Ruhwedel deserves credit for filling in on Rangers’ blue line

Posted on March 30, 2024 by Derek

When the Rangers visit the Coyotes later this afternoon, it’ll mark the return of Jacob Trouba.

He missed the last 11 games due to a lower-body injury. Without him, the Rangers went 9-2-0. They’ll bring a four-game winning streak into The Desert on Saturday.

A big reason for the team’s success without their captain has been the improved depth on the back end. The consistent play of Zac Jones and deadline acquisition Chad Ruhwedel helped stabilize the defense.  Both have been steady players since entering the lineup due to injuries that kept Trouba, Ryan Lindgren, and Erik Gustafsson sidelined.

Lindgren just returned in the Rangers’ 3-2 shootout win over the Avalanche on Thursday night.

With Trouba ready to be back in the lineup, that leaves Gustafsson as the only regular who’s missing. However, Jones has been so consistent that they haven’t missed Gustafsson. When he’s ready, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette will have an interesting decision to make.

When Ruhwedel was brought in by Rangers team president and general manager Chris Drury, it was an insurance policy. He made the move in correlation to knowing Trouba was going to miss time this month.

As it turned out, adding the 33-year-old  veteran defenseman who won a Stanley Cup with the Penguins was a wise move. In five games, he’s played solid defensively for the Blueshirts.

Ruhwedel has made several blocks and taken the body while averaging a shade over 14 minutes. Laviolette even had him out for a key defensive shift in the final minute of a tie game against the Flyers on Mar. 26. He rewarded the coach with a responsible shift that helped the Rangers reach overtime. Adam Fox’s goal won a wild game 6-5 at Madison Square Garden.

With Trouba finally ready, it probably means that Ruhwedel won’t see too much action down the stretch. The Rangers are still battling a few other teams for the league’s best record. He deserves credit for how well he filled in. It isn’t an easy job. But Ruhwedel has shown why he was a good pickup.

The Rangers play Game 74 later at Arizona. They’ll have eight games left on the regular season schedule. That includes Sidney Crosby and the Penguins paying a visit to the World’s Most Famous Arena on Monday following Easter.

Astonishingly, it’ll be the only time fans will get to see one of the game’s all-time greats play on center stage. The Pens are heading for a second consecutive postseason miss. Crosby has remained over a point-per-game at 36. If you can get to MSG for the game, it’ll be well worth it.

The reminder of the schedule includes the Devils, at the Red Wings, the Canadiens, at the Islanders, and then the final three home games versus the Flyers, Islanders, and Senators.

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Rangers find a way in shootout win over Avalanche

Posted on March 29, 2024 by Derek

The Rangers have now won a league-leading 49 games. They found a way past the Avalanche in a 3-2 shootout victory last night in Colorado.

In a marquee matchup that featured two of the league’s best teams, the Rangers banked points 101 and 102 to stay first overall with nine games remaining. They have a one-point lead on the Stars for the President’s Trophy. The Bruins and Hurricanes have 99 points. The Avalanche and Canucks each have 98.

Whether or not they grab home ice for the entire playoffs, the Rangers continue to win consistently this season.

Two days removed from pulling out a wild 6-5 overtime victory over the Flyers at home, they went on the road and beat an elite team. The Avalanche boasts Hart candidate Nathan MacKinnon, Norris candidate Cale Makar, and Mikko Rantanen. They’re three of the game’s best players.

Colorado is in a battle with Dallas for first place in the Central Division. The former 2021-22 Stanley Cup champs upgraded their roster by adding center Casey Mittelstadt at the trade deadline in exchange for defenseman Bowen Byram. Despite being without Gabriel Landeskog for the whole season, they remain formidable.

Led by MacKinnon, whose 123 points (45-78-123) rank second in scoring behind Nikita Kucherov (42-82-124), they are an explosive offense. Rantanen and Makar are dynamic stars who can strike on any shift. Makar has the ability to jump in on the rush and cause headaches for opponents. He nearly ended the game in overtime when he went around K’Andre Miller.

A subplot was the head to head goalie battle between former teammates Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev. Shesterkin was particularly strong in the later stages – stopping 16 of 17 shots during the third period. He followed that up by making five more saves in overtime. That included a diving stop to prevent a sure goal.

Overall, Shesterkin made 38 saves and stopped both Mittelstadt and Rantanen in the shootout to get the win. He was selected as the game’s third star. They gave Artemi Panarin the first star for scoring in the first round of the skill competition. As brilliant as Panarin’s been, Shesterkin was the best player on Thursday night. He stood on his head.

Unlike Tuesday night, goals were hard to come by. There was no scoring until Mittelstadt beat Shesterkin with 33 seconds remaining in the second period. He took a good back pass from Brandon Duhaime and scored his 17th goal to give the Avalanche a 1-0 lead.

Miller was occupied with Duhaime, who made a good play. Panarin went to the bench on a line change. The Avalanche took advantage of that. Vincent Trocheck was too late to pick up Mittelstadt on the goal.

Through two periods, play was pretty even. The Avalanche led in shots 18-16. Each side only had six in a tight checking first. Colorado held a 12-10 edge in the second.

Trailing by one, the Rangers came back early in the third period to tie and grab the lead. On a smart play behind the Avalanche net, Kaapo Kakko stuck with it to bank the puck off Georgiev and in for an unassisted goal that tied the score at 2:59. It was his 11th goal.

Alex Wennberg returned to the lineup after missing the Flyers game. He was back between Kakko and Jonny Brodzinski. The fourth line consisted of Barclay Goodrow between Will Cuylle and Jimmy Vesey. Matt Rempe had the night off.

The biggest story was the return of Ryan Lindgren. Less than two weeks ago, he suffered a leg injury versus the Islanders when he and Jean-Gabriel Pageau came together. It looked serious. Fortunately, Lindgren didn’t miss significant time. He’s a warrior.

Lindgren was back on the top pair with Fox. He took 27 shifts and blocked three shots in 21:11 of ice time. Jacob Trouba skated at yesterday’s practice in a regular jersey. He’s getting closer to returning. Even without the Rangers’ captain and Erik Gustafsson, they’ve gotten steady play from veteran Chad Ruhwedel. He and Zac Jones have been consistent.

With the Rangers and Avalanche even on the scoreboard, Panarin drew a holding minor on Zach Parise. On just their second power play, the Blueshirts went to work. On a Panarin point shot, the puck went off Trocheck in front right to Chris Kreider, who scored his team-leading 14th power-play goal. It was the 299th goal of his career.

Following the goal, Avalanche coach Jared Bednar decided to challenge the play for a hand pass. They thought the puck was played illegally by Trocheck. However, the refs determined that it wasn’t a hand pass, making it a good goal. The puck deflected off Trocheck to Kreider for his 34th of the season. That put the Rangers ahead by one with 10:25 left in the third.

Due to the failed coach’s challenge, the Rangers went back on the power play. Unlike the successful five-on-four that they had previously, they were unable to take advantage of the opportunity. That left the door open for the Avalanche.

With the Avs applying heavy pressure, they finally found a way to tie the game. On a dominant shift from their top line, Devon Toews took a MacKinnon feed and fired a one-timer that Shesterkin made the save on. However, Lindgren accidentally put the puck in his own net. He tried to tuck it underneath Shesterkin. Instead, it became an unassisted goal for Toews. That tied the score with 7:13 left in regulation.

After Toews’ tying goal, the Avalanche had a few chances to go ahead. Makar missed wide on a dangerous opportunity. Parise had a shot go off the goalpost. Shesterkin made a few timely saves to help the Rangers force extras.

In the three-on-three portion, he made a couple of clutch stops to keep it alive. The Rangers played the overtime without Adam Fox, who took a puck up high late in regulation. He was okay. Miller, Jones, and Braden Schneider took the shifts in OT.

With time winding down, Trocheck got one final shot right on Georgiev, who made the glove save at the buzzer.

In Round 1 of the shootout, Panarin used a forehand deke to beat Georgiev upstairs. After Shesterkin foiled Mittelstadt, Mika Zibanejad tried to go to one but lost control of the puck. Georgiev looked to be there anyway.

Following a strong save from Shesterkin on Rantanen, Trocheck came out as the Rangers’ third shooter. He faked and then beat Georgiev to clinch the victory.

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Fox’s goal in overtime lifts the Rangers past the Flyers in old-fashioned shootout

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Derek

For two periods, the score was normal. Then, came a wild and wacky third period that was totally unpredictable.

In what turned into an old fashioned shootout, the Rangers edged the Flyers 6-5 in overtime on Tuesday night at The Garden. Adam Fox scored 36 seconds into OT to give them the win on home ice.

The victory kept the Rangers a point up on the Bruins for first overall in the league. They became the first team to reach 100 points this season. Combined with a rare Hurricanes’ loss to the Penguins, they now lead the Metropolitan Division by three points with 10 games remaining.

By winning over the Flyers, who earned a point to stay in third place over the red hot Capitals (4-3 OT winners over the Red Wings), the Rangers rewarded coach Peter Laviolette with career win number 800. He became the seventh coach to reach the milestone.

When Fox beat Flyers’ goalie Samuel Ersson, Laviolette cracked a smile. Assistant coaches Phil Housley, Michael Peca, and Dan Muse congratulated him on the achievement. Laviolette then was all business by heading back to the winners’ locker room.

Fox’s career high 15th goal also clinched a playoff berth. The Rangers are officially in the postseason. During the postgame, Laviolette was quick to point out that it wasn’t a big deal. They knew they’d make it. It’s all about what happens ahead.

While Fox earned the game’s first star for posting the overtime winner and an assist to give him 63 points in 62 games to push his late Norris campaign, Alexis Lafreniere was the Rangers’ best player on the night. The former 2020 top pick was super throughout the game – scoring twice in a high scoring third period that defied logic.

Lafreniere now ranks second behind Artemi Panarin on the team in even strength goals. His pair both came at five-on-five to pull ahead of Chris Kreider. Of his 22 goals, 20 have come at even strength. Panarin leads the Blueshirts with 33 even strength goals.

The Rangers skated without three of their starting defensemen. Erik Gustafsson was the latest to go down to injury. Hartford recall Brandon Scanlin made his NHL debut. He logged 10:46 of ice time while partnered with Chad Ruhwedel on the third pair. Ruhwedel again had a solid game, even taking a key defensive shift with less than a minute left in regulation. The former Penguin hasn’t made any glaring mistakes.

They also were without Alex Wennberg, who missed the game due to a family emergency. His wife is pregnant. She’s due with the new baby soon. We’ll know more about the situation.

In another twist, Jonny Brodzinski scored a big goal to touch off a seven-goal third. The Rangers outscored the Flyers 4-3. Previously, they trailed 2-0 more than midway through the second until Mika Zibanejad scored a crucial power-play goal that gave them some momentum.

Before that, they were badly outplayed by a desperate Flyers team battling to make the playoffs. They lost a lot of battles and were sloppy defensively. For too long, the Rangers looked flat and uninspired. They were outskated by a wide margin.

In what was a scoreless first, the Flyers had the better of the play by firing 15 shots on Igor Shesterkin. However, most came from the outside. Aside from a Lafreniere turnover that led to Shesterkin denying Bobby Brink one on one, he didn’t have to work too hard in the period.

On the flip side, the Rangers had nine shots on Ersson. He made one strong glove save. Aside from that, he didn’t face much pressure.

Early into the second, the Flyers grabbed the lead. Taking advantage of a bad line change, Travis Sanheim moved the puck up for Travis Konecny. He then found Scott Laughton open for a wrist shot from the right circle that beat Shesterkin at 2:58.

On the play, the Rangers changed their forwards without getting the puck deep. That left Braden Schneider and K’Andre Miller without any help. Miller was too far over to the middle to recover and prevent Laughton’s shot. It was a total team breakdown.

Continuing to look out of sorts, the Rangers were two steps behind the Flyers. They were out of sync. When Vincent Trocheck went off for tripping Tyson Foerster, the league’s worst ranked power play connected to take a two-goal lead.

Defenseman Egor Zamula passed across for a Laughton one-timer that came right to Ryan Poehling in front for an easy put away that made it 2-0 with 8:21 left in the second.

At that moment, it looked like the Flyers would cruise to a victory. But an errant Foerster high stick on Fox in the offensive zone with just over five minutes left swung the momentum.

The Rangers remain one of the league’s most dangerous power plays. They entered tied with the Panthers for the fourth rated at 25.9 percent.

On the man-advantage, they had full control of the puck. Able to get it set up, they worked it around up top. Fox moved the puck across to Panarin at the left point. He then passed over for a Zibanejad wrist shot that went through a Chris Kreider screen past Ersson stick side.

Still trailing by one at the start of the third, the Rangers drew even thanks to Brodzinski. Only in the lineup due to the absence of Wennberg, Brodzinski took a pass from Kaapo Kakko and got his sixth of the season to tie it at 1:23.

Suddenly, with the crowd alive, the Rangers used the energy in the building to surge ahead. On a strong shift from Lafreniere and Zibanejad, whom Laviolette put together during the second, a fluky bounce led to Lafreniere scoring unassisted at 2:57. Zibanejad sent a puck towards the Flyers’ net that took a funny hop in front right to Lafreniere for a backhand that went in for a 3-2 lead.

After scoring three in a row, they spent an extended shift in the Flyers’ end. However, a Jimmy Vesey shot from a sharp angle missed wide to trap his teammates. That allowed Konecny to come in on a breakaway and score his 31st unassisted to tie it back up.

From that point, the period became unpredictable. With Zac Jones in the box for high-sticking, the Flyers turned over the puck inside the blue line. Konecny lost his balance. That led to a two-on-one between Zibanejad and Trocheck. He got the puck across for a Trocheck shorthanded goal that put the Rangers back up 4-3 with 10:26 remaining.

However, the lead was short-lived. On a smart lob pass from Morgan Frost, the puck came right to Owen Tippett at the Ranger blue line. He then broke away from a chasing Miller and whistled a backhand that banked off the goalpost and in. That came 2:11 later.

Laviolette decided to reunite his best line. The move worked. On a strong offensive shift, Panarin got the puck to Trocheck, who had the puck come right to Lafreniere for a quick shot past Ersson for his second of the game. His career best 22nd goal, put the Rangers back in front 5-4.

With the Flyers’ urgency increasing, a broken play led to Foerster jamming in a rebound to again tie it at five with 3:31 left in regulation.

In overtime, it didn’t take long for the game to end. On some hustle from Panarin in the corner to keep a play alive, that allowed Trocheck and Fox to play catch. Eventually, Fox came in and fired a wrist shot that went blocker side to give the Rangers the exciting 6-5 win in extras.

With three assists in the victory, Panarin now is up to 102 points. He became only the seventh Ranger to record 100 points in a single season. Jaromir Jagr was the last player to do it in 2005-06.

The other five Rangers include Mark Messier, Brian Leetch, Jean Ratelle, Vic Hadfield, and Mike Rogers.

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Panarin boosts MVP candidacy by shooting Rangers past Panthers into first overall

Posted on March 24, 2024 by Derek

In a showdown between two playoff contenders, the Rangers came back to defeat the Panthers 4-3 in a shootout on Saturday night at The Garden.

Artemi Panarin’s goal in the second round stood up as the winner. The emerging Hart candidate also scored twice to hike his goal total to a career best 43.

Following Carter Verhaeghe putting the Panthers ahead 3-2 with 4:08 left in regulation, Panarin took a Zac Jones feed and had his shot carom off a Panther’s skate for the game-tying goal with 3:25 remaining. It answered Verhaeghe’s goal only 43 seconds later.

On the goal, Alexis Lafreniere was battling in front. Originally, it looked like he might’ve put in the loose rebound. However, the replay clearly showed that it was Panarin’s goal. The way his season has gone, it isn’t surprising.

Everything has come up roses for the Bread Man. After Sam Reinhart evened the shootout at one to answer a beautiful goal by Mika Zibanejad, Panarin made a great move to the far right before finding just enough room to fire the puck underneath the glove of Sergei Bobrovsky.

Igor Shesterkin made stops on Anton Lundell and Vladimir Tarasenko to seal the victory.

That allowed the Rangers to pass the Bruins for first overall in the NHL with 98 points. They are in play for the President’s Trophy. A point up on Boston with 11 games remaining, they can clinch home ice for the entire playoffs.

It’s hard to say where they’d be without Panarin. With a pair of goals, he’s up to a career high 99 points. His next point will be number 100. It’s been a special season for him. Panarin leads Vincent Trocheck by 30 points for the team lead in scoring.

That’s overlooked by most of the national media who cover the sport. MVP candidates Nathan MacKinnon, Nikita Kucherov, and Auston Matthews have stronger support. If the Rangers finish at the top of the league, that could work in Panarin’s favor. He’s so much better than every other forward that it should be noteworthy.

When he was up for the award in 2019-20, Panarin probably deserved to finish higher than third. Leon Draisaitl ran away with it while MacKinnon finished runner-up. If history repeats, then nothing has changed. This isn’t to say that MacKinnon or Kucherov aren’t deserving. They boast pretty talented teammates. Unless you think Mikko Rantanen and Brayden Point aren’t helping each candidate’s cases.

Panarin is responsible for Lafreniere’s breakout season. If Trocheck surpasses his career high in points (75), it’ll be due in large part to playing with Panarin. He picked up three assists in the victory to pull within six points of matching his career best season back in 2017-18 with the Panthers.

Sometimes, the most valuable player doesn’t need to have the most goals or points. They can carry a team.

The Rangers weren’t expected to be in first place this late in the season. Yet here they are atop the Metropolitan Division and tops in the league. That’s a credit to how well Peter Laviolette has coached. Unlike his predecessor, he hasn’t been afraid to double shift Panarin. That’s paid dividends.

The most impressive part has been Panarin’s consistent work ethic. He’s played well in all facets, including coming back defensively. Under Laviolette, the 32-year-old left wing has played the best hockey of his career. He’s been more involved in the forecheck and backcheck. It’s led to a special year.

In the third and final regular season meeting, both clubs skated without key players. The Panthers didn’t have Aleksander Barkov for a second straight game. Aaron Ekblad and Gustav Forsling also sat out. The Rangers were again minus defensemen Ryan Lindgren and Jacob Trouba.

Laviolette made one change to the lineup. Opting to give Will Cuylle a night off, he inserted Jonny Brodzinski. He wants to make sure all 13 forwards stay fresh. It was Cuylle’s first healthy scratch of the season. Matt Rempe stayed on the fourth line. He heard his name chanted by the crowd.

The first period wasn’t the most exciting brand of hockey. That might’ve been due to the game’s importance. The Rangers also wanted to play a bit better defensively. It helped not to face Barkov. However, they’ve continued to manage well thanks to Jones and Chad Ruhwedel filling in admirably on the blue line for Lindgren and Trouba.

With the game still scoreless, the Panthers struck first with under 12 minutes left. Josh Mahura took a Verhaeghe pass and let go of a wrist shot that Matthew Tkachuk tipped home for his 23rd goal of the season. After a slow start, the dominant power forward is having a strong finish. Nobody will want to face him in the first round.

The Rangers failed to capitalize on a power play late in the period. With Oliver Ekman-Larsson off for taking down Trocheck, the power play was mostly one and done against an aggressive Panthers’ penalty kill. They didn’t get much set up.

After getting outshot 11-8 in the first, the second period didn’t start well for the Rangers. It took the Panthers just 21 seconds to double their lead.

On a play in transition, Reinhart took advantage of a sliding Erik Gustafsson to dish the puck across to Eetu Luostarinen for an easy tap in that put the Rangers behind by two.

But they got back in it thanks to the power play. After Kyle Okposo held Adam Fox, Trocheck and Zibanejad combined to get the puck to an open Fox. With plenty of time and space, he moved in and beat Bobrovsky with a wrist shot for his career best 14th. That cut the deficit to one with 13:38 remaining.

Just over two minutes later, Panarin struck for his 42nd to tie the game at two. Following a Panthers’ turnover, Fox and Trocheck combined to set up a quick Panarin one-timer that beat Bobrovsky.

The Rangers got some more opportunities in the second half of the period. But Bobrovsky kept them off the scoreboard. On the opposite end, Shesterkin was steady in stopping all 12 shots he faced. Bobrovsky made 13 saves on 13 shots in a busier second.

For most of the third period, it looked like neither goalie would budge. In particular, Bobrovsky. He faced more pressure but held up well.

It was the opportunistic Panthers that clawed back ahead with 4:08 left in the third. On some sustained pressure down low by Tkachuk, Brandon Montour pinched to get the puck to Verhaeghe. He then came out and got to the right circle, where he roofed a shot past Shesterkin to the short side. It was one he should’ve had.

However, the Rangers came back on the next shift to draw even. On some good work from Trocheck, Panarin took a Jones pass and took a shot that deflected off a Panther and in.

After nothing was decided in a good overtime that saw each side get four shots, including a Zibanejad to Chris Kreider set up that was denied by a sliding Bobrovsky, the game required a shootout.

In the top of the first, Zibanejad put on a series of moves before pulling off a Forsberg to tuck a backhand past Bobrovsky. But in the bottom half, Reinhart answered by going top shelf on Shesterkin.

Out came Panarin for Round 2. He was very patient by going to a deke that took him wide. He then found enough real estate to shoot the puck past Bobrovsky.

After Shesterkin made a save on Lundell, Laviolette wanted Trocheck to take the clincher. Facing his former team, he went for a simple wrist shot that Bobrovsky swallowed up.

That left it up to Tarasenko and Shesterkin. Facing his one-time teammate, Shesterkin wasn’t having it. He denied Tarasenko down low to seal the win.

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Dubinsky should shut up about Tortorella

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Derek

When a former player retires, they can become part of the media. They can provide a unique perspective due to having played the game.

We’ve seen plenty of examples of ex- players who make good analysts. Kevin Weekes tops the list. The affable former goalie can be seen on NHL Network and also on ESPN, where he calls games. His great personality shines while he gives good insight.

Former Ranger Henrik Lundqvist has already become one of the better hockey analysts. He can be seen on TNT for their national telecasts. When he isn’t there, he is also a frequent guest on MSG Network, breaking down Ranger games with Steve Valiquette. It seems that King Henrik is as good at analyzing as he was between the crease.

Not everyone is going to stand out talking puck following their career. One example is Brandon Dubinsky. A former Ranger and Blue Jacket, who had a solid career as a middle six center, Dubinsky can sometimes come off biased. Especially when it comes to former coach John Tortorella.

He played for Tortorella both in New York City and Columbus. They had an icy relationship. During 2011-12, Dubinsky was a player who sometimes saw his role decrease in the Big Apple.

A year removed from being part of a homegrown first line that featured former Rangers’ draft picks, Artem Anisimov and Ryan Callahan, he lost some playing time due to key additions, Brad Richards and Marian Gaborik. As a center, he didn’t fit on the top two lines – leaving him to play a checking role.

Following the season, Dubinsky was packaged to Columbus for Rick Nash. Ironically, Tortorella would take over the Blue Jackets bench a bit later. The franchise had its only success under the fiery coach. He guided them to the postseason four straight times between 2016-17 thru 2018-20.

That included a mammoth upset of the Lightning in the first round in 2019. They swept the President’s Trophy winner to advance to the second round for the only time in franchise history. Dubinsky was part of that roster, playing a checking role under Tortorella. An area he excelled at. During that era, he was frequently matched up against Sidney Crosby whenever they faced the Penguins. It was an intense rivalry.

Unfortunately, injuries derailed Dubinsky’s career. As it turned out, he played his final game during the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He was done at 32.

Since then, Dubinsky has become more vocal in the media. When it comes to his former coach, there’s no love lost. Recently, he criticized Tortorella for healthy scratching Flyers captain Sean Couturier. Couturier has been struggling to contribute on a team in playoff contention.

With the stakes high, Tortorella opted to sit out Couturier against the Maple Leafs earlier this week. The Flyers responded by winning the game 4-3. They earned a point in a 3-2 overtime loss last night against Carolina. Couturier didn’t play again.

Still holding a grudge over how he was handled by Tortorella, Dubinsky sounded off on the situation in Philadelphia.

Maybe Dubinsky needs to take a timeout. If a player isn’t getting it done, that doesn’t make them above being sat out. Couturier is well-respected in the Flyers locker room. It hasn’t been an easy year for the center. Unfortunately, Tortorella had to make a tough decision. That’s why he’s the coach.

Currently, the Flyers sit third in the Metropolitan Division with 79 points. That’s four more than the Capitals, who have two games at hand. It’s six clear of the Islanders and seven up on the Devils.

Entering the season, the Flyers weren’t expected to compete for the playoffs. Nobody told Tortorella or his players. They are in the race because they’ve overachieved. It’s a credit to Tortorella, who finds ways to motivate his players.

Somehow, Dubinsky thought it was a good idea to rip into Tortorella for benching Couturier. I guess he didn’t look at the standings. If the Flyers make the playoffs, it’ll be similar to what Tortorella did with Dubinsky’s former team in Columbus.

Next time, maybe he should not say anything.

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Panarin’s hat trick helps Quick tie for the most wins all-time by an American-born goalie

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Derek

It was a memorable night in Boston for Artemi Panarin and Jonathan Quick. In what proved to be a statement game, the Rangers took down the number one overall Bruins 5-2 at TD Garden on Thursday night.

Facing their old Original 6 rival, they defeated them for the third time to sweep the season series. In three games, the Rangers outscored the Bruins 14-6. They were the better team in each matchup. Whether that translates to the postseason, time will tell. A lot can happen between now and then.

By prevailing over the Bruins, the Rangers maintained their two-point Metropolitan Division lead over the Hurricanes, who refused to lose by edging the Flyers 3-2 in overtime. It looks like the race for first place will go down to the wire.

The Bruins are in a close race for first in the Atlantic Division. They still lead the Panthers by three points. Florida lost to the Predators 3-0. Boston leads the league with 97 points. That’s one more than the Rangers, who are in contention for the President’s Trophy.

To be honest, I don’t care about it. While clinching home ice for the entire playoffs is nice, there’s no guarantee it’ll work out. As evidenced by the record-breaking Bruins last year, it meant nothing when they were upset by the Panthers in the first round.

There’s plenty of pressure on whoever earns the number one overall seed. It’s better to be healthy and to be  playing well going into the postseason.

For the Rangers, who are without Jacob Trouba and Ryan Lindgren, they continue to win games. Credit must be given to both Zac Jones and Chad Ruhwedel for how well they’ve played since entering the lineup. Jones has especially opened some eyes with his mistake free hockey. He’s making a case to be in the lineup full-time.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette will have to determine if they’re better off with Jones over his favorite veteran, Erik Gustafsson. Gustafsson has had a good season. He picked up a primary assist on Adam Fox’s go-ahead goal in the third period, which answered a Justin Brazeau goal 40 seconds earlier.

The assist gave Gustafsson 30 points in 69 games this season. While he’s been a reliable player who stepped up to pair with Fox in Lindgren’s absence, there’s a case to be made that Jones might be the better overall player. His defense has improved. Sometimes, Gustafsson has some hiccups. But he’s part of the second power play unit that now features Alex Wennberg, along with Alexis Lafreniere, Kaapo Kakko, and Jack Roslovic.

While all of this is interesting, the biggest story was Quick tying Ryan Miller for the most wins by an American-born goalie all-time with the 391st of his career. In particular, he was especially good during the first period when the Bruins had the better of the play.

Quick stopped 13 of 14 shots in a busy opening period. A few came from directly in front. He also delivered in the clutch to deny Brad Marchand on a one-timer from the slot with the Bruins trailing by one in the third period. That pad save helped ensure that he would tie Miller for the American record. He finished the game with 24 saves.

Where would the Rangers be without Panarin? Certainly not as high in the standings. He continues to score at a high clip. By netting his third hat trick of the season, Panarin eclipsed the 40-goal mark for the first time in his career.

That included him getting a pair during a better second period by the Rangers. After falling behind on a Jake DeBrusk goal following a Bruins power play with 11:56 remaining in the first, they picked up their game in the middle stanza.

Starting to use their speed and skill to dictate the terms, they outshot the Bruins 13-6. The puck mostly belonged to the Rangers. They were quicker to pucks and generated better attack time.

Unlike the first when the only line that was visible was the third line of Alex Wennberg, Kaapo Kakko, and Will Cuylle, there were fewer passengers in the second. That produced better results.

If there’s one observation to make from this recent stretch, it’s that both K’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider are flourishing. Since being put together, they’ve been a staple on the blue line. Miller works better with Schneider, who’s a quicker skater than Trouba. There’s a serious case for them to remain intact when Trouba returns in a couple of weeks.

Still down by a goal, Schneider made an instinctive play that led to Panarin getting his 39th goal. His pinch kept the play alive in the offensive zone. Lafreniere tipped the puck in the direction of Panarin, who finished the play in front to even the game.

With the game still tied and less than a minute left in the period, an aggressive Wennberg made a subtle play that forced a turnover behind the Bruins’ net. That allowed the puck to come right to Panarin, who had his centering pass bank in off DeBrusk for number 40 with 35 seconds remaining to put the Rangers ahead 2-1.

Early in the third period, the Bruins got the equalizer. On some hard work behind the Rangers’ net started by Jesper Boqvist, Marchand moved the puck towards the net where Brazeau positioned himself on Miller to steer in a rebound past Quick at 3:17.

The tying goal came with the fourth line stuck out. It marked the return of Matt Rempe. He was effective in limited action (5:11), even nearly setting up a goal on a power move. However, he was caught on with Barclay Goodrow and Jimmy Vesey for Brazeau’s goal. In truth, it was a good play by the Bruins’ trio of forwards.

Before you could look up, Fox put the Rangers back ahead just 40 seconds later. On a good forecheck from Jack Roslovic, he moved the puck to Mika Zibanejad. Zibanejad then passed it to Gustafsson. He then fed a pinching Fox, who fooled Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman by firing a wrist shot short side for a new career high 13th goal. His previous best was 12 last season.

The Bruins didn’t get many good looks following the goal. They were outshot 9-6. It was more due to how disciplined the Rangers were defensively. They did a great job shutting down David Pastrnak. One of the game’s best players, he was kept off the score sheet. His most dangerous opportunity came when he missed a one-timer from the left circle with his team trailing by one.

Quick wasn’t required to make many difficult stops. The only tough one came when he stoned Marchand in front with a right pad save. That was it.

With over two minutes left in regulation, Swayman went to the bench for an extra attacker. It didn’t take long for Vincent Trocheck and Chris Kreider to combine to work the puck over to Zibanejad for an empty netter. That came with 2:03 left.

When Bruins coach Jim Montgomery lifted Swayman again, that allowed Fox to pass the puck up for Panarin, who sent it into the vacated net for his third hat trick of the season. It’s been a special one. The three goals gave him a career best 98 points. He needs two more to hit the century mark.

Even better, the milestones for Quick and Panarin came in Laviolette’s 1,500th career NHL game behind the bench. It’s been a very successful first season for Laviolette on Broadway. We’ll see if it can get even better.

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The more things change…

Posted on March 20, 2024 by hasan4978

Despite everything that’s gone wrong with the Devils this season, one thing that (as of yet) has been unchanged from the last few years is their head-scratching dominance against the Pittsburgh Penguins, particularly at the Prudential Center. Granted, it’s not like this version of the Penguins has been any better than us this year with their own high-priced disappointment of a team well out of the playoff hunt. Still, even given the team’s unlikely chances of even staying in the playoff race until April it’s always nice to see a win at home, and a mostly stress-free 5-2 game at that.

Last night’s game has certainly been a rarity at home where they’ve won just sixteen of thirty-five games and their countless number of losses to teams even below them in the standings are the main reason they won’t be in the playoffs. Yes they’re ‘six points back’ of Detroit for the last wild card spot, with an asterisk since the Capitals are also five points ahead with two games in hand. Even with the rest of the East playing down to the so-called competition for a playoff spot, time’s still running out for the Devils. It surely won’t prevent us from running Jake Allen into the ground making start after start the way we did Nico Daws, and it won’t prevent us playing a clearly injured Jack Hughes until the bitter end.

I can’t say I really expect any different from an interim staff coaching for their jobs, but it still comes off as a bit of a mixed message organizationally when you trade guys like Tyler Toffoli and Colin Miller (both will be back in town tomorrow when the Jets come in ironically) at the deadline on the one hand, but on the other hand act like you’re still in a playoff hunt. If you really wanted to use the last twenty games to play for the future and load management guys till next year you wouldn’t have a coach who is clearly looking for another chance to get back behind the bench next year overseeing it.

To be fair, at least Travis Green did one good thing last night that predecessor Lindy Ruff did not – giving Alex Holtz a chance on the Hughes line and not even benching him after a poor turnover in the third period that reportedly had broadcaster Ken Daneyko apoplectic on the air, I didn’t even notice it to be fair, but I didn’t notice Holtz at all for most of the game so I was down on him regardless – until he got himself in the right place at the right time and scored the key third goal early in the third period last night. Holtz’s goal gave the Devils some breathing room against the Penguins after a sloppy first two periods where both goalies Allen and Tristian Jarry made some fine saves to keep the score at 2-1.

While the Devils’ dominance over the Penguins hasn’t changed, and neither has their current position in the standings, there is a lot different now since my last blog. Last night’s game was the first full game I’d been to or even watched since the home embarrassment against the Rangers. With the Devils on the outside looking in at the playoffs and even Tom Fitzgerald acknowledging the playoff odds were at like 13% when answering why he did the Toffoli trade at the deadline, their trade deadline was more about next year. Not only did Toffoli and Miller go packing to Winnipeg for draft picks, but there were also belated goalie moves starting with acquiring Allen from the Canadiens for a conditional third-rounder, and also dealing off the injured Vitek Vanecek to San Jose for Kaapo Kahkonen and his expiring contract.

For Vitek, it was a sad but quiet ending after a mostly promising first season when his 33 wins in the regular season were the most by any Devil goalie in over a decade, since Martin Brodeur was still between the pipes. We all know about the playoff breakdowns last spring, and he never really found his footing again this year (to put it mildly), though Vitek somehow compiled another 17 wins in 32 games despite a 3.18 GAA and .890 save percentage. On top of not playing well, he picked up an injury a few weeks ago that after the trade Fitz admitted publicly might keep him out the rest of the year. After Daws got overused and short-circuited in recent weeks, the Devils clearly needed other bodies in net to protect their young netminders from going down with the ship.

Not that Kahkonen is anything great, but I can’t really come up with a rationale for why San Jose wanted to do that deal apart from they wanted a cheap filler guy for next season, and hopefully for Vitek’s sake he can rebound now out of the spotlight. It won’t be easy for him on a rebuilding team though. Even Fitz admitted that trade was about ‘flexibility’ meaning the Sharks took back the extra year on Vitek’s deal and we’ll almost certainly let Kahkonen remain an expiring contract. Of the two goalies, Allen was clearly more of an acquisition both for the rest of this season and for next year as well. Admittedly I’m a bit surprised looking at Allen’s numbers the last two years up north, I knew he’d been bad but sixty-three games with around a 3.6 GAA and .890 save percentage?! Speaks to the state of our goaltending that this guy was looked at as part of the solution.

We were rumored in on Allen for months given the obvious reasons – our need in goal, not to mention his connection with Marty going back to the days when Brodeur was in the Blues’ front office while he was having his best years as a starter there. Maybe Marty does have some secret sauce for Allen, as the early returns on his three starts have been good with six goals allowed and a .946 save percentage. What’s actually galling about the Allen trade is it came a few months too late and it came out after the deadline that he’d been asked to waive his no-trade earlier in the season (for us) and declined. His rationale was that Vitek and Akira Schmid were here and he only saw himself being in the same role he had been placed in with the Canadiens, as an emergency third goalie. From an outside perspective, it’s totally understandable you don’t want to uproot for a perceived similar role.

Of course, anyone who’d been watching the Devils semi-regularly like us fans would have realized Allen would have been at worst #2 the minute he walked in the door with a very short climb to being the 1A, despite his own poor numbers. There was no way he could have really known that the organization didn’t want to have Daws or Schmid playing games up here in the first place the way us diehards who read the team news did. Whatever the reason, his arrival likely came too late to affect this season’s playoff race but he’s starting to give the team and fanbase confidence in at least having him around as the #1B or #2 goalie next year. In the short-term I hope we don’t do to him what we did to Daws and just short-circuit him in a quixotic playoff chase. It’s likely whatever small hope they have will be obliterated tomorrow when the Jets and their ex-Devil contingent comes to town.

Among their last thirteen games (including tomorrow) are three with the Leafs, one with the white-hot Predators – now 13-0-2 in their last fifteen games under former assistant Andrew Brunette – tomorrow’s game with the Jets, and another likely home embarrassment against the Rangers in April. I know the hockey establishment loves this kid Matt Rempe because he’s a ‘throwback’ – re: looking for dirty hits and then turtling and hiding behind the ref when he gets challenged to a fight after the second time he took a Devils player out due to injury in two games. Unlike the Nathan Bastian head-hunting incident when he came back to play the next game, the one with Jonas Siegenthaler was more serious as he hasn’t returned to play yet after getting a concussion in that game at the Garden a couple weeks ago.

I doubt Rempe’s four-game suspension will be enough to curtail his reckless nature, especially when we refuse to make the Rangers pay after he gives us five-minute majors in back-to-back games! I hate going eye for an eye, but if the hockey poobahs continue to wink and nod this stuff and the refs prevent any type of so-called retribution fight, there’s only one nuclear option left to answer back with. We’ll see if that button gets pressed in early April, unlikely given the Devils’ passivity to this point although if they’re out of the playoffs by then, it might be more likely to see an ugly situation that could have been prevented if the neanderthals who run hockey and cater to that segment of the fanbase weren’t not-so-secretly happy this kid is making goonery ‘cool’ again.

Anyway, if those six games don’t eliminate us from the playoff hunt the Devils will likely find a way to do it themselves. Two games against the Senators? Why not lose to yet another garbage team, it would fit right in with the rest of this season. Game at Buffalo? Maybe earlier in the season it would have been easy since we actually put up a couple of touchdowns against them in two home games earlier this season, but that was a long time ago. Two games against the Islanders including the regular-season finale at the Rock? Wouldn’t that be fitting to see Lou Lamoriello’s team either put us out or clinch a playoff berth at our expense, although that scenario’s getting less likely as their own losing streak grows. I doubt we’ll be alive long enough for that game, or the previous game in Philly two days earlier to matter. At least we get one more chance to beat up on the Penguins at home in a couple weeks, yay for one disappointing team beating another.

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Rangers stoned by Hellebuyck in tough loss to Jets

Posted on March 19, 2024 by Derek

A couple of days removed from a resounding victory over the Islanders, the Rangers ran into a hot goalie in what amounted to a tough 4-2 loss to the Jets at Madison Square Garden.

Ultimately, the difference was Connor Hellebuyck. A serious candidate for the Vezina, he stoned the Rangers to lead Winnipeg to a hard fought victory in the Big Apple.

Hellebuyck made 15 saves in a busy third period, including some clutch ones in crunch time to preserve the win for the Jets. He finished with 38 saves to earn the game’s first star.

He entered the night leading the league in goals-against-average (2.31 GAA) and save percentage (.922). Those numbers improved following a virtuoso performance against the Metropolitan Division-leading Rangers. 

Mark Scheifele recorded his eighth career hat trick for the Jets. He scored a pair of goals in a second period that saw the Jets outscore the Rangers 3-1.

Late in the third period, with the Rangers pressing for the equalizer, Scheifele capped it off by scoring his third goal of the game into an empty net. Prior to that goal, it looked like the Rangers would find a way to tie it up.

After lifting Igor Shesterkin for an extra attacker with two and a half minutes left, Alexis Lafreniere got to his own rebound to score a career high 20th goal to pull them within 3-2. He redirected an Adam Fox shot that took a carom off a Winnipeg player right to Lafreniere to cut the deficit to one with still 1:54 remaining.

Lafreniere also created the Rangers’ best chance to tie it. He took a pass and gained the Jets’ zone, and moved the puck across the ice. It nearly led to a Chris Kreider tip-in. The shot just missed the goalpost. Hellebuyck was in the right position. It’s possible he could’ve made the blocker save.

Speaking of Kreider, it wasn’t a good game for him. His giveaway led directly to Scheifele, getting his second unassisted on a breakaway late in the second period. That proved to be the game-winner.

In the final period, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette mixed up his lines. Kreider slid down to the third line with Will Cuylle and Vincent Trocheck. Artemi Panarin and Lafreniere shifted to the top line with Mika Zibanejad. Alex Wennberg worked between Kaapo Kakko and Will Cuylle.

“We need to be a little bit crisper. It wasn’t about a top 6 or bottom 6. … We were a little bit flat. Just wanted to change and try something different,” Laviolette explained to reporters following the defeat.

It didn’t start off that way. In a good matchup that featured two first place teams, the first period was back and forth. The Rangers held a 13-9 edge in shots. However, they found it tough to get the puck past Hellebuyck. He was sharp.

Conversely, Shesterkin made nine saves in a high-quality period that had a lot of skating and countering.

With Hellebuyck continuing to stifle the Rangers early into the second, Scheifele scored the game’s first goal on a bit of a change up. Taking a pass from Alex Iafallo, he shot a floater that fooled Shesterkin just enough to sneak by him.

The Rangers responded over five minutes later thanks to the power play. With Josh Morrissey off for hooking Kakko, it was the second unit that came through to tie the game. A Lafreniere shot was stopped by Hellebuyck. Wennberg was able to get to the rebound and backhand the loose puck in for a power-play goal. It was his first goal as a Ranger.

Unfortunately, a Braden Schneider hooking minor put the Jets on the man-advantage. They replied back by converting when Tyler Toffoli and Sean Monahan combined to set up Kyle Connor for a one-timer past Shesterkin. They re-took the lead.

In the second part of the period, the Rangers were sloppy. Shesterkin already had bailed them out by stopping Nik Ehlers on a breakaway. This time, Kreider had the  puck stolen by Scheifele. He couldn’t be caught by a chasing Zibanejad. Scheifele buried the chance to give the Jets a 3-1 lead headed to the third period.

As has been their trademark, the Rangers never gave up. After killing off a bad Kakko tripping penalty in the offensive zone, they turned it up. The new lines generated some chances. But the story was Hellebuyck. He wasn’t allowing anything to get by him. He had great rebound control.

When Laviolette went back to his original lines, they continued to pressure. The Jets did a good job defending in front of Hellebuyck. They took away most of the inside. That made it tough.

It wasn’t until he lifted Shesterkin that things got interesting. On some sustained forecheck pressure during a 6-on-5, Trocheck worked the puck up top for Fox. He faked a pass before throwing a soft shot towards the net that Lafreniere redirected. The puck went off a Jets’ body right back for Lafreniere to one-time past Hellebuyck to make it a one-goal game with under two minutes to go.

With Shesterkin still on the bench, Fox made a diving play to keep a puck in. He’d also make another great diving play in the neutral zone to temporarily give his team one more opportunity. But a Kreider back pass resulted in Monahan and Morrissey combining to move puck ahead for Scheifele to calmly shoot into the open net for the hat trick.

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Fox and Panarin burn Penguins

Posted on March 16, 2024 by Derek

The Rangers rebounded from a 6-3 loss to the Lightning by outscoring the Penguins 7-4 on Saturday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena.

There wasn’t much defense played. Facing a division rival that looks destined to miss the playoffs for a second consecutive year, the Rangers played the Pens’ game to get back in the win column.

After falling behind early on a Jon Ludvig (no relation to Beethoven), the Rangers quickly responded by scoring two straight goals over a 26-second span. Kaapo Kakko buried a Jimmy Vesey feed in front to tie the score.

On the next shift, Artemi Panarin and Adam Fox made some magic. They combined on a highlight reel goal that put the Rangers up 2-1. A Panarin pass down low for Fox resulted in the former Norris winner moving in and firing a backhand top shelf past Tristan Jarry.

Although the scoring was far from done, it was the goal of the game. Fox demonstrated his skill by using patience to fake out the Pens’ defense and finish off his 12th goal of the season. If he can score one more goal, it’ll be a new career high. Fox had a dozen goals last season.

Fox and Panarin weren’t done. They burned the Penguins by combining for three goals and four assists. It was a virtuoso performance by Panarin. For a fourth season, he eclipsed 90 points. He did it in style by recording a five-point game. That included adding to a personal best with his 37th and 38th goals.

Fox helped set up a Panarin power-play goal with less than four minutes left in the second period that gave the Rangers the lead for good. On the play, Chris Kreider dug out a loose puck that allowed Panarin to steer in the rebound to make it 4-3.

Following a Kris Letang unsportsmanlike conduct minor penalty, Panarin started another work of art that led to an easy Mika Zibanejad goal on the power play. He moved the puck across for Kreider, who then centered for a Zibanejad one-timer past Jarry to give the Rangers a two-goal lead headed to the locker room.

The goal looked like one you’d see in a video game. That’s how easy it was. It also explains why the Pens have failed in their first season under new general manager Kyle Dubas. The addition of Erik Karlsson hasn’t helped improve them. Neither has going all-in by re-signing Evgeni Malkin and Letang.

Sidney Crosby voiced his displeasure when Jake Guentzel was traded to the Hurricanes over a week ago. Crosby set up a nice goal scored by Bryan Rust that tied the score at two in the first period. The ageless superstar remains at a point-per-game client by recording an assist in the Pens’ loss.

At 36, Crosby has 32 goals and 34 assists for 66 points in 66 games. He shows no signs of slowing down. With one year remaining on a contract that pays him an average cap hit of $8.7 million dollars, it’s anyone’s guess what he wants to do. The Pens are in decline. Will Crosby stay a Penguin for his whole career? Time will tell.

That’s not the Rangers’ concern. They came into Pittsburgh and did what they had to do. Even though it wasn’t pretty, they came away with two points. Jonathan Quick was left to fend for himself. He made some key saves en route to earning his 15th victory of the season. He stopped 34 of 38 shots.

There were too many instances when the Pens had open looks on Quick. It’s a good thing he held up. In a game that they were outshot 38-28, the Rangers had the better goalie. They also had the luxury of facing a defensively inept opponent.

K’Andre Miller scored a big goal less than five minutes into the third period to give the Rangers some cushion. Earlier in the contest, he made a good defensive play to set up the first Panarin goal. His takeaway led to Vincent Trocheck coming in on a two-on-one and executing an elevated pass for a Panarin finish.

Miller added another assist on a Kreider empty netter – finishing with a goal and two assists for a three-point game. That earned him the game’s third star.

With a five-point game, Panarin grabbed the game’s first star. He’s up to 93 points. His third assist on the day was career assist number 500. He’s fifth in scoring.

Although he likely won’t be up for the Hart Trophy for league MVP due to a strong field that features frontrunner Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov, it’s been the best year of Panarin’s career. The Bread Man will have all eyes on him when the postseason hits this spring. That’s where he and the Rangers need to get it done.

The Rangers are four points clear of the Hurricanes, who rallied from a two-goal deficit to beat the Maple Leafs 5-4 in a shootout tonight. They continue to lead the Metropolitan Division.

They’ll be back in action on Sunday afternoon when they visit the Islanders. It’ll be a good test.

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Rangers put on a defensive clinic in 1-0 shutout of Hurricanes

Posted on March 12, 2024 by Derek

It was a game that lived up to expectations. Playing for a second straight night, the Rangers dug deep to go into enemy territory and play a perfect road game. The end result was a defensive clinic that produced a 1-0 shutout over the Hurricanes at PNC Arena.

The victory increased their lead for the Metropolitan Division to six points. It was all hands on deck for the Blueshirts.

There wasn’t a single player who didn’t contribute to the big win over the second place Hurricanes. All 18 skaters played well. Igor Shesterkin made 28 saves to post  his third shutout of the season. He also blanked the Blues on Mar. 9.

It was arguably the best game Adam Fox’s played this season. The former Norris winner scored the only goal while dominating in every facet. He was terrific defensively. So, too, was defense partner Ryan Lindgren. He broke up plays and assisted on Fox’s goal, which came with eight seconds remaining in the first period.

K’Andre Miller was stellar throughout by being more forceful and decisive. He made a couple of key blocks, including a diving one, to deny Sebastian Aho’s pass when the Canes were pressing with Pyotr Kochetkov on the bench for an extra attacker. Miller looks more comfortable playing with Braden Schneider, who stepped up defensively in Jacob Trouba’s absence.

The third pair of Zac Jones and Erik Gustafsson were steady when called upon. Jones has proven he can jump into the lineup and be reliable. Gustafsson’s biggest impact was a hit on Andrei Svechnikov, who lost his cool by taking an interference minor penalty for going back at the Rangers defenseman.

All four lines were effective. Mika Zibanejad played with more confidence. Maybe scoring a five-on-five goal against the Devils on Monday was just what the doctor ordered. He looked more like himself. That bodes well moving forward.

It was the top line that generated some good scoring chances thanks to the strong forecheck of Jack Roslovic. He continues to play well with Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. It was his hard work down low that kept a play alive for the game’s only goal.

After that, Lindgren and Kreider combibed to get the puck over to Fox for a shot that took a good bounce off Brady Skjei past Kochetkov at 19:52 of the first period.

The Rangers were the better team in the opening period. But they couldn’t beat Kochetkov, who played well for the Hurricanes. Although he had five fewer saves (23) than Shesterkin, Kochetkov made some key stops to give his team a chance. His biggest came when he dove across to rob Vincent Trocheck on a two on none rush with Artemi Panarin.

Despite playing well in the third period, the Rangers couldn’t find that insurance goal. Kochetkov was a big reason why. After surviving a second period that saw the Canes outshoot them 11-5, the Rangers were better down the stretch.

The first part of the third was like a race track. Both sides traded chances. There were some wild sequences. Both goalies did their part to keep the score 1-0.

However, things changed in the second part of the final period. It was the Rangers who took away time and space from the Hurricanes. They found it difficult to get through the neutral zone and make plays. When they did gain the Rangers’ zone, good defensive plays were made. The guys in the white sweaters were very disciplined. Both the forwards and defense came back.

The new third line had another good game. Alex Wennberg played well. He, Will Cuylle, and Kaapo Kakko spent some extended shifts in the Canes’ zone. They were very effective on the walls and made plays. On one good defensive read by Kakko, he led Cuylle for a chance. But Kochetkov made the glove save to deny him.

As expected, Jonny Brodzinski returned to the lineup with Matt Rempe serving his four-game suspension. Brodzinski fit in nicely with Barclay Goodrow and Jimmy Vesey on the checking line. They were good.

If there’s a big difference between last week and now, the Rangers have better balance. The additions of Wennberg and Roslovic are working. They are solid players who make things happen. So far, so good.

It was a rare night when Panarin didn’t register a shot. The Canes killed off two penalties. They were very aggressive, attacking the Rangers power play. There wasn’t any time to make a play.

On the Canes’ lone man-advantage, Shesterkin stopped a long one-timer from Teuvo Teravainen. In his Hurricanes debut, Jake Guentzel wasn’t a factor. It looked like he was still trying to find his timing.

Evgeny Kuznetsov got one of the best chances in the third. On a play in front, he got to a loose puck and tried to stuff it in. However, an aggressive Shesterkin challenged to make a big right pad save.

Even the newest Canes couldn’t make a dent on Shesterkin. He stopped a dozen shots in the third to pick up the win.

It was a well played game that had a playoff intensity. The Rangers were just a little better. They shut down the Hurricanes late. Even following a Miller icing with six seconds left, Trocheck won a faceoff back. One final clear sealed it.

There were lots of smiles after the buzzer. The Rangers got a big win.

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