryba or the unimpressive Steven Santini, neither of whom can really add a lick to the transition game.  So while last night’s 3-0 win continued the impressive 4-0 start (the team’s best since defending its ‘first’ Stanley Cup in 1995), and they’ve outscored a decent slate of opponents 17-4, the first dark cloud appeared over this season and we’ll just wait and see what the word is on Butcher today.

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Avalanche at Rangers: Buchnevich a healthy scratch

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Derek

The Rangers look to shake off a tough one goal defeat over the weekend when they host the Avalanche tonight at 7 PM. It promise to be another tough test. After doing a solid job against Connor McDavid even though he scored and set up Edmonton’s two goals, they’ll have to deal with another superstar in Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon. The Hart runner up is off to a good start with six goals and an assist so far.

MacKinnon centers one of the league’s best lines, teaming with Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen, whose seven helpers and eight points lead the Avalanche. It’ll be interesting to see if coach David Quinn decides to go head to head with the top line of Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Jesper Fast. They did a good job at five on five against McDavid by making his line play in its end. Zibanejad played his best game of the season, scoring his first goal and hitting two posts. Hopefully, that’ll get him going.

The big story entering tonight’s match is Quinn’s decision to healthy scratch Pavel Buchnevich. The third-year Russian finds himself in a familiar spot under a new coach. It can’t be too pleasing for the young 23-year old who has two goals and an assist in the Rangers’ first five games. Unfortunately, he played a bad game on Saturday, going without a shot attempt. He was so invisible that he got benched for most of the third period.

During yesterday’s practice, he was rotating in with Cody McLeod on the fourth line. In my last write up, I speculated that Buchnevich could find himself on the fourth line following Saturday’s disappointing game. I was wondering if McLeod would be in versus his former team for either Buchnevich or Ryan Spooner, who also didn’t see the ice much in the third. With the first-year coach declaring that he needed to get rookie Filip Chytil more ice time, it was obvious that the 19-year old Czech would move into the top nine by shifting to wing. That meant someone was going to be dropped.

Buchnevich has talent which should be obvious. His combination of skating, puck skills and playmaking capabilities make him a good candidate to break out. That can still happen. It was interesting listening to Quinn explain that he can live with certain mistakes as long as the players are putting in the effort. Clearly, he didn’t feel Buchnevich gave a honest one. So, he comes out tonight, similarly to what Alain Vigneault did to him. The only difference is with Quinn, he’s a straight shooter. There won’t be any confusion why Buchnevich will be in the press box when we are at MSG in a few hours. It’s my first regular season game after being unable to attend the feel good win against San Jose due to not feeling well.

The Blueshirts are 1-4-0 in last place in the Metro Division. It’s not a surprise. With key players off to inconsistent starts including Kevin Hayes, Mats Zuccarello, Kevin Shattenkirk, Kreider and Zibanejad, it’s no wonder they are where they are in the standings. At least they have a win unlike the Panthers and Red Wings, who got the doors blown off by the Canadiens yesterday. Detroit could be the worst team in the league. They’ll have some competition from Arizona, who still hasn’t scored a goal on home ice. Florida is struggling without starter Roberto Luongo. There’s still too much talent for them to continue to play bad.

As for the Rangers, they need their best players to perform better. That’s the only way they can be competitive. It’s advisable for them to not put Colorado on the power play. It’s also a good idea to listen to Quinn and be harder on the puck when they forecheck. He wants to see them get the uniform dirty. There’s a reason they aren’t drawing penalties on home ice.

The lines look like this:

20-93-17

72-13-36

26-21-90

8-23-95

So, Chytil gets a chance with Hayes and Zuccarello. That could work. We know Chytil has a lot of skill. Maybe it’ll rub off on Hayes and Zuccarello. Spooner centers McLeod and Vinni Lettieri on the fourth line. The second line is Brett Howden with Jimmy Vesey and Vladislav Namestnikov, who deserves this opportunity based on the past three games.

Neal Pionk is back in on the blueline with Adam McQuaid expected to sit out for the first time. Tony DeAngelo remains a healthy scratch. I hope he gets back in tomorrow.

Henrik Lundqvist gets the start. Expect him to get both games with the Capitals tomorrow night. The Rangers don’t play again until Sunday when they host Calgary.

I’m not sure who Colorado will start. Semyon Varlamov was not too good in his last outing, but is off to a good start. He remains the starter there with another former Cap Philipp Grubauer backing up.

I’ll have a full game review later.

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Game 5 Review: Thoughts on tough 2-1 Rangers loss to Oilers/refs, talent lacking

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Derek

I know it’s a bit late. However, Saturday’s 2-1 Rangers loss to the Oilers and the refs really ticked me off. Let me preface this by saying that I rarely get on the officiating for any of my teams when they lose. However, everyone has seen their team get screwed. It happened to the 2014 Rangers against the Kings. Dwight King remains one of my most hated players.

We’ve all been there. I understand the stripes have a hard job. But when you miss an obvious penalty on NHL darling Connor McDavid and Edmonton in a tie game in the third period, it drives me nuts. I didn’t realize WWE takedowns were allowed like the one they got away with on Kevin Hayes behind the Edmonton net. They compounded it by blindly calling Vladislav Namestnikov for a penalty he didn’t commit. He was the victim on the play. So twice, it should’ve been a power play for our punchless team. Instead, the Oilers got the early Christmas gift with McDavid scoring from a tough angle with a backhand banking in off Henrik Lundqvist for the game-winner.

I’m glad coach David Quinn didn’t glue Namestnikov to the bench like his predecessor would have. It wasn’t his fault the four blind mice didn’t have perfect 20/20 Vision. Which brings me to a question. Does this half ass backwards league test for eyesight? Don’t answer it. It’s rhetorical.

By no means did the Rangers play a perfect game. They didn’t have enough killer instinct or finishing ability. Something that’s gonna be a problem. There just isn’t much talent on the roster. Unless Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Pavel Buchnevich (did he even play yesterday) and a declining Mats Zuccarello perform consistently, it’s going to be a long season. I’m okay with that as long as the younger players such as Filip Chytil, Buchnevich, impressive rookie Brett Howden and eventually Lias Andersson get it.

Who knows? Maybe we’ll eventually see Libor Hajek the way things are going with our mediocre defense. It’s astonishing that they paid Brady Skjei all that money to be a top defenseman. I get that he’s only in his third year. He’s a terrific skater as evidenced by the nice overtime winner in the one win over San Jose. But sometimes, he gets turned around too much. Hopefully, Lindy Ruff can work with him. I saw them talking following a bad shift.

Adam McQuaid didn’t come out of the lineup. Apologies for that. Instead, Neal Pionk sat out a second consecutive game. Quinn indicated that he’s gonna play him a lot. So, don’t get too upset. He’ll be back for Tuesday against Colorado, who feature the ever dangerous Nathan MacKinnon. Yikes.

If only the Rangers boasted that kind of world class talent. They really need to sink like the Titanic and luck into Jack Hughes. I know how bad that sounds. I don’t see it happening. Not with the Coyotes off to a historically bad start on home ice. They haven’t scored a single goal in three games. I gotta give myself credit. I put the hex on Antti Raanta by taking him in my fantasy league. I also did the same to Roberto Luongo and the Panthers. If only I had grabbed Keith Kinkaid over James Reimer. I hope Cory Schneider is back soon. The state of my goaltending is so desperate that I picked up Jack Campbell and foolishly started him Saturday at Ottawa.

The one thing I got right in my preview was calling a breakout game for Zibanejad. He scored his first goal of the season on a Marc Staal shot pass that took a favorable bounce right to him. He played by far his best game, also ringing the goalpost twice. So, he was a bit unlucky. The top line with Zibanejad, Kreider and constant Jesper Fast played well. You can’t only score once when you’re dominating most of your shifts.

Quinn tried Buchnevich with Howden and Zuccarello. It didn’t go well. While Howden and Zuccarello worked hard to let you know they were out there, Buchnevich did nothing in his shifts. So much so that he didn’t even attempt a shot. No wonder he found himself glued to the bench in the third with the invisible Ryan Spooner. Has anyone discovered the whereabouts of Spooner? His picture can be found on the back of a milk carton.

The problem is they are paying Spooner and Namestnikov over four million each. They have yet to find the back of the net. At least Namestnikov is showing signs of snapping out of it. He’s been much more active since getting scratched. At this point, Spooner has earned a demotion to either the fourth line, or a seat in the press box for Cody McLeod. I wouldn’t be surprised if he plays against his former team.

Quinn acknowledged that he needs to get Chytil more ice time. If that means shifting him to the wing due to his face off struggles to play him in the top nine, do it. Considering how bad Zuccarello has looked offensively, why not try Chytil on the Howden line? I wonder what Quinn will do with Buchnevich. It’s clear he isn’t comfortable playing the left side. Figure him to be back on right wing for Game 6.

It would help if Kevin Hayes was able to produce. The effort is there, but he needs help. Jimmy Vesey seems like a good fit with him. They work well off each other. But Spooner has done zilch. Maybe move Zuccarello back to that line. They had some success together. I am suggesting Namestnikov or Chytil on one of the top two lines. Kreider can play with either Zibanejad or Howden. Buchnevich seems to need Zibanejad to succeed. It wouldn’t shock me if he found himself on the fourth line to start Tuesday. He was that bad.

Both Namestnikov and Spooner can play center. Maybe keep Spooner in and have him center a fourth line with Vinni Lettieri and fill in the blank.

As for the blueline, it’s not getting any prettier. There are no saviours coming. For all the constant whining over Staal, I can’t see how he isn’t in the top six playing five on five and penalty kill. Kevin Shattenkirk doesn’t kill penalties. Hopefully, he regains his confidence soon. If not, the power play will continue to underperform.

Fredrik Claesson has given two solid games in a row. Brendan Smith has been the best defenseman. His skating is much better, proving how much last year was about fitness. McQuaid plays strong in his end, but isn’t the fastest skater. He competes hard, which is why he’s been in the league so long. If they decide to stick with Claesson, they can always sub out McQuaid for Pionk.

What to do with Tony DeAngelo. I still think he can become something. But he needs consistent minutes. His skating is superb, as is his offensive instincts and shot. But his defense remains the area he must improve to stick. I’m rooting for him.

You can’t start any better than Lundqvist has. He’s given them a chance in all four of his starts. He’s making the big saves and looks more comfortable staying back in his net like he used to. The key to his game is patience. Something he admitted he got away from due to the high risk style the team played the past two years.

I wish Lundqvist could get more wins. He deserves a lot of credit for how well he’s approaching things. It has to be hard for him knowing the roster isn’t the most talented. They’re a work in progress.

I’ll echo this throughout the season. As fans, all we can do is be patient and support the team. They’re doing the right thing. I really appreciate Quinn’s honesty and explanations for his game decisions. He’s a excellent communicator. There shouldn’t be any confusion about what he’s doing.

I want to see him succeed. It’s going to take some time. They’re 1-4-0 so far with two points. Aside from the five goal outburst in the ugly 8-5 shootout defeat at improved Carolina, offense has been hard to come by. In the other four games, they’ve totaled seven goals. The overall total is 12 in five games for an average of 2.40 per game. Here is the breakdown:

5-on-5: 9 (Howden 2, Kreider 2, Vesey 2, Fast 1, Smith 1, Zibanejad 1)

5-on-4: 2 (Buchnevich 2)

3-on-3: 1 (Skjei)

Note: One of Buchnevich’s goals came with the goalie pulled during a five-on-four.

Power Play: 1-for-12 (8.3 percent) Tied for 27th.

Note: The Rangers have only one power play goal and have given up a shorthanded goal.

Undoubtedly, there is a lot to work on.

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Game #3 – Devils 3, Sharks 2

Posted on October 14, 2018 by hasan4978

A crisp fall afternoon, Sunday at 1 PM is always a great day for…Devils hockey?!  Don’t get me wrong, under normal circumstances I’d have been there this afternoon – especially after missing Thursday’s game and with the team off to a nice start – but the NHL in its infinite wisdom after having no games at all on Friday scheduled a local game directly opposite the football Jets, not to mention across a 1 PM slate in the NFL.  It’s almost as if the NHL’s deliberately trying to sabotage our attendance, though the home opener did ‘sell out’ Thursday despite being in conflict with the Giants-Eagles game.  I gave passing thought to going today regardless once the outdoor red carpet arrival of the Devils players and staff got postponed from Thursday’s home opener due to the bad weather outside of Prudential Center but let’s face it, the third game out of 82 in a hockey season just isn’t going to compare in importance to any NFL game where your team’s still relevant.

Seeing as I couldn’t watch two games at the same time, I ultimately decided to record the Devils game and watch the Jets game live.  Admittedly I was a little wary about our chances against the souped-up Sharks who’ve done well against us in recent years – and that was before their offseason trade for two-time Norris winner Erik Karlsson, giving San Jose a dream 1-2 punch of Karlsson and Brent Burns on defense.  In fact, our last home win against the Sharks came all the way back in 2011 – before current San Jose coach Pete DeBoer even had coached a game of his three-and-a-half year tenure with us.  Another touch of irony involving DeBoer and current Devils coach John Hynes was noted by the Devils’ own Twitter in the pregame:

https://twitter.com/NJDevils/status/1051510443657912321

In many ways, Hynes has never been more popular with the Devils’ fanbase as the current HC of the NJD got one of the loudest ovations on Thursday night before the home opener.  For sure, making the playoffs for the first time in six years has something to do with that, but also I believe the clips that have been shown of Hynes on various social media outlets including the Behind The Glass series on the NHL Network have given people more of an appreciation of the coach’s personality.  While I admit, I was a skeptic during his second season when the team took a couple steps back, he’s certainly been able to get the players to respond once he and GM Ray Shero were able to bring in and integrate more players that fit the fast, attacking and supportive credo.

Someone else whose popularity is likely at an all-time high is Kyle Palmieri – who seemingly proved the adage that good things come in threes this afternoon, after he put together his third straight game with two goals to start the season.  If acquiring Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson was Shero’s best move as a Devil, acquiring Palmieri for two draft picks wasn’t that far behind.  After scoring eighty goals in his first three seasons as a Devil, is it possible K-Palm is actually stepping up a notch this year?  Certainly playing with Hall and super soph Nico Hischier will give the local boy a great chance to match or surpass the thirty goals he had his first season with the red and white.

Not watching the game live, I missed this K-Palm outburst and was pleasantly surprised when I heard he scored the other two goals.  I did tune in during a commercial break just after the Devils’ third and eventual winning goal from a far more unlikely source – waiver addition Jean-Sebastian Dea, who poked home a loose puck in the crease for his second goal of the season.  A previously unheralded forward, who put up 50 points in 70 games while playing for the Penguins’ AHL affiliate last year, Dea’s only getting a chance to play with forward Jesper Bratt on the shelf to start the season, and he’s making the most of his opportunity so far despite a limited fourth-line role.

Fortunately the Jets were winning their own game, if not easily then at least somewhat undramatically in the fourth quarter, so I was able to tune in just in time for the frantic Devils finish late in the third period.  Or at least the last part of the frantic finish, after blowing their own four-minute power play that could have sealed the game, the Devils had to kill off two late penalties in the final few minutes – including a nearly two-minute long 6-on-4 once the Sharks emptied their net while on the latter PP.  As he did down the stretch last year, goalie Keith Kinkaid made a ton of high-pressure saves cool as a cucumber in a close game and overall had 37 saves on the night.  Somehow that performance didn’t merit one of the three stars from the attending media, although once again clearly K-Palm was the man of the hour.  Maybe he’s more inspired to score goals to get those on-ice postgame interviews with new host Erika Wachter…j/k.

In the end it was the perfect Sunday for us Devils/Jets fans.  All that was missing was the obligatory Pete press conference where he goes into coach cliche mode about playing in a tough building and going against a hot goalie.  Would have been nice to hear one of those about us, especially after his success against us since getting to San Jose.  Just messing with ya Pete, I still like you buddy – even if the end was a little rough and there needed to be a change once losing started to be accepted.  Fortunately both the team and its former coach are both in a better place now.

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Rangers host McDavid Oilers at 1 PM

Posted on October 13, 2018 by Derek

This afternoon, the Rangers look to make it two in a row when they host the Oilers at The Garden. The game is one of those early 1 PM starts on a busy Saturday that includes a couple of other matinees.

It’s a chance for younger fans to get a closer look at the game’s best player, Connor McDavid. The 21-year old Edmonton franchise center is in his fourth season. A former Hart winner who’s led the league in scoring the past two seasons totaling 208 points (71-137-208), he enters play with a goal and two assists in the Oilers’ first two games. Both losses. They lost to the Devils in Stockholm last Saturday and dropped a game in Boston the other day.

Edmonton remains an enigma due to a questionable team defense that hindered McDavid’s Hart chances in ’17-18. A disappointing season that saw them miss the postseason following a good run in the 2017 NHL Playoffs. They lost in the second round to the Ducks in seven games.

The uncertainty surrounding them puts extra pressure on starting goalie Cam Talbot. The former Ranger is in his third year with the Oilers. After a breakthrough ’16-17 that saw him set career bests in games played (73), wins (42) and shutouts (7), he struggled similarly to the team by posting a 3.02 goals-against-average (GAA) and .908 save percentage with 31 wins and just one shutout in 67 contests. So far, he’s allowed seven goals on 57 shots in two starts. It’s vital for the 31-year old to have a bounce back year if Edmonton is to rebound.

It’ll be a tall order for the Rangers defensively against the top Edmonton line featuring McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Ty Rattie. So far, Milan Lucic and Leon Draisaitl each have a goal and assist. They played on the second line with 2017 first round pick Kailer Yamamoto. He’s only 20, but is worth watching. Secondary scoring is an area the Oilers need improvement on. Former Islander Ryan Strome centers the third line with another former first round pick Jesse Puljarvi a key player who must step up.

The Edmonton blueline features ex-Devil Adam Larsson and Swedish countryman Oscar Klefbom. Darnell Nurse is the defensive defenseman that should draw the tough assignments. Keep an eye on 2018 first round pick Evan Bouchard. The 19-year old has played in two games and is still looking for his first point. He was taken 10th overall.

For the Rangers, they’re looking for more production out of top center Mika Zibanejad. He only has one assist so far. The righty shooter hasn’t found the back of the net yet. A streaky scorer, this could be the type of game he needs to snap out of it. The Rangers can ill afford to not have Zibanejad contributing. Ditto for Kevin Hayes, who enters with one helper in four games. He gets the tough assignments as the club’s checking center. However, more is expected from the defensively responsible forward. He’s mostly been featured with Ryan Spooner and Jimmy Vesey. Only Vesey has scored with a two goal game in the 8-5 loss at Carolina.

David Quinn is still trying to figure out where talented Russian Pavel Buchnevich fits. He set up the big tying goal from Brendan Smith with 2:39 left the other night. Buchnevich enters with two goals including one on the power play with an assist. He won’t be with Zibanejad today. Instead, Quinn has decided to mix and match, shifting Buchnevich to the second line with impressive rookie Brett Howden and Mats Zuccarello. Not a bad idea considering how well Howden has played. His two goals and assist along with strong work in the faceoff dot have made him the team’s best forward. It is early, but the returns on Howden have been superb.

With Kevin Shattenkirk returning to the blueline, Tony DeAngelo comes out. Quinn will keep Fredrik Claesson in after a solid performance. Adam McQuaid sits for the first time. Here are the projected lines per Rangers Report:

So, two lines change. The Hayes unit remains intact along with the fourth line of Filip Chytil, Vladislav Namestnikov and Vinni Lettieri. They had a good game the other day.

It should be an interesting game.

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A Review of a memorable Game 4: Smith and Skjei play unlikely heroes in thrilling Rangers 3-2 overtime win over Sharks

Posted on October 12, 2018 by Derek

It’s a lot different when you have lower expectations. After the Rangers imploded in a nightmarish third period of a 8-5 loss to the improved Hurricanes, they had a few days off before one of the league’s scariest teams in the loaded Sharks paid a visit to The Garden last night.

I would be lying if I thought they could win against Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and a lethal Sharks offense that features Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski, Evander Kane, Timo Meier and area local Kevin Labanc. You get the picture. So daunting is this San Jose roster that even without a cleanly shaven Joe Thornton, the match up was worrisome. It’s funny because when my brother got home, he told me he thought they would win. Maybe he just had a sixth sense.

It was the way the Rangers won that was shocking. After being totally outplayed for two periods, they rose up with a great third to tie the game and win it 3-2 on Brady Skjei’s goal at 37 seconds of overtime. The celebration that followed was unbelievable. You would’ve thought they won the Cup. That’s how much excitement surrounded getting new coach David Quinn’s first NHL win. It’s clear that the players love him. The strong quotes from several players including the game’s number one star, Henrik Lundqvist tell you everything. He was sensational in making 41 saves. It was the kind of performance that made you smile. The 36-year old proud netminder showed the San Jose shooters he still has something left.

In a very fast paced game that featured several odd man rushes for the Sharks, the Rangers were under siege. They were outshot 33-13 following the second period. The attempts were in large favor of the teal. I think it wound up 80-50. That didn’t matter. What did is how hard this team competed in the third period to find the tying goal from unlikely hero Brendan Smith with 2:39 remaining in regulation. They never quit. They may not be the most talented, but the effort was why the Garden sounded louder than at any point last year.

It had to feel extra special for Smith to score off a beautiful backhand pass from Pavel Buchnevich at 17:21. Think about how bad last season was for him. Fresh off a new contract, he came into camp out of shape and performed terribly in games. Eventually, they put him on waivers where he cleared and finished a disappointing season with Hartford. He knew it was do or die this Fall, coming to camp in much better shape. Even Team President Glen Sather said that he didn’t recognize him when he saw him up close during a fan forum.

Smith has worked hard to get back in the lineup. I’m sure he’ll savor that moment. He made a great pinch to score on a perfect one timer from Buchnevich and emerging leader Jesper Fast. Fast has been involved in almost everything positive thus far. It’s nice to see the hard work paying off. He has a goal and three assists in four games. It doesn’t matter where Quinn puts him. He rubs off on teammates.

Skjei’s overtime winner was something else. Let’s just call it sheer determination. Following a San Jose turnover, he skated out of the zone and lead a two on one. Rather than pass, he surprised Sharks goalie Aaron Dell with a good shot that beat him, touching off a celebration along the boards. The cheers they heard from the fans was great. They sure deserved it. It’s only one win. But to hear Mats Zuccarello tell it, it meant plenty. He spoke about how much they wanted to win for Quinn in the locker room afterwards. Something that was repeated by teammates.

It would’ve been really easy to lose. At one point, the shots were 13-3 in the first. The weird thing was the Rangers created a few scoring chances in transition, but were unable to hit the net. The best one came from Vladislav Namestnikov. In the doghouse early, he played a strong game. He may have been on the fourth line with Filip Chytil and Vinni Lettieri, but the Russian forward was very active during his shifts. He made plays defensively and was much more noticeable offensively. On a two on one, Chytil centered for a cutting Namestnikov for what would’ve been a tap in. But it just missed connection. I really liked how he played. That’s more like it.

San Jose struck first on a shorthanded goal from Marcus Sorensen. A Skjei turnover allowed Sorensen to come the other direction with speed. He completely outskated two Blueshirts before whistling a laser top shelf by a shocked Lundqvist. It was a terrific individual effort. Also embarrassing for the Rangers power play.

Despite getting severely outplayed, the Rangers found the equalizer thanks to an amazing effort from surprising rookie Brett Howden. On a good shift with new linemates Zuccarello and Chris Kreider, he somehow scored his second of the season when he took a no look backhand shot between his legs that tricked Dell. It truly was unreal. Howden continues to impress with his play. He always is around the puck, and is one of the team’s best forecheckers. I liked Quinn mixing it up by bumping up Howden. He rewarded him unlike a previous coach.

San Jose didn’t have many power plays. But on one, the potent combo of former Norris winners Burns and Karlsson created some dangerous opportunities. The puck wizardry between the two lethal right shot defensemen is going to cause headaches for the rest of the league. On one such play, they played catch before Karlsson passed across for a deadly Burns one timer that Lundqvist got across on to stop. Burns has one of the hardest and most accurate shots. He also sent another shot high and over the top making a loud sound off the glass. Karlsson tried a shot from the right circle which Lundqvist swallowed.

It’s crazy to think they also have Vlasic on that blueline. Not to mention some dangerous shooters up front. Pavelski isn’t what he once was, but he was in a primary scoring position when his high labeler from the left circle was gloved down by a sharp Lundqvist.

San Jose went ahead again on another turnover. A Kreider shot was stopped by Dell, who got it to his defense. That one shot trapped three Rangers including Tony DeAngelo and Zuccarello. With Chytil unable to get on the ice due to a slow change, it was five on four. With only Adam McQuaid back on a three on one, that made it easy for Antti Suomela to get the puck across for an easy one timer from Joonas Donskoi upstairs from Burns. It was the only Sharks goal in a lopsided second that saw them outshoot the Rangers 16-9. I took a look at the attempts and it was very onesided. I couldn’t help but laugh. At least they weren’t the woeful Giants, who were busy humiliating themselves on Thursday Night Football against the hated Eagles.

The rest of the game was different. Like he has so many times before, Lundqvist gave his team a chance to steal it. They didn’t waste the third. Taking it to the Sharks, they began to force Dell into some difficult saves. With Lundqvist taking care of his side, it gave them enough confidence to finally tie the game.

Off a good cycle from Fast behind the net, Buchnevich came out with the puck and made a nice backhand pass for a cutting Smith, who finished for an emotional game tying goal with 2:39 left.

When it reached three on three, I wondered what the chances were they could win versus the Sharks. I pictured it being like Jim Carrey’s Lloyd character in Dumb and Dumber when he asks Mary (Lauren Holly) what his chances were at the end. She says, “More like one out of a million.” And he responds in classic form. Oh hell. I’ll link it up. It’s too appropriate not to.

This time, the underdog prevailed. Thanks to some hustle from Zuccarello defensively, Skjei played the hero on Broadway with an end to end goal with Zuccarello falling down and sliding by Dell as Skjei’s shot beat him. It was a great win. Now, they’ll turn the page to the Connor McDavid Oilers for a 1 PM Saturday matinee. Kevin Shattenkirk will be back. We don’t know who will be out. DeAngelo struggled in his second game. He could be a candidate due to Fredrik Claesson playing well in his Rangers debut.

Marc Staal stuck up for a teammate by not putting up with Kane’s crap. They received matching roughing minors. It was nice to see Staal do that. Nobody ever recognizes that he plays with necessary edge, battling opponents in the trenches. He took the Sharks leading scorer off the ice. A good job from the veteran leader.

Following the win, the players presented Quinn with the puck. He said he wished he could divide it up into 45 pieces. It was a special moment.

Three Rangers Stars 🌟

1st 🌟 Henrik Lundqvist 41 saves

2nd 🌟 Brendan Smith game tying goal

3rd 🌟 Brett Howden 2nd goal

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Game 2 – Devils 6, Capitals 0

Posted on October 12, 2018 by hasan4978

In what was certainly a first in franchise history, the Devils had their second home opener on two different continents last night – of course this one was at their more familiar home rink in Newark, NJ.  This was also a different home opener for yours truly because it’s the first one I’ve missed since the team moved to the Prudential Center in 2007.  It’s barely worth getting into why – suffice it to say, my friend who’s also been to every other home opener with me had already demurred with it being on a weeknight, and I also had a rec league dodgeball game I was compelled to show up for (a friendly grudge match against some other former teammates), especially since my team barely had enough for a full roster with me.

Since my own game didn’t start till 8:45 (bleh) I did at least have time to watch the pregame and the first period live.  Though annoyed at the pet peeve I had to miss both the first two home games this year – a football Sunday afternoon with the Jets playing was not exactly optimum for my first Newark trek of the season either – it’s still early in a long season and I’ve been to many other home openers and games more meaningful than that, both in the Prudential Center and at the Devils’ former home in the Meadowlands.  Honestly the salient details of most home openers, even wins have faded with time.  Not to mention two of my most memorable home openers at the Rock were dubious ones, a 4-1 loss to Ottawa in the first game at the Prudential Center and a meltdown against the Dallas Stars in 2010 that proved a harbinger for bad times to come that season.

More recently the Devils had won 4-1 against Colorado in last year’s season opener in Newark, and I certainly remembered the feeling in the building that night and watching the team play a dynamic all-around game against an Avalanche unit headed for its own surprising playoff appearance.  Yet the details are a bit fuzzy on that game too, guess when you go to 25-30 games a year you no longer remember little things.  I remembered Will Butcher getting three assists during a spectacular first game in the NHL, but couldn’t for the life of me remember any of the goalscorers.  I only bring this up since while watching the replay of the final two periods later on, the MSG trivia question was who scored the game-winning goal in that game?  Looking it up now and seeing it was actually the immortal Jimmy Hayes, I might not have gotten that one after fifteen guesses.  Interestingly none of the goalscorers that night (Hayes, Adam Henrique, John Moore or Jesper Bratt) were on the Opening Night roster this year though in Bratt’s case he will at least play games for the team this year, eventually.

If you’d asked me before last night whether the Devils would top that game against the defending Stanley Cup champs I’d have said no.  If I was a betting man I’d have put a good chunk of change on that.  Sure, the Caps were playing on the road for a second game in two nights with a backup goalie in Pheonix Copley that may or may not belong in the NHL.  Still, their Stanley Cup high had extended into the start of this season scoring eighteen goals in their first three games, beating up on the Bruins and Vegas in a Finals rematch and only losing a point against rival Pittsburgh when the Penguins put up seven of their own in an OT score-a-thon.  Not to mention the Caps have had our number in recent years, going 13-0-2 against us since December 2014.  Granted, one of the Devil wins was Taylor Hall’s marvelous OT winner in January that arguably started his run toward the Hart Trophy.

While I certainly didn’t see 6-love coming last night, from what I did watch in the first period live I was encouraged.  New Jersey jumped on the Caps from the first minute and dominated play, really they were unlucky not to be up by more than 2-0.  Poor Pavel Zacha alone missed a half-dozen glorious chances to score, most of them during that first period.  On the other hand, if Zacha’s still struggling to figure out how to put an offensive imprint on the game, Kyle Palmieri already knows – since he was the only one to break the lock on Copley’s net in the first period with two goals.  The first was a ‘goalscorer’s goal’, a term that I’m using half-sarcastically and half-honestly because it was a result of Palm crashing the net and having a loose puck redirect off his skate.  Sure he didn’t actually score the goal in the classic manner off the stick but it does seem those kinds of goals find guys who know how to score more than ones that don’t, especially when it represents doing the dirty work in front to earn that break.  His second goal later in the period was more skill than will as the Devils executed a quick, impressive power play leading to a sharp Palmieri wrister that gave the team a 2-0 lead and K-Palm his fourth goal in four periods this season.

Having to stop watching at that point, I was feeling pretty good but still not 100% confident in ultimate victory.  As it turned out, the Devils were just getting started.  Checking the score before my match I saw it got to 3-0 and was giddy.  I didn’t see it again till after both my game and the Devils were finished and I was jaw-drop surprised to see 6-love.  Was that a hockey game or a Serena Williams tennis set?  Being that it’s impossible for me to sleep for any more than 4-5 hours at most after doing physical activity that late at night (btw my team lost but gave it a heck of an effort in a near-miss comeback), I did at least get to watch the final two periods on tape between last night and this morning.  Honestly it could have been 10-0 for as much as the Devils dominated.  Goalie Keith Kinkaid had a couple of hair-raising moments in the second period and some fine saves but ultimately last night was total team dominance with contributions from every line.  Marcus Johansson got on the board against his former team in the second period, while bottom sixers Blake Coleman, Jean-Sebastian Dea and Brian Boyle all scored in the third period to turn a win into a shocking rout.

In a larger sense 2-0 means very little yet it’s the way they’ve gotten to 2-0 that might portend bigger things to come, especially with a continuation of the grit and effort they showed last year as a foundation for success.  None of the eleven goals in the team’s first two games have come from Hall or super soph Nico Hischier, which shows they’re getting more secondary scoring than they were last year.  Zacha, while not actually getting on the scoresheet is at least showing signs of life early this year – and in the meantime others are chipping in all around him.  Defensively it seems like the Mirco Mueller-Sami Vatanen first pairing is a legitimate thing now after two straight games where they managed to help keep in check the Connor McDavid and Alex Ovechkin lines at even strength (McDavid did have a hand in both Oilers goals, but neither was with Mueller on the ice and only one of them – a PP goal – with Vat on the ice).  Kinkaid’s been strong in his two games and will create a very interesting goalie dilemma once Cory Schneider’s healthy enough to play, most likely later this month.

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Rangers host Sharks: Neal Pionk will sit tonight for Fredrik Claesson

Posted on October 11, 2018 by Derek

In Game 4 of the new season, rookie coach David Quinn continues to juggle the lineup. With the Rangers still looking for a win, he made clear that veteran Kevin Shattenkirk will be a healthy scratch tonight versus San Jose.

To the 29-year old defenseman’s credit, he took the news well. Shattenkirk understands that Tony DeAngelo earned a spot in the lineup. He is aware that he must be better. Quinn wants to see a more confident Shattenkirk when he comes back in for Saturday. That means better decisions with the puck.

This is in no way a punishment. It’s a message to a talented player who’s returning from off-season knee surgery. Shattenkirk isn’t the only defenseman coming out of the lineup. Quinn wasn’t happy with Neal Pionk the other night in Carolina. So, he will be in the press box too while former Ottawa blueliner Fredrik Claesson gets his first start tonight.

A ex-teammate of newest Shark Erik Karlsson, Claesson even paired with the former Norris winner parts of the last two seasons. Having gone out for dinner last night with his Swedish buddy, he’s hoping Karlsson won’t score later.

It’s definitely a different time to be a Ranger fan. They’re 0-for-3 so far and could be one of the NHL’s doormats. I don’t think they’re devoid of talent. Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Pavel Buchnevich, Kevin Hayes, Mats Zuccarello, Jesper Fast and Brady Skjei are all capable players. Henrik Lundqvist can’t do it by himself.

Filip Chytil and Brett Howden have shown glimpses, which should excite the fan base. Ryan Spooner and Vladislav Namestnikov must do more than they have so far.

Some of the impatient fans are already frustrated. They want to know when Marc Staal will sit. He’s one of the team leaders. When he makes mistakes, it’s not due to poor effort. However, it doesn’t mean he’s immune from criticism. Even Zuccarello isn’t.

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Can they beat a scary opponent like San Jose for their first victory? Only if they play up to capability and turn the page from Sunday’s debacle. The Sharks have plenty of firepower both up front and on the blueline. A defense that features Karlsson with Brent Burns along with overlooked Marc-Edouard Vlasic is intimidating. Don’t put them on the power play.

Evander Kane is up to four goals after scoring twice in a rout of the Flyers. Brooklyn’s own Kevin Labanc tallied four assists. He is a crafty, hard working player with ties to Staten Island and New Jersey where he played for the Rockets. Timo Meier is an emerging star with great hands. Logan Couture remains a complete center, who is lethal in all situations. Joe Pavelski is older, but still is a royal pain in the ass in front.

It’s too bad Joe Thornton is out with an injury. He remains one of the game’s best passing big men. The future Hall of Famer still has something left.

Martin Jones is the starting goalie. He’s off to a slow start. Cancel that. It’ll be San Jose backup Aaron Dell, who goes for a second consecutive time. He got the win in a blowout win over Philly. So, the disrespect starts in Game 4.

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In scratching Shattenkirk for Thursday, Quinn is sending a message to Rangers

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Derek

In a move that should come as no surprise, it appears that new coach David Quinn will make veteran defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk a healthy scratch for Thursday’s home game against the Sharks. In an ugly 8-5 loss at Carolina on Sunday, he totaled only 7:29 of ice time with 3:22 coming on the power play. It was a eye opening realization that no player is safe from being made an example of.

These aren’t your grandfather’s Rangers anymore. Accountability is part of Quinn’s vocabulary. The country club atmosphere under the old unnamed coach is gone. We’ve already seen Quinn sit out Kevin Hayes and Pavel Buchnevich for shifts in the third period at Buffalo. He went with other players down the stretch who he felt were going in a 3-1 defeat on Saturday. Marc Staal only played 14:20 while Hayes received 12:48. Buchnevich still finished with 15:19.

Quinn hasn’t been shy about moving players around during games. He’s used rookie Brett Howden in different roles due to his uncanny ability to be around the puck. The former Lightning center prospect acquired as part of the Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller trade, makes things happen. With a goal and a primary assist on Chris Kreider’s first goal of the season the other day, he has been moved up to the third line in practice. It looks like he’ll center Kreider and Mats Zuccarello in the team’s fourth game. They’re still searching for their first win.

Rookie Filip Chytil has been dropped down to center a fourth line with Vladislav Namestnikov and Vinni Lettieri. It isn’t a punishment for the 19-year old Chytil, who’s recorded two assists thus far. It’s more of a reward for the active Howden. Maybe Chytil’s skill can aid the fourth line.

Nothing is etched in stone. For those upset over the KZB line of Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Buchnevich being broken up, it’s due to the trio not producing at five on five. Zibanejad remains without a goal while being shaky in coverage on goals against. Buchnevich has tallied twice with both goals coming a man up. One with the goalie pulled in the Rangers home opener on a redirect of a Zibanejad shot. The other on a rebound from Zuccarello and Tony DeAngelo for the team’s first power play goal on Sunday. So, Buchnevich and Zibanejad will work with Jesper Fast, who already has a goal and two assists. He’s been their best skater followed by Jimmy Vesey, who remains on a line with Hayes and Ryan Spooner.

DeAngelo made his first appearance of the season in the club’s third game. Used as a seventh defenseman initially, his play impressed Quinn enough to merit taking a regular shift over the benched Shattenkirk, who struggled with a minus-two rating. DeAngelo rewarded the coach with a strong game recording two assists in 17:34. That included a nice read on a Hayes pass at the point to move to the middle and get off a tricky shot that allowed Buchnevich to score on the power play.

Satisfied with DeAngelo, Quinn will keep him in the lineup for Thursday’s match. He’ll pair with Staal while getting Shattenkirk’s extra minutes on the power play. For the hometown kid who signed a nice deal in the summer of 2017, it’s an early wake up call with a coach he’s familiar with. To his credit, he’s handled it well.

It can’t be easy for Shattenkirk to be faced with sitting out so early. However, the proud 29-year old from New Rochelle knows he must be better when he returns. No points and a minus-four isn’t how he envisioned putting last year’s nightmarish first season on Broadway behind him. It’s worth noting he only played in two preseason games at the end due to off-season knee surgery. It could take some time.

One thing is abundantly clear. It doesn’t matter who you are. Quinn isn’t screwing around. There are other candidates (Staal, Zibanejad, Zuccarello) who could find themselves where Shattenkirk is. It may only be three games in, but this is a results oriented business. The days of getting off the hook are gone.

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