Battle Of Hudson covers the Rangers and Devils, who's intense rivalry heated up in the 90's. With fresh faces added, they battle for supremacy in NYC and NJ..
After the first three games of this four game trip, I couldn’t help but think that we’re finally having our first bad road trip of the season. It wasn’t even that the results were bad points-wise, although clearly the team wasn’t at its best, sandwiching a shootout loss in Minnesota and another dreadful performance against the Blues with barely beating the lowly Blue Jackets in the final seconds of regulation. Sure, it was three points out of six, but those three games were continuing a trend of the Devils’ overall level of play going downhill over the last few weeks. I was starting to compare it to our 2009-10 season where we set the world on fire in the first half, only to peter out with a sloggish .500 second half, followed by an early playoff exit at the hands of the Flyers.
Fortunately a couple of things changed today in Pittsburgh…for one, the Devils were playing a team that they’ve had a lot of inexplicable success against over the last decade even when they weren’t beating many other teams. For another, Jack Hughes returned to the lineup after missing the previous four games with an undisclosed body injury. True, Hughes wasn’t at his best early on (and neither was the team in the first twenty minutes), but he did ultimately contribute a couple of assists in what turned out to be a fairly drama-free – for once – 5-2 win.
Still double-digit points up on a playoff spot, the focus is more on big picture if you’re a Devils fan at the moment, especially given the impending trade deadline and all the focus about a certain potential acquisition. All the Timo Meier speculation is already getting old, but make no mistake – the fact that both a trade would likely have to come with an extension, coupled with the fact we need a guy like him in our top six badly and compounded with the speculation that the Hurricanes are also in on the bidding make it fingernail-biting time. At least this is one trade deadline where we can actually focus on acquisitions rather than subtractions (or more often the last few years, not even being able to sell anyone because their value is so depreciated).
Maybe it’s a good thing there isn’t much drama as far as getting into the playoffs at the moment, because the top of the Metro is a clear meat grinder at the moment:
Hurricanes 80 points (9-1 in their last ten)
Devils 77 points (7-2-1 in their last ten)
Rangers 74 points (8-1-1 with a seven game winning streak)
On paper that would also give an advantage to the division winner, facing one of the sixty-point wild card contenders as opposed to a brutal division matchup in round one. Of course, with the playoffs point totals and pedigrees don’t always matter in the end anyway. As much as I’d rather avoid the Armageddon of Devils-Rangers in the first round, I’ve seem more than enough Devil postseasons where a high seed = early exit to care about where we finish in the standings in a vacuum.
What does matter is twofold…health and getting the best level of play out of everyone possible. In regards to the latter, Nico Hischier’s four-point afternoon in Pittsburgh was big for him personally and the team in general after the captain had slumped to one point in the previous seven games (more than half of them since Hughes was out of the lineup). Included in the four points was two goals, including the 100th of Nico’s still-young career – in classic fashion as well, with Nico and Yegor Sharangovich combining for a sweet short-handed marker that helped break open the game.
If Hischier’s breakout game was a big reason for the Devils’ dominance in Pittsburgh, so too were the lineup changes by Lindy Ruff – scratching Nathan Bastian and the slumping Jonas Siegenthaler, and reducing the icetime of the fourth-liners who did play. I’ve been beating the drum that a big reason for the team’s struggles at home relative to its road dominance is that the coach doesn’t feel as compelled to line match on the road as he does at home. Granted, you don’t want to have a steady diet of only playing the fourth line five minutes when we’re in the middle of a stretch of four games in six nights and have another game at home tomorrow but maybe the team’s second hideous loss to a substandard Blues team forced the issue in terms of accountability.
Of course, ultimately the team’s stars – and it’s goaltending – will need to continue to lead the way and both have been doing so all season. Nico’s two goals (and four points), Jack’s two assists, Dougie Hamilton with a power play goal and Jesper Bratt’s goal was a game where all the studs played in first gear, as well as Dawson Mercer, whose quick answer to an early Evgeni Malkin goal was key in the first period. In net, Vitek Vanecek is continuing his breakout season – going 2-0-1 in his three starts on the trip. His shootout loss in Minnesota was the only time he’s tasted anything but victory in his last thirteen starts, dating back to late December.
While the stars and Vitek have been more than enough to maintain the Devils’ position in the standings till this point, eventually the team will have to get more production from its role players. In that vein, Mercer and Sharangovich having two-point games this afternoon helped. So, too did Tomas Tatar’s pair of goals in Minnesota (the only ones the team scored in regulation), not to mention the dramatic game-winner from Ryan Graves in Columbus with the clock ticking down in regulation.
All in all, you have to describe this as yet another successful trip – five points out of eight without the Devils’ potential Hart trophy finalist for the first three games of it. With the team also on a five-game home winning streak, we’re getting close to having all cylinders clicking again. Hopefully they can keep the good times rolling at the Rock with four games in the span of a week beginning tomorrow night against the Jets.
It would’ve been easy to say it’s not their night. But that’s not in the dictionary. The Rangers picked themselves up off the mat from a standing eight count and dug deep to rally back from a pair of three-goal deficits to best the Oilers 5-4 in a shootout at Rogers Place.
By showing the same resilience they had last year, the Blueshirts rallied to win their seventh straight game. In doing so, they pulled within a point of the idle Devils for second place in the Metro Division. With 27 games remaining, they’re 32-14-8 with 74 points. Although they didn’t gain in regulation wins, which is the first tiebreaker, they remained deadlocked at 26 with the Devils, who have 28 games left.
Both rivals are back in action on Saturday. The Devils visit the Penguins with the odd 5:30 start time. The Rangers will complete their three-game Western Canadian swing by facing the Flames at 10 PM. If it’s anything like the rock ’em sock ’em game they had at MSG, it should be well worth watching. Especially on a weekend.
The offense continues to produce. They scored at least four goals for the seventh consecutive game. That’s the first time the Rangers have done that since 1990-91 that ran from Feb. 6 through Feb. 21. It’s pretty ironic that this current stretch has come during a similar time period.
In what amounted to a putrid start following a disjointed performance in a 6-4 win over the Canucks, the Rangers fell behind early against the league’s top offense. Edmonton quickly got the game’s first three goals over a 4:38 span.
A Vincent Trocheck undisciplined minor penalty in the offensive zone when he knocked Jack Campbell’s stick out sent the Oilers to the power play. Connor McDavid was able to find Zach Hyman in front, where he came close to stuffing the puck in. However, it rebounded off Igor Shesterkin right to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who buried it for his 27th at 7:52.
Before five minutes had elapsed, it was the Edmonton fourth line that created the second goal. In on the forecheck against the Rangers fourth line and third defensive pair, Mattias Janmark passed for a Warren Foegle shot that came directly to Tyson Barrie in the slot for the finish at 12:11. It exemplified a sharp contrast between two fourth lines. The Rangers need to upgrade theirs before the 3 PM deadline on March 3.
On the next shift, it was some more hard work from secondary players that made it 3-0 just 19 seconds later. On more sustained pressure down low, Jesse Puljujarvi and Zach Hyman combined to feed Derek Ryan, who picked high glove on the suddenly vulnerable Shesterkin. He’s been giving it up more. That’s definitely an area that must get fixed.
Trailing by three, the Rangers got a reprieve thanks to Darnell Nurse going off for slashing Vladimir Tarasenko. On the power play, Chris Kreider ended a three month drought by getting his first power play goal since Nov. 13. On a great passing play, Artemi Panarin passed over for Mika Zibanejad, who one touched a centering feed down low for a Kreider put away for his 23rd at 13:36.
The goal extended his point streak to seven in a row. He wasn’t done either. It’s safe to say Kreider is back in form. He’s finishing with regularity and primed to hit 30 goals for the second straight season. Though he won’t come close to the career high 52 or 26 PPG, the power forward is delivering for this team.
On what was obviously an accidental clear out of play by K’Andre Miller for a delay of game minor, the Oilers took full advantage by cashing in for their second power play goal of the period. This time, it was the familiar combination of McDavid to Leon Draisaitl, whose quick shot beat Shesterkin far side for his 32nd at 18:27 to restore a three-goal lead late in the period.
It was particularly frustrating. Shesterkin was a bit too passive on the play. An Edmonton staple. McDavid loves to find Draisaitl either on the right side or in the circle for the one-timer. Shesterkin didn’t come out to challenge the shooter, making it an easier finish for Draisaitl, who is a world-class player.
With a pair of assists, McDavid went over the century mark in points. In 56 games, he leads the league in scoring with an NHL best 42 goals and 101 points. The Oilers have 26 games left. How many points can he get to? I believe he will approach 140. He’s at the height of his career.
Trailing 4-1, the Rangers began to chip away in a more inspired second period. That included Shesterkin, who delivered the biggest save of the game when he stoned McDavid in front when he was all set up. After allowing four goals on 12 shots in the first period, he responded by stopping the remaining 17 shots, including nine in the second.
While Shesterkin steadied in net after Gerard Gallant made the right decision to stick with him due to Jaroslav Halak getting tonight’s game in Calgary, the Rangers were having trouble beating Jack Campbell. He made several big saves, including a tough stop to deny Trocheck. The best would come later in the period.
“I was going to see what happened in the 2nd period…He’s going to battle back. He’s a star goalie. He’s got a lot of pride in there. Obviously, if they would’ve made it five or six, then definitely. He played hard and he battled."
Ironically enough, it was a penalty that actually turned things around. Alexis Lafreniere went off for holding Hyman. With a chance to really bury them, the Oilers’ dangerous power play got too passive. They relaxed just enough for the Rangers to strike for a critical goal shorthanded.
On some strong defensive work by both Ryan Lindgren and Adam Fox, they got the puck up for Kreider. He moved quickly in transition to create a two-on-one. Instead of shooting, he went for the pass across for a cutting Zibanejad. But the puck came right back to him on a favorable bounce where he was able to beat Campbell with a backhand for the shorthanded goal that made it 4-2 at 6:26.
Adam Fox sends a terrific bank pass up to a speedy Chris Kreider, allowing Kreider to tally a SHORTY!#NYRpic.twitter.com/13qgmBNbvw
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) February 18, 2023
Shortly after, Shesterkin made another gigantic save to deny McDavid on a slap shot. Following that key stop, the momentum swung. A few more saves kept the Rangers within two.
With Kailer Yamamoto off for interfering with Barclay Goodrow, Campbell robbed Chytil and then got over to glove a Zibanejad shot from his office. Despite his team backing off, Campbell played very well. He finished with 34 saves on 38 shots to take the hard luck loss.
On another effective shift by the Oilers’ secondary forwards, Ryan McLeod had a shot ring off the crossbar. That close to a three-goal lead again. On the opposite end, during the same shift, Lafreniere had a shot stopped by Campbell.
As the second period moved on, it was the more aggressive Rangers who applied the pressure. They came close a few different times to pulling within one. Jimmy Vesey missed wide. Then Lindgren was stopped by Campbell, who was sharp throughout.
His best saves came when he first dove across to stone Chytil of a sure goal. On the play, he looked to have Campbell at his mercy. But the Edmonton goalie got his glove up to force Chytil to wait. By the time he fired, the sprawling Campbell made the acrobatic save to cheers from the crowd.
With under a minute left, Trocheck made a great pass across to Vesey for what looked like another sure goal. However, Campbell had other ideas by diving across to rob Vesey with a remarkable pad save. He could only shake his head in disbelief.
The good news is they got the only goal of the period and outplayed the Oilers. The bad news was the brilliant play of Campbell, who seems to have taken the net back from Stuart Skinner.
Undeterred, the Rangers kept coming in the third period. On what amounted to a great play off an offensive draw taken by Chytil, Kaapo Kakko drove to the net and made a smart back pass for an open Lafreniere in the slot. His wrist shot beat Campbell stick side to cut the deficit to one only 1:36 into the period.
NHL Video Highlight – Alexis Lafrenière scores against the Edmonton Oilers to make it 4-3. pic.twitter.com/DTVixQUEvF
That gave Lafreniere nine points (4-5-9) in the last 10 since Jan. 19. He’s been a different player since rejoining Kakko and Chytil. The primary assist made it 11 points (2-9-11) for Kakko since Jan. 16. He’s up to a career high 18 assists and 29 points.
With the exception of another close call for the Oilers’ fourth line in which Shesterkin was able to deny a Foegle tip-in, it was all Blueshirts. For some perplexing reason, Edmonton was content to sit back. They backed off. Even with the caliber of star talent that features McDavid, Draisaitl, Nugent-Hopkins, and Evander Kane, they didn’t attack.
Instead, it was the more urgent Rangers who pressed the action. Although they didn’t test Campbell as much at even strength in the period, they were aided by consecutive penalties to Janmark (hooking) and Ryan (delay of game). Two of the Oilers’ most effective players were in the box to hand the Blueshirts a five-on-three.
Gallant sent out his top unit that now includes Chytil. However, it was the more familiar faces who got it done. On what was a simple play, all Panarin did was move the puck over to Zibanejad at one point. He then passed down low for Fox, who moved the puck back up for a Zibanejad wrist shot that beat Campbell for the game-tying power play goal with 6:50 remaining.
Mika Zibanejad's 30th goal of the season is clutch on the power play! 🚨
It was his 30th of the season. It’s the third time in his career that Zibanejad has reached the 30-goal mark. He also did it in ’18-19 and ’19-20 when he scored a career high 41 in only 57 games.
Mika Magic. That makes it six games in a row that he’s scored a goal. Over the six-game torrid stretch, Zibanejad has eight goals with three helpers. Since Dec. 29, he’s up to 15 goals over the last 19 games. He’s again proving why he should be considered elite.
Following that clutch tally, Zibanejad missed twice on the following shift. Then, Chytil was again set up for what looked like a gimme. But his shot hit the far goalpost and stayed out. Otherwise, the Rangers convert on both sides of the power play. They were that close to going ahead on the five-on-four.
With the Oilers hanging on for dear life, they fortunately got two more big saves from Campbell. He made another stop on Vesey and then denied a Panarin bid off a rush. If not for him, Edmonton blows the game in regulation. It would’ve been a role reversal of the Rangers’ third period debacle in a regrettable 4-3 loss at home.
Instead, the rematch would require overtime. It nearly ended early. After Miller was stopped by Campbell, Chytil again had another shot denied. On the flip side, Shesterkin had to contend with both Draisaitl and McDavid, denying both.
Campbell made another great save when he got just enough of a Trocheck shot to keep it out. After Shesterkin stopped Nurse, an irate Zibanejad was called for taking down McDavid. His issue was Draisaitl had tripped him up right before they made the call.
On a four-on-three with 61 seconds left in overtime, the Oilers didn’t get the chances they wanted. Shesterkin came up with two more saves, including one on a McDavid shot that Jacob Trouba deflected. He also made one more stop on Barrie, who for some reason fares well versus the Rangers in his career. A Goodrow clear killed the clock to send it to a shootout.
It was unpredictable. After Nugent-Hopkins scored by beating Shesterkin short side, Kakko beat Campbell backhand top shelf to level it.
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) February 18, 2023
Then came something you don’t see. McDavid came in one on one with Shesterkin, who patiently out-waited him to make the save. Panarin then came out. Previously, he was 4-for-4 this season. He skated in and tried to go to the glove but missed the net.
It became even stranger when both Draisaitl and Zibanejad each missed. After Shesterkin stopped Barrie on a backhand, Tarasenko had his attempt foiled by Campbell. The Oilers then went with Ryan. But he too came up short. Out came Chytil for the win. However, Campbell again owned him.
Alexis Lafrenière completes the Rangers comeback with the shootout winner for New York! 🗽 pic.twitter.com/U5rNuv7jCd
Following an Igor stop on Yamamoto, it was Lafreniere’s turn. Instead of doing something we’d already seen, he faked and sent a backhand past Campbell to give the Rangers the win. That ended the night.
Starting off his team's rally from down 4-1 by scoring twice in an evetual 5-4 shootout defeat of EDM on Friday night, Chris Kreider has now registered 19 career multi-goal road performances in his career. It has moved him into a tie behind just 5 players on this @NYRangers list pic.twitter.com/Z5WDj6C1nh
It was a case of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly for the Rangers in what amounted to an ugly 6-4 win over the defenseless Canucks at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
The good is that they continue to find offense. For a third consecutive game, the Rangers scored at least six goals in a victory. By getting a touchdown, thanks in large part to top guns Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, and Chris Kreider, who combined for five of the team’s six goals, they won for a sixth straight game.
The bad is that they got sucked into the Canucks wide open style, which is devoid of defense. That made for some lousy sequences that saw plenty of stick checking and puck watching on Vancouver goals. There were also a few other dangerous chances that could’ve resulted in goals against.
The ugly was how the game was played. This wasn’t fun to watch in the least. It was Defense Optional with hardly any battles in the trenches. Outside of Jacob Trouba, who took the body with his usual edgy play, it was like watching pond hockey. It’s not the kind of style this team excels at.
If you want to be positive, it was another win that allowed them to gain ground on the idle Devils and Hurricanes. That’s another two points gained in the standings, pushing the Rangers up to 72 points with 28 games remaining. That’s three behind the Devils and six in back of the Hurricanes. Each has 29 left.
Another good development is the continuation of Artemi Panarin scoring goals. He notched two more to make it six over the last two games. He also recorded an assist, giving him eight points (6-2-8) over the last two games.
The Bread Man seems to have found chemistry with Vincent Trocheck and complementary two-way forward Jimmy Vesey. It appears Gerard Gallant might finally have found the missing ingredient to help Panarin and Trocheck coexist. The tenacious Vesey continues his strong play by fitting in well on the new second line. He picked up a primary assist and was involved on both Panarin tallies.
Mika Zibanejad keeps scoring. His hot February continued when he lit the lamp twice more to give him seven goals during a five-game goal streak. Over that stretch, he has nine points (5-4-9). In fact, since Jan. 16, he has 10 goals over the past 10 games. Dating back to Dec. 29, Zibanejad has scored 14 goals over 18 games.
That’s the same Zibanejad who went on a tear and scored a career high 41 in 2019-20 before COVID ended the regular season. There was the astonishing five-goal game where he basically beat the Alexander Ovechkin Capitals by getting the overtime winner at MSG. With 29 goals, he very much is on track for the second 40-goal season of his career.
At 29, it’s all clicking for Zibanejad. After a slow start, he’s hit his stride. They’re going in for him again. He leads the Rangers in goals (29), power play goals (17), shots (190), and is second behind Panarin in points (58). He ranks third in plus-minus, moving past Filip Chytil for tops amongst forwards with a plus-19. Only defense tandem Adam Fox (+26) and Ryan Lindgren (+25) are ahead of him.
With a goal early in the second period, Chris Kreider is up to 22 for the season. After struggling initially following an injury that kept him out for three games, he’s back to being the effective power forward he is. In a recent post, I misspoke on Kreider passing Mark Messier for seventh on the all-time franchise goal scoring list. He’s now done it with career goal number 251. Next up is Camille Henry.
In fact, Kreider is on a pretty good run. Since tallying on Jan. 27 in a home win over Vegas, he’s on a six-game point streak (3-4-7). The 31-year old is the best Rangers first round pick since Alexei Kovalev. While Kovalev performed well in helping the franchise win its fourth Stanley Cup before eventually falling out of favor under Colin Campbell, Kreider has been a mainstay for a decade. With 251 goals and 209 assists for a total of 459 points in 704 games, he continues to move up the all-time scoring list. There’s a chance he can tie and pass Adam Graves (507) for 10th by some time next season.
With a goal that turned out to be pretty important, K’Andre Miller is up to six on the season. He reached 30 points in a season for the first time in his young career. The former 2018 first round pick continues to add offense to his game. Continuing to log key minutes with partner Jacob Trouba, Miller is maturing as a player. Another 10 points, and he hits 40, which would build a case for a long-term contract. It’s looking more likely that he’ll get between $5 to 5.5 million per year.
I listed plenty of positives from the win. If there’s a negative, it was the lack of attention to detail. Vancouver can get you into their game that has no rhythm. They’re a fast skating offensive team who likes to open it up. If you get into a track meet with them, that means defense isn’t being played, and that leaves the goalie vulnerable to their quick transition game.
Igor Shesterkin struggled. Truthfully, it wasn’t an easy game to play. He felt the constant pressure from the freewheeling Canucks, who seemed to come at the Rangers in waves.
That meant a bad rebound that led to Curtis Lazar getting credit for the game’s opening goal. It was a play where all five Rangers skaters got caught napping with Kaapo Kakko, letting a hustling Dakota Joshua get to the net to create a rebound Lazar put in.
After Zibanejad fooled Vancouver rookie call-up Arturs Silovs by patiently waiting an extra second to go five-hole to tie the score, Vesey found Panarin wide open for an easy one-timer 1:13 later that gave the Blueshirts two consecutive goals for the lead.
But with Alexis Lafreniere off for hooking, J.T. Miller buried a one-timer from the far right side on a superb Elias Pettersson pass that went past Shesterkin, who was without his goal stick. Quinn Hughes helped set the power play goal up.
However, the goal fest wasn’t done in a chaotic first that also featured Trouba doing what he does by leveling Joshua with two clean hits. Nothing ever materialized. On just an innocent looking shot from Niko Mikkola, Panarin was able to redirect the puck to sneak it past a shaky Silovs, who had a rough NHL debut, allowing five goals on 27 shots.
That made it 3-2 and gave Panarin six goals in the last four periods. He had just posted a career high four in a win at Carolina over the weekend.
If you were looking for a good sign, an easy passing play started by Vladimir Tarasenko to Zibanejad allowed Kreider to score an easy goal that looked right out of the classic video game NHL ’94. It took just 50 seconds for the goal to be scored, which made it 4-2 early in the second period.
After a Mikkola penalty had just expired, Andrei Kuzmenko made a great move and fired a shot off the goalpost. Conor Garland was able to put in a backhand rebound with Kakko again puck watching. That made it 4-3 and foretold the story of the game.
Despite their deficiencies, the Canucks don’t quit. Something new coach Rick Tocchet has noted in his short time there since replacing Bruce Boudreau, who’s returned to NHL Network to entertain fans. The demanding Tocchet wants his team to defend harder. It doesn’t come easy for them.
On a play at the Vancouver blue line, Miller made a good move and fired a seeing eye wrist shot that hopped off a Canuck stick past a perplexed Silovs, who by that point must have wished he was back with Abbotsford. This was a tough spot to bring the inexperienced 21-year old into. I felt bad for him.
Still trailing by two in the third, the Canucks never gave up. Moved up by Tocchet to the first line, Kuzmenko showed off what makes him special. On a Pettersson feed, he skated into open ice and rifled a wrist shot past Shesterkin to the glove side for his 23rd with 11:09 left.
That made it a one-goal game. It was again too close for comfort. The Rangers have a bad habit of allowing opponents to hang around. Fortunately, the Canucks never found the equalizer. They out-shot the Rangers 11-6. But Shesterkin was better, including making a good glove save on Tyler Myers off a Brock Boeser face-off win.
After they pulled Silovs, the Canucks came close to tying it. However, after some near misses from Vesey and Panarin, who almost made it two games in a row with a hat trick, Zibanejad was able to rebound home his 29th into the open net with 1:34 left.
That allowed the Rangers to breathe easier. They didn’t play well. But it didn’t matter. They did enough to get the two points. Now, it’s two in a row at Edmonton and Calgary this weekend. Those should be tougher tests from Alberta rivals competing for the postseason.
One other note. I don’t understand why MSG Network refuses to fly out Sam Rosen and Joe Micheletti to the West Coast. It’s insulting to the fan base. This isn’t the past couple of years. Why should they call the game from the studio? It really is a bad look. It really comes off cheap.
Also. Next time he opens his trap, can Steve Valiquette think before he speaks? He really thought this game would be easy. He must not pay attention. Teams like the Canucks give the Rangers fits due to their speed and skill. Adam Fox struggled mightily. Not much defense was played.
I’m also tired of Shesterkin underperforming. If he keeps playing like this, it’s hard to see this team getting out of the division.
The fourth line has no real scoring threat. Jake Leschyshyn is just out there. He’s a placeholder until Chris Drury gets a real player to fill out that line. Julien Gauthier is back to being a player who can’t score. He works hard but isn’t consistent. Barclay Goodrow is the only offensive player that line has. That’ll have to be upgraded.
With Valentine’s Day come and gone along with unseasonably mild weather conditions with temperatures in the 60s during a normally ice cold month, the NHL Trade Deadline is less than three weeks away.
Teams have until March 3rd to decide if they’re in or out on the 2022-23 season. That the trade deadline comes out on a Friday will make for even more theatre. It’s a bit more exciting than holding it on a Monday when most people are very busy with work. Friday is the end of the work week for most people.
That’s about as good as it gets for hockey. Especially in light of Sidney Crosby justifiably calling out the league for its flawed playoff system and inexplicable officiating where more players and coaches are questioning the validity of calls. Crosby is correct that going back to a 1-8 seed format makes more sense. He’s also right that his game misconduct in a Pens loss at the Sharks was unwarranted.
Not everything makes sense with the game. However, the trade deadline usually drives up fan interest. Even in a flawed hard cap where the game’s top competitors can have a difficult time completing blockbuster trades due to salary structure, there’s usually key players who get moved. All the more reason to follow the action any way you can.
When the Rangers decided to make their big move earlier than expected by sending Sammy Blais, Hunter Skinner, and a conditional first round pick, conditional fourth to the Blues for Vladimir Tarasenko and Niko Mikkola, it took many by surprise. Ultimately, Team President and GM Chris Drury decided it would be wiser to acquire the 31-year old Tarasenko for a better price than wait on Patrick Kane to make a decision or bid on Sharks’ sniper Timo Meier.
The biggest shock was how vocal Kane was following the Rangers move for Tarasenko, who has scored a goal in two games since coming over to Broadway on Feb. 9. The 34-year old three-time Stanley Cup champion, Hart, and Conn Smythe winner didn’t hold back his disappointment. He wanted New York.
“It’s not like the happiest I’ve been to hear about a trade, but I think the Rangers I definitely pay attention to, intrigued by for obvious reasons,” Kane admitted following a Blackhawks’ 4-3 overtime win over the Coyotes recently.
“Just if things are going to happen, that was a team I was definitely looking at,” he said. “It seems like they kind of filled their void and went ahead and made a deal. So it is what it is.”
It was no secret that Showtime would’ve been open to a reunion with former teammate Artemi Panarin in the Big Apple. They had superb chemistry over two seasons in the Windy City before the Blackhawks dealt the Bread Man to the Blue Jackets on June 23, 2017. They couldn’t afford him. So, he starred in Columbus and was successful under former Rangers coach John Tortorella.
The Blue Jackets pulled off the stunning first round upset of the top seeded Lightning by sweeping them. Panarin played a huge role by scoring and setting up big goals. Sergei Bobrovsky was also outstanding. Rental Matt Duchene performed well. Ultimately, after falling to the Bruins in the second round, the Blue Jackets lost Panarin to the Rangers, who beat out the Islanders and Columbus when he was a free agent.
Panarin got paid handsomely by former Rangers Team President John Davidson and former GM Jeff Gorton to join the Blueshirts during the summer of 2019. He accepted their seven-year deal worth $81.5 million. Panarin was offered more by the Blue Jackets, who bid eight years, $96 million to try to keep him.
Since becoming a Ranger, the Bread Man has delivered with some outstanding production. None better than 2019-20 when he went 32-63-95 in 69 games. He finished third for the Hart Trophy behind winner Leon Draisaitl and Nathan MacKinnon. Of the three, nobody was more valuable to their team than Panarin.
Even though the goals have declined since, Panarin remains a scoring threat. Even in a down year by his high standards, he is coming off a career high four-goal game where he went 4-1-5 in a Rangers’ 6-2 win over the Hurricanes. He acknowledged that he’s been disappointed with his lack of goal scoring this season. Being able to snap out of it in a big divisional win over a first place team they trail should give him more confidence.
Panarin leads the Blueshirts in assists (43) and points (59). A recent stretch that’s seen him tally nine points (4-5-9) over the past four games have shown a renewed energy from a dynamic player, who at times is too unselfish with his pass-first style. As Mollie Walker asserted in her column that appeared in today’s New York Post, much of the Rangers’ postseason hopes depends on Panarin. A player who’s paid $11.65 million to deliver in key moments.
“When you’re not scoring [for] that long of time … I usually have more goals than I have right now,” he said. “That pisses me off a little. And then when I have the chances, [it hits] the post or something. That’s more frustrating.”
Last year, his best moment came when he delivered in the clutch to win Game Seven of a hotly contested first round divisional series to beat the Penguins with a seeing eye, power play goal to send MSG into bedlam.
In the team’s run to the Conference Finals, Panarin finished with six goals and 10 assists for a total of 16 points. There were games that he struggled in due to less time and space. He still wound up tied with Chris Kreider for third in scoring during the postseason.
For most of the season, many pundits felt a reunion between Panarin and Kane was a foregone conclusion. However, as the Rangers struggled during a disappointing first half, it took a while for them to turn it around. With the trade status of Kane unknown due to it being his decision to waive his limited no-trade clause, the Rangers ultimately decided the cost would be too much. Especially if it meant parting with a key roster player, a top prospect plus a first round pick for a potential rental.
According to sources, the Rangers targeted Tarasenko – a player they long coveted – and decided to go for it after feeling the asking prices for Timo Meier and Patrick Kane were too high.
Also sounds like New York had some concerns over Kane’s hip injury.
Kane also has had an injury that’s hindered him. He’s played mostly through it. With talk that he could need hip surgery this off-season, that gave Drury cause for concern. Between what they’d have to give up and Kane’s health, it’s understandable why the Rangers went in a different direction. For the season, Kane has nine goals with 26 assists for 35 points in 49 games. Not the usual production from the future Hall Of Famer.
One more point. Regarding Drury making the early decision to trade for Tarasenko, he not only got the proven goalscorer at a bargain price. But also was able to upgrade the blue line by adding Niko Mikkola. A big left defenseman with size and strength who is playing with Braden Schneider on the third pair. That made Ben Harpur the seventh defenseman. Something that’s logical.
Since going public with his disappointment over not becoming a Ranger, Kane hasn’t stopped there. He recently made an interesting critique of the Blackhawks. While he didn’t quite say it directly, he went on to praise former Hawks’ 2019 third pick, Kirby Dach.
Patrick Kane had a lot to say about some of his former teammates’ successes around the league 👀 pic.twitter.com/XAuL6i872L
Dach was selected third behind Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko in the 2019 NHL Draft. Not surprisingly, it took him a while to develop. Similar to both Hughes and particularly Kakko, who’s showing improvement in his fourth season, the 22-year old Dach has become a responsible top six forward with the Canadiens.
The Blackhawks grew impatient and traded him to Montreal in a three team deal that allowed the Canadiens to reroute defenseman Alex Romanov to the Islanders. Chicago selected Frank Nazar in the first round and Gavin Hayes in the third round last year.
Thus far, advantage Canadiens. Prior to top finisher Cole Caufield going down, Dach formed good chemistry playing the off wing on a top line Nick Suzuki centered. Now, back at center on the second line, Dach continues to improve. He already has established career bests across the board in goals (12), assists (23), and points (35) over 54 games with the Habs.
Kane sounds like he’s ready to move on. As far as what his list could be, that remains uncertain. The Hurricanes are reportedly interested. They’re also in on Timo Meier, who should get a nice return for the Sharks. He scored his 31st goal last night in a 3-1 loss to the Penguins.
“I don’t think the number will be six but you want to do right by the franchise. … You sign a contract with a no-movement clause, no-trade clause for a reason, right? Else I would’ve done a 6-team no-trade clause.”
While Kane tries to decide where he would accept a trade to, Meier has been readily available for a while. At 26, he continues to produce at an elite level on a bad team. Meier leads the Sharks in goals (31), power play goals (13), shots (249), and is tied with Erik Karlsson in game-winners (4).
With a current cap hit of $6 million, which would be prorated for the acquiring team, he’s attracting a lot of interest. The key for whoever trades for Meier is that they must hammer out a new contract. Meier is restricted this summer and must be qualified for $10 million. That’s why it’s imperative for his new team to negotiate a long-term deal that would keep him over the long haul. He’s the top scoring forward on the market.
With over $10 million in cap space due to placing Max Pacioretty on LTIR, the Hurricanes are the favorite to acquire Meier. They have the necessary room along with a deep prospect pool to make the impact move that is desperately needed. The Canes remain a likely destination due to their need for more scoring.
The Devils are also expected to be involved. With only a shade over two million in space, it would be a bit more difficult for Team President and GM Tom Fitzgerald to pull it off. He does boast some young assets with former first round pick Alex Holtz remaining in limbo. Perhaps he’s not in the team’s future plans. Would the Sharks have interest in such a package?
The Devils would have to offload some additional salary to make it work. Possibly Yegor Sharangovich, who makes $2 million. He will want more as a Group II free agent this summer. I wonder if a trade that included Holtz, Sharangovich, one of the Devils D prospects (excluding Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec), plus a conditional first would get it done.
It largely depends on what the organization believes is best in the long run. Meier is a difference maker. The idea of having him team with Jack Hughes is intriguing. Imagine that dynamic duo over the rest of the decade. Yikes.
Could the Devils add Meier (high salary) and keep Jesper Bratt, who probably should command over $7 million per year? It’s a good question. Perhaps Hasan can better assess what would be best for the current team that continues to find a way to win games.
They defeated the Blue Jackets on a last second goal from Ryan Graves. With the game tied at two and looking ticketed for overtime in Columbus, Ondrej Palat made a good pass to Mike McLeod, who cut in and was able to find a cutting Graves for the game-winner with 1.4 seconds remaining. Here’s how it looked and sounded on MSG:
The Devils’ meteoric rise reminds me of the Rangers last year. They hadn’t made the playoffs since 2016-17. Carried by Igor Shesterkin and Chris Kreider, they found ways to win games. That’s what made 2021-22 so special. They came back from a 3-1 series deficit to eliminate the Pens. Then, rallied from a 3-2 series deficit to oust the Hurricanes. Ultimately, they fell a bit short in a very tough six-game series loss to the Lightning.
New Jersey is similar this season. They weren’t a trendy pick to make the playoffs. However, they went on an unbelievable win streak after a bad start that even had fans calling for Lindy Ruff’s head. They kept winning games and built up enough cushion so that the predictable December slump didn’t kill them.
They’ve rebounded by only losing twice in regulation since the new calendar year. They’re still winning games without Hughes, who remains out. He skated in a non-contact jersey at team practice.
At 35-13-5, with 75 points, they are in second place in the Metropolitan Division. They trail the Hurricanes by three points for first. They’re five up on the Hudson rival Rangers who are third with 70 points. Entering tonight, all three teams have 29 games remaining.
Only the Rangers are in action later when they visit the Canucks at 10 PM EST. It’ll be the same lineup with Igor Shesterkin in goal. Vancouver counters with Latvian call-up Arturs Silovs. Rookie goalie. It should be interesting.
General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that G Spencer Martin has been loaned to Abbotsford (AHL) and G Arturs Silovs has been recalled from Abbotsford.
Condolences go out to Alexander Ovechkin on the loss of his father, Mikhail, who passed away last night. He really sounded like a great guy. Ovechkin took an indefinite leave of absence from the Capitals to fly home to Russia and be with his family.
Mikhail Ovechkin was unable to travel to see the Capitals win the Stanley Cup in 2018 because of health reasons. This is the moment that summer when Alex brought the Cup to him at Dynamo Moscow’s training facility. As Mikhail said that day “Huge happiness.” pic.twitter.com/bdi4U2wDgc
That’s quite a touching moment between father and son in 2018 when the Capitals won the Stanley Cup. Ovechkin handed it off to Dad, who got to lift the Cup at the Dynamo Moscow’s training facility.
Alex Ovechkin is expected to be gone for at least the rest of the week, if not longer, after the Washington Capitals star announced Wednesday that his father has died.
It was a good weekend for Artemi Panarin and the Rangers. The team’s leading scorer ended an eight-game goal drought in epic fashion by recording the first four-goal game of his brilliant career in a 6-2 road win over the Hurricanes.
For most of his fourth season in New York City, the 31-year old Panarin has been up and down. Even if you pointed at the point production, which was still good entering Saturday’s game, the lack of consistent goal scoring had become an issue.
The highest paid player on the team, the Bread Man shouldn’t be a one trick pony. He has only a dozen goals over the first 52 games, including just two on the power play. To be fair, he is more of a setup man.
It’s been mostly Mika Zibanejad, who’s done the damage with a team-leading 16 power play goals. Last year’s single season record breaker Chris Kreider has scored only four times after getting 26. Vincent Trocheck is second with eight. Most came in the first half. He’s been moved to the second unit.
Nobody would dispute what Panarin means offensively to the Blueshirts. However, he had failed to click with anyone at even strength. Coach Gerard Gallant tried many different combinations, including force feeding him with Trocheck. But they never had any chemistry. He even tried Panarin with Filip Chytil, whose improvement has been a huge plus.
Recently, Panarin had played with Zibanejad on the first line. Before the acquisition of former Blues finisher Vladimir Tarasenko, he was finding it difficult to mesh with Zibanejad and Jimmy Vesey. Something had to be done. Rangers Team President and GM Chris Drury went out and traded for Tarasenko to help upgrade the scoring on the right side.
In his debut, Tarasenko wowed fans by scoring less than three minutes in on a perfect centering feed from Panarin to electrify MSG. The Rangers won that game 6-3 over the Kraken. Tarasenko almost had Zibanejad for a goal in an exciting first period.
If the plan was to keep them together, Gallant sure didn’t waste any time breaking it up. With the team falling behind the puck possession Hurricanes 2-1 in the second period, the experienced coach felt he needed a spark. So, he moved Panarin off the top line and onto the Trocheck line with Vesey, who moved up in the lineup for whipping boy Vitaly Kravtsov. More on that later.
Kreider was back up with Zibanejad and Tarasenko. That line didn’t factor into the scoring at five-on-five. However, Zibanejad continued to score on the man-advantage for their first goal in Raleigh.
Trocheck plays a straightforward style, as does Vesey. Panarin prefers more of the East/West dynamic that can be lethal when there’s time and space. It’s been harder for him to find the seams with his passes. The middle isn’t as open. Opponents know what he’ll do. His tendency is to gain the zone and pull up. Then, circle and look for options.
At least for one game anyway, Panarin found success playing with Trocheck. He scored the tying goal after being moved onto the line. In the third, with the game tied, Panarin scored his second on a rebound of a Braden Schneider shot with Trocheck also in front. That gave the Rangers their first lead.
With the Hurricanes getting sloppy, a turnover allowed Panarin to get a clean breakaway. He hasn’t been money on them this season. However, he didn’t miss this time. In on Andersen, he shot over the glove to make it his fourth career hat trick, and first of the season. The last one came at San Jose in his first season as a Blueshirt on Dec. 12, 2019. It was a memorable year where he put up a dominant 32 goals, 63 assists, and 95 points pre pandemic.
On an interesting note, all four of his hat tricks have come on the road. That included his first two, which both victimized the Rangers. He did it with the Blackhawks on Feb. 17, 2016. Then, he scored three over two years later with the Blue Jackets on March 20, 2018.
Following an empty netter from Kaapo Kakko that the surging Alexis Lafreniere helped set up, Panarin made it four goals when he took a Vesey pass in front and beat Andersen with 1:04 left in regulation.
It was a significant game for a star player who’s been searching for answers. He isn’t paid $11.65 million to only pick up assists. When you look at his career, Panarin has scored 20 or more in six of the previous seven years. The only exception was the abbreviated 2020-21 when he had 17 in 42 games. That eerie season, he missed significant time due to a false rumor back home. Then, came the Tom Wilson beating. An event that seemed to have an effect on Panarin. He hasn’t been the same player since.
This isn’t to say he isn’t productive. Buoyed by a season high five-point game in the latest Rangers beat down of the flawed Hurricanes, who lack enough skill despite their record, Panarin has recorded 308 points (87-221-308) in only 239 games. No other free agent addition in club history has ever produced at that level.
The bigger issue is that, at times, Panarin has disappeared during games. He is too important to the Rangers for that to happen. He has developed a penchant for taking bad penalties in the offensive zone. Not to the level we’ve seen from Trocheck and former center Ryan Strome, who was a perfect fit for his game. But they need the Bread Man to avoid losing discipline and play at the high level he’s capable of.
Saturday was a step in the right direction. The huge game hiked Panarin’s point total up to 59. Four more than Zibanejad, whose 27 goals, 16 power play goals, 24 power play points, and 187 shots lead the team. The Bread Man has 43 assists, which is three better than Adam Fox. The former Norris winner ranks third in team scoring with 50 points.
If we’re being honest, the Rangers did what they usually do. Beat the Hurricanes. They did so with Jaroslav Halak making 27 saves on 29 shots for his seventh straight win. If you can’t bury your chances on the Rangers backup, that doesn’t say much for your offense. The Canes look like they could use Timo Meier. It’ll probably be a bidding war between them and the Devils with likely a mystery team in on the proven Sharks finisher.
The Rangers have owned the Hurricanes for a while. In fact, the two games they’ve played over the last six weeks are proof of the psychological edge they have. In a 5-3 home win on Jan. 3, they got the last three goals in the third period. Then, on Saturday, they scored four in the deciding third to pull away. That’s 7-0 in the third period for those keeping score.
Two match-ups remain. In late March, the Rangers and Hurricanes will meet for a crucial home and home series on 3/21 and 3/23. Given where they currently are in the standings, those could be pivotal games in helping determine who wins the division. By winning convincingly the other day, the Blueshirts pulled within six of first place and cut a point off second due to a Devils shootout loss at the Wild.
The top three are separated by six total points. Carolina leads the Metro Division with 76. The Devils are second with 73. The Rangers sit third with 70. Both the Canes and Devils each have 30 games remaining. The Rangers have 29 left. That includes one final meeting with the Devils on March 30 in Newark.
They’ve created some separation in the division. The Capitals, Penguins, and Islanders are separated by two total points. Right now, it’s the Caps holding the first wildcard with 62 points followed by the Pens, who are the second wildcard position with 61. The Islanders are at 60. Pittsburgh has three games at hand on Washington. The Islanders have 26 games remaining. Bo Horvat has helped. But they’re still blowing games.
As for the elephant in the room, the Rangers have nobody to blame but themselves for the complicated situation with Vitaly Kravtsov. While it’s true, the former ninth pick in 2019 made a mistake leaving Hartford to go back home to play in the KHL for the remainder of ’21-22, he was welcomed back to the team by Chris Drury.
It was supposed to be a fresh start for the young right wing. However, it’s been anything but. Gerard Gallant deserves most of the criticism for that. He’s made Kravtsov the scapegoat. Even when they posted a win over the Kraken where all four lines looked good, he made up a ridiculous excuse to sit him over the weekend.
Jake Leschyshyn brings nothing to the table. By continuing to play head games with Kravtsov, who’s come back with a good attitude, which Drury all but confirmed, it’s Gallant whose arrogant treatment of the former first round pick has devalued the 23-year old Russian. A player who is a good skater with more skill, Gallant has shown no patience.
By having so many starts and stops, which included the absurd demotion to the fourth line despite proven vets Trocheck and Panarin not pulling their weight in a home loss to the Bruins, Gallant again singled out Kravtsov. He went from arguably his best game where he scored his third goal with five shots in a win over Columbus on Jan. 16 to quickly vanishing. That was Turk’s choice.
Gallant prefers more grit and physicality. Kravtsov is a finesse player with skill and skating. He has the capability to make plays. He also hasn’t been given much of a chance. Don’t look squarely at the 3-3-6 in 28 games. A better evaluation is to study the game logs and see how the player was used. Even shift to shift, you don’t know when Kravtsov will be skipped. Without much consistency or trust, it’s hard for a young player to find their game.
The way he’s been treated, Kravtsov has been kept on a short leash. While Kaapo Kakko was given a lot more leeway ever since a dreadful rookie year and didn’t improve much in years two or three, Kravtsov has been handled like a grenade. At one point in January, he had a string of games where he was more noticeable than Alexis Lafreniere. But it didn’t last. The coach saw to it by continuing to play Russian roulette with his lines.
Why Gallant decided to do things this way only he knows. He feels Kravtsov doesn’t win enough one on one battles. However, there have been active shifts where he’s had takeaways and come close to setting up teammates. If he’s expecting Kravtsov to deliver big hits like Julien Gauthier, then he’s lost.
Not every player is suited for that style. Panarin certainly isn’t. Zibanejad isn’t. Trocheck will finish checks along with Barclay Goodrow and Vesey. Sammy Blais was the best hitter among forwards before getting dealt. He had 119 in 40 games. It’s ironic that he scored in his Blues’ return on a breakaway. Good for him.
Sometimes, you gotta let a young player be who they are. Is Kakko the most physical? Hardly. He can come out with the puck due to his size. It took him four years to improve. Though 11 goals are underwhelming for the former second pick, who’s celebrated by fans as if he’s suddenly closed the gap on Jack Hughes.
Lafreniere has eight goals in Year Three. At least he’s finally putting up points. With eight over the last eight games, he’s up to 26. Two behind Kakko. It only took Gallant over half the season to realize Lafreniere had to be put back with Kakko and Filip Chytil. Chytil has been a revelation scoring a career high 19 goals and 33 points over 45 games. It took him five years to develop into a reliable player who is very effective at five-on-five.
As it turns out, patience is a virtue with young players. When he said he’s not here to develop players earlier in the season, Gallant came off badly. It couldn’t only be the vets who provided the scoring. They needed more from the kids. Not surprisingly, they’ve improved since Lafreniere was reunited with Chytil and Kakko. The most effective forechecking line Gallant has.
With Kravtsov finally realizing it’s never going to happen under Gallant, who seems to have a vendetta against him despite all the empty promises he’s made to the press, his days are numbered. Having made a second trade request due to clearly not being in the team’s plans, Kravtsov needs a change of scenery.
It happens. Eeli Tolvanen was mishandled by Nashville coach John Hynes. Astonishingly, they waived him. The Kraken couldn’t wait to put in a claim. Since then, Tolvanen has scored nine goals with Seattle. He is a former first round pick with a good shot. But he wasn’t good enough for Hynes’ liking. The Predators might regret that decision.
Will the Rangers regret how the Kravtsov situation played out? It’ll depend on the playoffs. He’s been devalued by one person. Not the Team President and GM. Drury all, but put it on Gallant last week. He makes the lineup decisions. If he thinks waiver pick-up Leschyshyn should play over Kravtsov, so be it. Why lose any sleep?
I’d given up on Kravtsov succeeding on Broadway a couple of months ago. It was obvious that Gallant had an ax to grind. Did Kravtsov handle 2021-22 well? Absolutely not. That was his choice to go home to Russia and finish out his season in the KHL. However, he did have a solid showing in the playoffs.
The idea that he doesn’t know how to play the game is preposterous. Even Larry Brooks, who’s nothing more but a mouthpiece for the Rangers organization, exaggerated the truth in his column. It isn’t healthy the way the veteran columnist goes about his business. The less said about it, the better.
Kravtsov doesn’t seem to have much value. If Drury can pry a second round pick like he did for Lias Andersson when he was disgruntled with the organization, then that would be the best case scenario.
You do have to ask why some of their former first round picks wind up wanting out. For every Chytil or K’Andre Miller, there’s an Andersson, Kravtsov, or Jamie Lundmark that gets lost in the shuffle. Most fans don’t want to remember those days. Hockey Is Different Here. It sure was. Mark Messier tarnished his reputation by hogging up the spotlight in a failed return.
Dylan McIlrath became a victim due to how much the game changed. Injuries didn’t help. However, fans loved him. His fights were always a crowd pleaser. You rooted for him to make it. He’s still playing in the AHL.
Even Manny Malhotra was pigeonholed. Maybe he didn’t have the upside that Neil Smith envisioned. But he was a solid checking center who became an effective penalty killer who could win draws. They traded him and Barrett Heistein for Roman Lyashenko and Martin Rucinsky. Malhotra wound up playing nearly 1,000 career games. Rucinsky would re-sign after the lockout and help the team reach the postseason in 05-06. Lyashenko died tragically.
There have been other first round picks who never made it. Hugh Jessiman. Bobby Sanguinetti. Pavel Brendl. Best known for hot dogs and being packaged to the Flyers with Kim Johnsson and Jan Hlavac for Eric Lindros.
Sometimes, you have to ask why the organization has such a checkered history with high draft picks. It helps explain why they’ve won one Cup in 82 years. They’re hoping to change that. The addition of Tarasenko should help. Maybe Drury can add one key checking forward to upgrade the fourth line. Leschyshyn is a place holder.
One more point. Remember when Dryden Hunt was deemed so valuable that he made the roster and Gallant used him on the second line? Hunt has since been waived, traded, and is in the AHL. He played over Kravtsov. It makes you wonder.
So, if you want to critique the younger player who was selected before Noah Dobson, be my guest. He got poor advice from his former agent. However, he did return with a better attitude and has worked hard in practice. He never was given much of a chance. That’s on Gallant.
Hopefully, things will work out better in the future. I’d hate to see Kravtsov go to waste. Maybe in the right situation, he can be given a better opportunity and succeed. That’s yet to be determined.
As much as I’ve supported him, I’m tired of writing about Kravtsov. Hopefully, this will all end very soon. It’s been nothing but a headache. Good luck to Drury on finding some good value for the player.
Whenever this saga ends, then maybe Drury can focus on adding a nice depth player like Sam Lafferty. We’ll see what happens between the day before Valentine’s Day and March 3.
The Rangers hit the road starting Wednesday when they visit Vancouver. They finish up the three-game Western Canadian swing in Edmonton on Friday and Calgary Saturday.
Vitaly Kravtsov just can’t win. Not when it comes to coach Gerard Gallant. The game continues. After bringing him back for Friday’s 6-3 win over the Kraken, he decided to scratch Kravtsov for tonight’s divisional match versus the Hurricanes.
At this point, I’m past trying to analyze the taskmaster. He is a tyrant. Nobody dares challenge him on his lineup decisions. Would you? Gallant is an intimidating person when it comes to dealing with the media. It’s his way or the highway. He won’t always directly answer questions.
So, Kravtsov got into one game after the Vladimir Tarasenko trade. He didn’t register a shot in 10:46 last night. He took 14 shifts, all while playing with Chris Kreider and Vincent Trocheck.
I’d love to know if that is enough for the tyrant to determine whether Kravtsov can be part of the lineup. He just said that he didn’t do enough. He then made up an excuse to play Jake Leschyshyn. A player they claimed from Vegas off waivers who has no points. He also doesn’t add much.
This is who Gallant is. He is a mystifying coach who is clearly holding a grudge against a player stemming from last season. Only he knows why Kravtsov can’t play on the third line and be given a real chance.
The whole situation is a joke. It stinks. It isn’t fair to Kravtsov or Chris Drury. By continuing to not play the former first round pick, it further devalues him. It is a horrible way to manage a young player who has capability.
There’s no rhyme or reason to it. Whatever. It isn’t my call. Jake Leschyshyn is so important to the fourth line. He brings grit and intangibles.
I’ve decided to boycott the game. I don’t care. I can’t stand Gallant. If the team wins, it won’t be because of him. He never makes an example of anyone else. It’s personal. It is very similar to how Colin Campbell treated a very proven Alexei Kovalev. That never made sense.
Hopefully, for Kravtsov, there will be a resolution to the madness. It’s become a distraction. Reporters have to continually ask this fraud questions due to him. He’s the cause of it.
Whatever happens with Kravtsov, here’s hoping he gets a real opportunity on another team where the coach isn’t an arrogant jerk.
If it was the first show on Broadway, it went well for Vladimir Tarasenko. Making his Rangers debut wearing his trademark number 91, the former Blue scored his first goal less than three minutes in to electrify the Garden crowd.
On a Kraken turnover in the neutral zone, Artemi Panarin stole the puck and then moved in and centered a perfect pass for close Russian friend Tarasenko who tipped it in for the perfect start to his Rangers career. The cheers were deafening when Joe Tolleson announced the goal.
It was a successful Broadway debut. Playing on the first line with Panarin and Mika Zibanejad, Tarasenko demonstrated early why the Rangers got him. He also nearly set up Zibanejad on a two-on-one. Had that connected, the roof might’ve blown off the building.
Most importantly, the Rangers won their fourth consecutive game. They defeated the Kraken 6-3. Kaapo Kakko and Vincent Trocheck each finished with a goal and assist to help the team keep pace in the Metro Division. They’re four behind the second place Devils, and trail first place Carolina by eight.
In fact, it’ll be a big divisional match-up on Saturday when they visit Carolina at 7 PM. The Rangers should feel better equipped to go up against the Hurricanes. If Gerard Gallant likes what he saw from his new lines, which all were effective, then the lineup could remain the same for a key back-to-back. The only question is, will Igor Shesterkin get the start. He made 26 saves on 29 shots to pick up the win.
For at least one night, Gallant decided to go more conventional. He re-inserted Vitaly Kravtsov into the lineup. He played on the third line with Trocheck and Chris Kreider, who also scored a goal to move past Mark Messier for sole possession of seventh place on the all-time franchise goal list with 251.
Newcomer Niko Mikkola replaced Ben Harpur to team up with Braden Schneider on the third pair. It wasn’t a good game for either. Schneider got beat on the Kraken’s first goal, and Mikkola took three minor penalties. The final one was a dubious delay of game. Replays confirmed the puck went into the bench. The linesmen apologized to a fuming Gallant after the Rangers killed the penalty.
If they hadn’t killed that minor along with a weak Adam Fox trip, things might’ve been interesting. Fortunately, the special teams got the job done. Ryan Lindgren scored into a vacated Seattle net for his first goal in 90 games, sealing the victory.
With Tarasenko replacing Jimmy Vesey on the top line, he moved all the way down to the fourth line. Barclay Goodrow shifted to centering Vesey and Julien Gauthier, who returned to the lineup.
The second line remained intact. At least, that’s how I view Filip Chytil between Alexis Lafreniere and Kaapo Kakko. The chemistry is undeniable for the Rangers’ most effective offensive line that consistently gets in on the forecheck and makes things happen. They again were dynamite by combining for a nice Kakko goal that ended a 16-game drought.
Over two minutes after Tarasenko’s goal, Lafreniere made a nice pass into the slot for a Chytil shot that deflected right off the stick of Kakko for his 10th to make it 2-0.
Kakko scores and is fired up Sam is fired up The Garden is fired up I'm fired up LET'S GO pic.twitter.com/dBdJQ2JNux
Much later, Lafreniere nearly had Chytil for a goal on a two-on-one. He’s playing with a lot more confidence. He also created a breakaway that led to a weak hooking call on Jared McCann during the third period. The officiating left a lot to be desired.
While the Rangers took early control on the scoreboard, the Kraken worked diligently to generate chances. However, Shesterkin was sharp, making 10 saves in the first period. That included a pad stop on Jamie Oleksiak.
Daniel Sprong also had a close call. His sharp angle shot banked off the back of the mask of Shesterkin and right off the crossbar. He was very close to getting a big goal.
Instead, it was the Rangers’ third line that went to work. On a good Lindgren shot that rebounded to Trocheck, Kreider got the puck in front for a cutting Trocheck, whose shot bounced off Martin Jones. With it close to the goal line, a hustling Trocheck made sure to follow it up for his 15th goal to give the Blueshirts a 3-0 lead. Kravtsov took up space on the other side as Trocheck notched his second over the last four.
With under a minute left, Jaden Schwartz checked Lindgren up high in the corner. He was assessed an illegal check to the head minor. Lindgren was okay and stayed in the game.
After not scoring before the first concluded, the Rangers were able to convert on their first power play on a new sheet of ice. It was the second unit that got it done. Tarasenko is part of it, along with Trocheck. However, with time growing short, Gallant went with two defensemen. That featured K’Andre Miller and Jacob Trouba.
Kakko had a shot redirected by Trocheck. The puck came to Trouba, who fired a backhand that banked in for a power play goal at 1:03. His reaction was one of total disbelief. Puck luck for the gritty captain. Trouba’s fourth from Trocheck and Kakko gave them a 4-0 lead 63 seconds into the second period.
Before they got comfortable, Eeli Tolvanen sprung Oliver Bjorkstrand for a break-in. He cut between Trouba and Schneider and then beat Shesterkin high glove for his 10th at 2:07. That goal answered Trouba only 1:04 later.
NHL Video Highlight – Oliver Bjorkstrand fires home a shot from the slot and into the net to put the Kraken on the board, trimming their deficit to 3 goals. pic.twitter.com/v9QuSP3QUo
Although there was no more scoring in a more hotly contested second, the pesky Kraken used their forecheck to buzz around Shesterkin’s net. He came up with a critical save on Ryan Donato that stayed out with both Mikkola and Schneider scrambling. Thankfully, no Seattle player found the rebound.
Midway through, Panarin didn’t like a hit Tarasenko took. He then went after Will Borgen, who was involved with Zibanejad along the boards. Panarin took an ill-advised interference minor to put the Kraken on the power play. Fortunately, the penalty kill bailed the undisciplined Panarin out. It would’ve been interesting to see how Gallant might’ve reacted had Seattle scored.
They would also have to kill off the first of three Mikkola minor penalties when he high-sticked Sprong. The Kraken weren’t too effective on the five-on-four. It was mostly strong work shorthanded by the Blueshirts, who heard it from the crowd.
Lafreniere nearly had Chytil for his 20th. But a quick reacting Jones made the key stop to deny the blistering Chytil, who had his goal streak snapped at five games. During it, he scored seven goals. If you’re keeping track, it really was eight. But they didn’t reward him a goal the other night. So, he remains at 19 for the season.
After taking a three-goal lead to the locker room, the Rangers looked to finish off the Kraken early. Jordan Eberle was called for high-sticking Miller. The new look top unit that now has Chytil replacing Trocheck, who’s on the second unit, made it happen.
Fox passed down low for Kreider. On a set play, he made a no look backhand pass across for an easy Zibanejad finish at 3:19 to increase the lead to 5-1. It was his team-leading 15th power play goal and 26th overall. He’s 4-1-5 over the last three games since the Rangers returned from the All-Star break.
Most career power play goals in @NYRangers franchise history: 116- Camille Henry 108- Rod Gilbert 106- Brian Leetch 100- Adam Graves 88- Chris Kreider 84- Mika Zibanejad (Scoring one in the 3rd period of 6-3 win vs SEA tonight) 83- Vic Hadfield 82- Phil Esposito 82- Jean Ratelle pic.twitter.com/ZkLqchpN6P
Game over. Right? Wrong. Before you could blink, the Kraken struck twice within a 22-second span to cut a 5-1 deficit to 5-3 with still 14:01 remaining.
With Mikkola off for hooking Morgan Geekie, Jared McCann took a Vince Dunn pass and rifled home his team-leading 24th with Alex Wennberg standing in front.
On the next shift, Dunn got the puck up for Donato on the right side. He fired a pass to lead Brandon Tanev in on a breakaway. He got behind Schneider and then went to the backhand to beat Shesterkin. That suddenly made it a two-goal game with plenty of time left.
A couple of minutes later, Mikkola cleared a puck into the bench area. Somehow, they missed it. Instead, they thought it went directly out. Instead of conferencing to make sure they got it right, they gave Seattle a power play. Gallant had that look on his face. The death stare.
At least, the Rangers were able to kill the phantom penalty. Had they not, it could’ve been a 5-4 game with still half the period left. Can you imagine? They led 5-1 after Zibanejad scored with 16:41 remaining.
This has become a disturbing trend. Letting third period leads slip away. We saw it against the Flames and the Canucks. They have to fix it. That won’t fly in the playoffs. Especially if the first round opponent is the dangerous Devils. They can score goals quickly.
Late in the period, Lafreniere made a great defensive play. Forcing a turnover inside the Ranger zone, he broke away with McCann trailing him from behind. As the crowd anticipated the shot, McCann made a good defensive play by lifting the stick. But, he was called for hooking.
On a wild sequence where Fox dove to try to keep a puck in, the Kraken went the opposite direction for a shorthanded bid. Following some good hustle from Kreider to prevent Tanev from scoring on Shesterkin, who made the key save, a penalty was called.
At first, it looked like Kreider would go off. But he did nothing wrong. Instead, Fox replaced Kreider in the penalty box. Exasperated, he asked for an explanation after being called for tripping Yanni Gourde. It made no sense at all. He dove to keep the puck alive. It was inadvertent. This was the third straight call they got wrong.
Following some four-on-four, the Kraken went on the power play. They would pull Jones for a six-on-four advantage. It didn’t matter. Instead, Lindgren got to a loose puck in his end and sent the puck down into the vacated net for his first of the season. A nice reward for the birthday boy. He officially turned 25 at midnight.
That shorthanded empty net goal finally put the game out of reach. They gave Tarasenko the game’s First Star. He heard a lot more cheers. It was a nice start to his Rangers career. How long it lasts no one knows. Let’s enjoy it. Maybe there will be a big payoff.
THREE STARS 🌟 🤩 ✨️
3rd 🌟 Oliver Bjorkstrand, Kraken goal (10) plus 🍎, 2 SOG in 8 attempts, Even in 18:10
2nd 🌟 🤩 Vladimir Tarasenko, Rangers scored 1st as a Ranger for first goal since 12/23, 2 SOG in 5 attempts, +1 in 13:58
1st 🌟 🤩 ⭐️ Kaapo Kakko, Rangers tied career best with 10th goal plus 🍎, 3 SOG in 5 attempts, -1 in 15:24
At the Rock these last couple months, it’s been both the best of times and the worst of times. Right now it’s clearly the best of times for the Devils on the ice as a tight 2-1 win over the Kraken last night, coupled with a wild 5-4 OT decision over the Canucks on Monday ran the Devils’ record to 10-1-1 in their last twelve games, including five in a row at home. Though the team’s still struggling at times, they’ve been carried by performances from their best players and by goaltending – last night being another example of both as Dougie Hamilton’s two power play goals and Mackenzie Blackwood’s 33 saves carried the Devils across the finish line in regulation, despite missing the clear team MVP in Jack Hughes.
For Hughes, a mysterious upper-body injury that now has him on the shelf week-to-week is an unfortunate coda to All-Star weekend, and his triumphant return from Florida’s celebrity classic on Monday with two goals and the assist on Jesper Bratt’s OT winner against the Canucks. There was no indication of any issue then, but perhaps the issue cropped up after the game…or before it. Though I watched exactly zero of the skills competition or the 3-on-3 games on All-Star weekend, every Devils fan saw the clip of Brady Thachuk’s weird half horse-collar on Hughes during his game on Sunday:
Granted it’s a slight tug on the neck which you could almost dismiss as playful, but in that situation it was more or less a horse collar. Are we playing All-Star games as a competitive fixture or not? If not (which it clearly isn’t, when you go to 3-on-3 and faux division formats where everyone needs to be represented), then sorry dude you’re not Pete Rose and this isn’t 1970. Turn off the hurt and obstruct genes for one frigging weekend. Could I really expect anything more from a Thachuk though, considering brother Matt’s role in the Panthers-Devils shenanigans from earlier this year including a clear cheap shot on Nico Hischier?
Even if Hughes got injured in that play or on All-Star weekend, I’m not about to say ban all our players from going to the All-Star game. Hockey’s an 82-game season, guys are gonna get hurt. If you’re gonna get hurt in an exhibition from a guy being a punk, you can just as easily be hurt on one of 82 other nights from someone doing far worse. Besides, it’s not as if we couldn’t use positive publicity and nobody’s delivered more than that than Hughes, which his heroics on Monday only served to underscore and led to a heartfelt…if slightly optimistic chant
Maybe if the NHL was in a year without a transcendent talent, Hughes’s 35 goals and 67 points in 50 games would have him in the driver seat to pick up the Hart Trophy (Taylor Hall ‘only’ had 94 points in his Hart season, after all)…but as Jack himself acknowledged after the game, hard to see anyone besides Connor McDavid winning it this year. I mean really, 41 goals and 94 points in 52 games are basically Gretzky and Lemieux in the live puck era type of numbers. Still, 50 goals and 100 points were both real possibilities for Hughes, and nobody in franchise history has crossed either barrier in a single season.
Unfortunately, the mysterious upper-body injury which went from a maintenance day to out for weeks will put a cramp in both milestone chases. At least the Devils have enough of a cushion over the bubble it shouldn’t hinder our playoff march too much, although clearly running down Carolina for the division lead and avoiding likely Armageddon in the first round just got a bit harder. Though I normally avoid the whole seeding and matchup talk till March, it’s hard not to see the likelihood of Devils-Rangers is over fifty percent at this point. With as well as the Hurricanes are playing are we really going to run them down while compensating for Hughes being on the shelf? Are the Rangers going to run them down from ten points in the rear, even after getting Tarasenko? Conversely we’re double digits up on the playoff bubble while it’s unlikely the Rangers get run down by the Caps or Pens either, now that they’ve started fortifying their roster for a playoff push.
Of course that worry, if you want to call it that is two months in the future still. Plenty of hockey to be played between now and then, not to mention deadline moves to be made. With Tarasenko and Bo Horvat both off the board – and both going to local teams, no less – even more attention is on the Sharks’ Timo Meier (and his 65 goals between last season and the start of this year), whose weird contract situation complicates a potential trade. Though he’s not technically a UFA next year, his arb number will be in the $10 million range due to contractual technicalities, so for all intents and purposes any team acquiring him will want to agree to a new contract within days of the trade, a la the Isles with Horvat. To ramp up the stakes even more, the two teams most linked with the Swiss winger are us…and the Hurricanes.
Though the trade deadline isn’t for another three weeks, as evidenced by the big trades that have already taken place a lot of teams typically want to finish their business before deadline day, leaving all the talking heads on their trade special shows to debate which middle six forwards and stay-at-home defensemen could be gamechangers. In the case of the Sharks, it also behooves them to trade Timo sooner – if nothing else but to soft tank their way into more lotto balls. While under normal circumstances, Devil fans would just be happy to make the playoffs for a second time in the last decade, the likely opponent being the Rangers raises the stakes. Fans are already feeling the anticipation, with a group in the lower bowl chanting ‘WE WANT TIMO!’ during the national anthem last night, as inappropriate as that was I couldn’t help but snicker when I realized what it was.
As far as the actual games this week, it seems like no matter what happens the Devils are destined to take just about every game down to the wire and make you bite your nails. Even Monday – which should have been a laugher when the Devils went up 4-1 – became a struggle after three unanswered goals from the lowly Canucks tied the game, and the Devils were actually fortunate to avoid a regulation loss. Of course that was before getting Vancouver right where they wanted them in OT, with another 4-on-3 power play and another decisive late goal, this time from Jesper Bratt.
I didn’t attend that game even though I was supposed to, because of car issues that only got temporarily rectified yesterday. Enough for me to try going to the game when my other plans fell through, so instead of going Monday and not going Thursday which was the initial plan, it wound up being the other way around. At least the result was the same for the Devils, although with both Hughes and defenseman Brendan Smith out, as well as Vitek Vanecek and his ten-game winning streak giving way to Blackwood to keep him in game form after the long break, it had the feel of an English soccer team throwing out their B unit in a cup game.
Early on it felt like the loss of Hughes would be too much to overcome against a solid Seattle team though Blackwood kept the team in the game in the first period, and eventually the team straightened out enough defensively to make it more of a back-and-forth game, which was surprisingly 0-0 more than halfway through the second between Blackwood and Phillip Grubauer (both of whom had poor overall stats this season). Of all people, it was ex-Devil Adam Larsson who broke the deadlock at 14:05 of the second period, with a seeing-eye shot that beat Blackwood for the only goal he’d allow on the night.
Despite a mostly dreadful game from everyone else other than the fourth line up to that point, the Devils responded with the best shift of the night from the erstatz top line of Ondrej Palat – who also had two goals against the Canucks – Hischier and Bratt leading to a penalty, which led to yet another Dougie ripper from inside the blueline, off a feed from Palat and that proved to be all the offense needed for one night at least.
I swear, Dougie goals from the middle of the blueline are becoming almost as frequent as Ovi goals from just above the faceoff dot – a point reinforced in the third period when another power play led to another Dougie goal ripped from the blueline, also assisted by Palat. Despite having no five-on-five goals last night, the Dougie-Palat power play connection and Blackwood’s performance were enough to get the two points, sealed with a John Marino empty-netter. At this point it seems like the Devils are on the verge of ‘nice problem to have’ territory with their goalies, given Blackwood’s improved play combined with Vanecek’s consistency and long winning streak. Although I submit a big reason for Blackwood’s being improved this year is less wear and tear being the 1B, since injuries have been a big part of his career to this point. Still, having two goalies play well beats the alternative of last year when we had no goalies playing well.
In a move that came very quickly this afternoon, the Rangers acquired Vladimir Tarasenko from the Blues.
The 31-year old veteran right wing who scored 34 goals last season was added for one reason. To fill a void. Ever since Team President and GM Chris Drury dumped Pavel Buchnevich ironically on the Blues due to the hard cap, the Rangers lacked a top scoring right wing who could finish.
By trading for the six-time 30-goal scorer, who helped the Blues win the Stanley Cup in 2019, the Rangers are hoping Tarasenko can flourish on the first line while playing with Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad. If it works out, that would give coach Gerard Gallant a dynamic top scoring line. That’s at least the hope.
Even better, Drury was able to beef up the blue line by also getting tough left defenseman Niko Mikkola. The full deal saw Sammy Blais return to St. Louis, along with D prospect Hunter Skinner, and the lower of two 2023 first round picks, the Rangers have. They own the Stars’ first from the Nils Lundkvist trade and their own.
1st rounder will be later of 2 first-round picks, either theirs or Dallas'. If Dallas finishes with top 10 pick it will shift to next year and be later of those two. https://t.co/wdNqTwl2xn
By adding Tarasenko, it addresses a scoring need. The big move should allow Gallant to move Jimmy Vesey back into a checking role where he’s better suited. Vesey has done an admirable job, earning a contract extension by scoring nine goals and nine assists for a solid 18 points in his Broadway encore.
Following a third shoulder procedure, Tarasenko hasn’t been as productive. However, he played on a mediocre St. Louis club that has been Jekyll and Hyde all season long. In 38 games, he has 10 goals with 19 assists for 29 points. He also was a minus-18. Hopefully, that’s more due to the team he played on.
For nearly two years, Tarasenko had wanted out of St. Louis. Despite all the success playing for a good franchise that boasts some of the game’s best fans, he wanted a change. To his credit, Tarasenko still produced a career high 82 points (34-48-82) in ’21-22, including nine game-winners. He went 6-3-9 in the playoffs.
For his outstanding 11-year career, he finishes with 262 goals, 291 assists, and 553 points in 644 games, all with the Blues. The 262 goals rank fifth on the all-time franchise goal list. His 553 points are also fifth on the franchise scoring list. Tarasenko places fourth most among Blues with 196 even strength goals. He ranks sixth in power play goals with 65.
No commitment from Drury on Tarasenko playing on the first power play unit, says the #NYR lineup is Gerard Gallant's.
"He's obviously an elite scorer, terrific player. W felt like acquiring a top six scoring winger was something we needed."
If he’s healthy and motivated, which seems to be the case, then it’s a low risk move. With the Blues picking up half the tab of a $7.5 million cap hit that sure helps out the Rangers, what’s not to like? He’s a rental. Either it comes together or doesn’t. They sure didn’t give up a lot.
Blais never was the same after returning from that cheap slewfoot from P.K. Subban that ended his 2021-22 with an ACL tear. He even went down recently on a conditioning stint and scored four goals at Hartford. To his credit, he played an honest game, finishing checks and playing hard on the fourth line.
It didn’t work out. Blais finishes his Rangers career with no goals and nine assists, including five this season. The nine points came in 54 games. The same as a 54-year Cup drought that ended in 1994. It also recalls a failed coaching stint for Bryan Trottier. Yuck.
Blais is a good team player. Hopefully, it’ll go better for him back in familiar territory. He helped the Blues win their only Cup. An unrestricted free agent this summer, I wish him the best of luck. His career hangs in the balance.
The Rangers also parted with former 2019 fourth round pick Hunter Skinner. Hopefully, that’ll be better for his pro career. He’s spent some time playing in the ECHL and AHL. After putting up eight points for Jacksonville, he had two assists in eight games for the Wolf Pack. The Wyandotte, Michigan native is 21.
There are also two conditional picks. If you reference what New York Post beat writer Mollie Walker said, the Blues will receive the later of the two first round picks in the 2023 NHL Draft. There’s also a condition on a 2024 fourth round pick, which would become a third if the Rangers make the playoffs.
As expected, Drury decided to take the easier route. Rather than try for Timo Meier, who is going to be heavily pursued, or see if Patrick Kane would become available, he thought it would be better to pry Tarasenko for a more affordable price. Who can argue with that logic?
I never believed Kane would wind up on Broadway. It didn’t make sense. He’s 34 and will need hip surgery. The Blackhawks would’ve asked for more than what the Blues did. The Rangers weren’t going to overpay.
#NYR felt asking price for Kane/Meier would be too high for their cap situation. Plus, they didn't want to wait on Kane and there were concerns with his hip.
Expect Mikkola to slot onto the bottom pair with Braden Schneider, Rangers wanted more depth on D.
Nobody even knows what Kane wants to do. At last check, he was given a list of teams to see if he’s open to a trade. I can see him landing in Toronto, Carolina, or New Jersey. Though I truly believe the Devils will make a serious run at Meier. Especially with Hughes out for a while. He makes a lot of sense for them. He’s the best available player on the market and would be a significant upgrade.
Mikkola is a 6-4, 209-pound left defenseman who plays tough. He has a lot more NHL experience than Ben Harpur, who struggled in the Rangers’ 4-3 win over the Canucks with Braden Schneider. That probably moved the process along faster.
#NYR GM Chris Drury said acquiring D Niko Mikkola in the deal "was a big piece of it."
"This was a piece that I really wanted in there and to have it in there now and not wait on it…He's a real good shutdown defenseman. Obviously, he's got size and reach, like K'Andre does."
Mikkola can pair up with Schneider. An upgrade over Harpur, who can stay as the extra defenseman. Due to a numbers game, Libor Hajek was finally waived. He hadn’t played in two months. It was obvious that he wasn’t going to survive this time. Hopefully, someone will pick him up. He worked hard. That’s all you can ask for.
Prior to the trade, the Rangers also sent down Will Cuylle back to Hartford. He didn’t have a good third game last night. Personally, I think they wanted to give him taste to see what they had. He can play top minutes with the Wolf Pack, who are pushing for the playoffs. That would be more beneficial for his first pro year.
At the moment, the fourth line could look like this:
Goodrow-Leschyshyn-Gauthier
That’s if Gallant decides to switch Vesey onto the third line with Chris Kreider and Vincent Trocheck. He has a good choice between the versatile Goodrow and Vesey. Either player can play third or fourth line.
In regards to the checking line, it’s likely that Drury will look to improve there. Leschyshyn has done okay on face-offs. But he isn’t exactly the best fit. There are some better available players that could fit well in that role.
Sam Lafferty tops the list. He can take draws, finish checks, play penalty kill, and contribute on the score sheet. Isn’t that what they’re looking for? There’s also Max Domi, Tanner Jeannot, and Tyler Motte. All should be available.
Finally, in regards to Vitaly Kravtsov, Drury basically laid it on Gallant. He heaped some praise on the former 2018 first round pick. The opposite of some of the ridiculous talking points some skewed fans have due to what happened last year. They brought him back.
I asked Drury where Vitali Kravtsov fits in #NYR lineup now, if at all:
"Not to beat a dead's horse, but it's Turk's call…I just try to give him as many good players as I can. I think Vitali has played some really good hockey at some points this year. Hasn't been…
in in a little bit here, but he's been doing everything he can off ice and in practice to get back in there… I know he's doing everything he can to be ready if he gets a call to have an impact on the game."
Basically, Turk has screwed Kravtsov over. That’s been known for a while. He has his preferences. Kravtsov just doesn’t fit into his plans. He has positive possession numbers. For those crying over his production (3-3-6 in 27 GP), how did Alexis Lafreniere perform when Gallant kept yo-yo-ing him around?
When it comes to handling young players, they must have a clearly defined role. That’s never been the case for Kravtsov, who got unfairly punished for mistakes made by elder statesmen Trocheck and Panarin in a loss to Boston. He has since vanished after two fourth line cameos.
The likely outcome is Kravtsov being sold at lower value as March 3 nears. We’ll see what happens.
Alright. All caught up. Both newest Rangers will make their debut tomorrow night at MSG when the Kraken visit. Get ready.
It didn’t come easy. Do they ever for this team? After Monday’s exciting win over Calgary, the Rangers did just enough to earn a 4-3 win over the Canucks at The Garden.
The most important thing is they got two points. That pulls them within four of the second place Devils. Dating back to a 4-1 victory over Vegas nearly two weeks ago, the Rangers have won three straight. They’re up to 66 points in 51 games. It was their 23rd regulation win. The Devils have 70 points in 50 games with 24 regulation wins. That’s the first tiebreaker.
There’s still over 30 games left on the schedule. It isn’t guaranteed that the Rangers will cross paths with their bitter Hudson rival. However, it feels like it’s headed that way. If it happens, it would be nice to have home ice. We’ll see where things go.
The three-game home stand concludes tomorrow night when the surprising Kraken visits MSG. They will first face the Devils later tonight. Seattle is second in the Pacific Division. They’re in competition to make the playoffs in their second year. That will be an interesting battle. The Golden Knights, Kraken, Oilers, and Kings are all jockeying for position with the Flames lurking.
Whils that should be good race to follow, the Rangers have their own in a competitive Metro Division. The Hurricanes lead it with 76 points. Then, the Devils trail by six, followed by the Blueshirts, who are 10 behind. The Capitals currently sit in fourth place with 60 points. One up on the Penguins and Islanders, who are 2-0 since acquiring Bo Horvat from Vancouver. Pittsburgh has played only 50 games. The Caps have played 53, and the Islanders have played 54.
Whoever winds up fourth and fifth will have to contend with both the Sabres and suddenly resurgent Panthers. Each has 56 points. They should be in wildcard contention.
With 31 games remaining, the Rangers should feel good about where they are in the standings. They improved to 29-14-8. Although it wasn’t perfect, they took care of business. That’s all that matters.
Not every win is going to be easy. This one was ugly. The opposite of the barn burner, they won 5-4 in extras over the Flames the other night. It didn’t have an Alexis Lafreniere overtime winner or Filip Chytil hearing chants from the crowd.
Instead, it was rather boring or snoring, depending on your mood. The teams combined for a total of 46 shots. The Canucks held a 25-21 edge. Astonishingly, shots were dead even at 11 halfway through. This was the definition of a clunker. Sometimes, it happens. They play 82 games. There was just an extended break.
Early in the game, Chris Kreider moved into a tie with Mark Messier for seventh on the all-time franchise goal scoring list. He scored career goal number 250 less than seven minutes into play when he tipped in a Vincent Trocheck feed off a well executed play in transition, started by the game’s First Star K’Andre Miller.
On Black History Night, as we celebrate it during February, Miller picked a good game to post a career high three points. He recorded three assists highlighting the victory. He also helped set up the Rangers’ second and third goals.
The game started off well enough. With Igor Shesterkin returning to the net, the Rangers drew an early power play. During it, they got three scoring chances. Vancouver starter Spencer Martin stopped a Kreider tip-in. He also had a little help when a Mika Zibanejad rocket went off the crossbar. Zibanejad would then have another shot denied.
Following a Shesterkin save on a long Conor Garland shot, Miller quickly moved the puck up for Trocheck at center ice. With the Canucks caught, it became a two-on-one. Trocheck found a driving Kreider at the doorstep for his 21st at 6:53.
The goal was number 250 for Kreider. He tied Mark Messier for seventh on the all-time franchise goal scoring list. Once he moves past Messier, Camille Henry is next in line with 256. Kreider should be able to pass him to move into the top six.
Before Vancouver really found their game, a familiar face stayed red hot. Filip Chytil upped his goal scoring streak to five when he patiently backhanded a shot past a helpless Martin to make it 2-0 at 8:31.
Miller pinched in and sent the puck down low for Kaapo Kakko. He was able to elude a check and center a pass in front that Chytil deposited for his 19th. He’s up to seven over the last five games. His 11 since the start of the calendar year rank third in the league. It’s been exciting to see. It’s Chytil who has become the focal point of the offense. A welcome change.
Following that goal, Trocheck took one of his Strome specials, hooking J.T. Miller in the offensive zone. Of course, I’m referring to former Ranger Ryan Strome. He had a penchant for those. I don’t know if it’s the number. But Trocheck also wears number 16. He did the same thing in Carolina.
Fortunately, the penalty kill was strong. They didn’t give up a single shot. The Canucks are now coached by Rick Tocchet. He replaced the popular Bruce Boudreau, who’s set to return to NHL Network. Good for him. Tocchet is already learning how tough it is to coach a team that doesn’t always defend well or make the right play.
However, they still possess offensive talent. Even following the unpopular trade of former captain Bo Horvat to the Islanders, they still boast some potent weapons. One is Quinn Hughes. The older brother of Devils star Jack Hughes is a smooth skating offensive defenseman who can move the puck with the best of them. A tremendous distributor, it was his rush that led to the first Canucks goal.
Following some initial pressure by the fourth line of Sammy Blais, Jake Leschyshyn, and Will Cuylle, Hughes rushed the puck the other way. Easily gaining the Rangers blue line, he drew the attention of four skaters, including Cuylle and Braden Schneider. This allowed him to find Garland wide open for a goal with 2:24 left that pulled them within one.
Perhaps that sequence, along with an ineffective game from the fourth line and third defensive pair, convinced Chris Drury to act quickly. They sure did earlier this afternoon. Let’s leave that for a separate post.
Still ahead 2-1 in the second period, it felt like the Rangers got lulled to sleep by the Canucks. They’re the direct opposite of the Flames. A team that is searching for an identity, playing out the string. The Connor Bedard lottery awaits. They’re not favorites to get him. You never know.
Shesterkin stayed awake with early stops on Vasily Podkolzin and Luke Schenn. He’d also deny a Curtis Lazar wrap-around. Not much was happening. It really was sleep inducing. Sloppy hockey. It felt like the Blueshirts played down to the level of their opponent.
Still leading by one, they got a spark from the resurgent Alexis Lafreniere when he was able to deflect a rebound home a Trouba shot for his eighth at 6:23. That gave him goals in two straight and six points over the last six. On the scoring play, Miller recorded his third point for his first three assist game. He’d never had a three-point game either.
The Rangers had a few chances to go up three. But both Trocheck and Jimmy Vesey missed wide on opportunities. Artemi Panarin also had a mini-break when he got behind the Vancouver defense. However, he sent a backhand high and wide.
For a while, nothing substantial was happening. But the longer it remained a two-goal game, the longer the Canucks could hang around. One thing about them, which Tocchet noted in his postgame. They never give up.
With that in mind, J.T. Miller made an aggressive forecheck to force a turnover behind the Rangers net. He then centered a pass for Podkolzin in the right circle. His shot took a Canucks’ bounce off of Panarin and by Shesterkin to cut it to 3-2 with 3:54 remaining. It was an unlucky goal. However, neither Ryan Lindgren nor Adam Fox were particularly strong on the goal.
Of course, Sam Rosen started going on and on about Miller because that was his 500th career point. Kudos to him. But hearing both Rosen and Joe Micheletti waxing poetic about a former player was nauseating. They really are insufferable.
Fortunately, Panarin got a step on Schenn in the neutral zone to draw an interference minor late in the period. Following the stoppage, Schenn went to the locker room due to being banged up on the penalty. A potential trade target, Tocchet said he was okay afterwards.
The Rangers were unable to cash in on the power play. There was only one shot from Trocheck that was handled by Martin. The five-on-four was an ugly way to conclude a disjointed period.
The third wasn’t any better. Following some key saves by Martin on Kreider and Trocheck, who played a much better game than Monday, the Canucks came awfully close to tying it. However, they couldn’t shoot straight. Brock Boeser missed on two attempts, and former Islander Anthony Beauvillier went wide from in front. That’s why he’s now a Canuck.
There were some sloppy turnovers by the Rangers defense. Schneider and partner Ben Harpur struggled. Their ice time was down. Harpur played 11:45 while Schneider received 14:47 with each victimized on the Canucks’ first goal.
Unhappy with the fourth line, Gallant had Trocheck take a shift in place of Leschyshyn. Blais was the only forward who took his shift with Trocheck and Goodrow on a make shift line. However, Kreider had limped off. He was fine.
Kreider missed a shift, came on the ice during the TV timeout and skated. If it was bad he would have gone to the dressing room. He's back on the bench. https://t.co/7NAUhSNBi7
Miller nearly had a fourth assist when he made a great diagonal pass across for a wide open Kakko. But he shanked it. All he had to do was fire it into the open side. That missed opportunity could’ve been costly. Kakko remains better at distributing the puck than finishing.
With the game still hanging in the balance, it was finally a strong shift for the first line that proved to be the difference. On a smart play by Vesey, who dumped the puck down, Panarin came out and moved it over for a Trouba shot that Zibanejad was able to redirect in with 3:55 remaining. It was his 25th of the season. Vesey was also in the vicinity.
But before they could relax, a missed icing by the linesmen allowed the Canucks to get it right back. Hughes sent the puck in behind the Rangers net. He didn’t gain the red line. For whatever reason, play continued. Unless they really believed a hustling Elias Pettersson beat both Miller and Trouba, it didn’t make sense.
Admittedly, Miller noted that they thought it was icing during a postgame interview in the room. That was out of their control. Instead, Pettersson retrieved the loose puck and caught Shesterkin napping to get his 22nd with 3:44 remaining. His goal came only 11 seconds after Zibanejad’s.
It seems like there’s been a lot of bizarre calls or misses this season. This one was right up there. Gerard Gallant was further incensed when Chytil appeared to have a step on Boeser with the Canucks’ vacated net staring at him. But instead of rewarding him with his 20th goal, they called Boeser for tripping with 39 seconds left.
In all honesty, it should’ve been a goal for Chytil. Gallant then gave it to the official who didn’t make the call. According to Dave Maloney, he pleaded innocent. Basically insinuating he had nothing to do with the incorrect call. It happens.
At least they were able to kill the remainder of the game for the win. It still isn’t good when such misses happen. The league needs to get this stuff straightened out before the playoffs.
Nobody wants to see a team get screwed by a bad call. Why do I get the feeling that the incompetence will continue? This is the same league that doesn’t hold teams responsible for circumventing the cap due to LTIR. They also never impose stricter rules on teams informing the media of injuries to key stars.
Jack Hughes was first termed “day-to-day” by the Devils following their overtime win over Vancouver. Then, it suddenly became “week-to-week.” How is that good for fans of the sport? Especially when they push gambling at every turn. Where’s the honesty?
It is a disgrace. Between the non-stop in-game advertisements from Gretzky, Lundqvist, and a variety of other former stars, it’s so dishonest. There should be better communication between teams, the media, and fans. Vague answers like “upper-body” and “lower-body” aren’t helping the cause.
That’ll do it for this game review. I apologize for not having it up sooner. I’ve been really struggling lately. The less said about it, the better.
It isn’t often I agree with the media selection of the game’s Three Stars. But, they got it right. Good job by them.
hasan4978
Derek
You must be logged in to post a comment.