The New York Rangers faced three Eastern Conference teams and have a three-game winning streak to show for it. In a few of the games, it was almost an “anything you can do, I can do better” type of situation. Which does not always turn out good, but for the Rangers, three wins against conference foes is a prize worth getting. Despite being next to last in faceoffs, and middle of the road in other statistics, the Rangers are still finding ways to win. If you’re just looking at overall points, the Rangers find themselves third in the Metropolitan Division and tied with the Calgary Flames for fifth overall in the league with 29 points after this week.
If you are looking for a reason why they are doing well in spite of unimpressive team stats, the answer may be camaraderie. They’re learning to play as a team, to understand how their teammates play, and it’s paying off on the ice. It’s an obvious change in attitude from the past few seasons to how they interact together this season. Sometimes that can make the difference.
New York Rangers vs. Buffalo Sabres
November 21, 2021
Madison Square Garden
W 5-4
1st Period
15:53-Rasmus Asplund, Zemgus Girgensons & Kyle Okposo
19:37-Chris Kreider, Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox
2nd Period
02:26-Vinnie Hinostroza
08:03-Jacob Trouba, Panarin & Filip Chytil
12:07-Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Strome & Panarin
12:57-Tage Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin & Mark Pysyk
13:12-Dahlin, Victor Olofsson & Thompson
13:29-K’Andre Miller, Barclay Goodrow & Ryan Reaves
3rd Period
19:59-Ryan Lindgren, Mika Zibanejad & Fox
Naturally, there could only be a thrilling ending in a game where the teams traded goals like pokemon cards. The Rangers appeared to be happy with providing that experience to their fans. It was a back and forth between the teams through the first and second periods. It’s interesting to note that Alexandar Georgiev got the start in goal against the Sabres but was pulled after 40 minutes and replaced with Igor Shesterkin. Shesterkin only faced four shots on goal from the Sabres but was able to make all four saves.
Once the thirst period started, the goals dried up and it looked like overtime was inevitable. However, the hopes of the Sabres were dashed by Lindgren, with less than a second to go in the third. Finally, the Rangers got the fairytale ending they were looking for. Now, if they only could do that in the playoffs.
New York Rangers @ New York Islanders
November 24, 2021
UBS Arena
W 4-1
1st Period
No Scoring
2nd Period
00:29-Kreider, Strome & Fox
14:28-Kevin Rooney, Goodrow & Reaves
3rd Period
03:52-Andy Andreoff, Otto Koivula & Sebastian Aho
04:12-Rooney, Reaves & Patrik Nemeth
11:02-Kreider, Zibanejad, Kakko
It’s always interesting to see the sibling rivalry between the teams, and this time the battle for New York at the new arena for the Islanders. The fourth line was looking good throughout the match, showing that they can actually play and not just take up space on the roster. The Rangers dominated this game, letting Rooney pick up his first two-goal game, and Shesterkin was able to stop 20 out of the 21 shots he faced easily. If the Rangers wanted to make a statement in the Islanders’ new home, they did a fabulous job.
New York Rangers @ Boston Bruins
November 26, 2021
TD Garden
W 5-2
1st Period
14:46-Craig Smith
19:54-Strome, Panarin, Dryden Hunt
2nd Period
06:51-Patrice Bergeron, Matt Grzelcyk & Brad Marchand
12:33-Hunt, Lindgren, Fox
3rd Period
11:35-Panrin, Julien Gauthier & Strome
16:22-Alexis Lafreniere, Gauthier & Fox
19:23-Jacob Trouba & Patrik Nemeth
The Rangers won the hard-fought battle in a game that saw two teams fighting over Thanksgiving leftovers. So the boys in blue will get to enjoy their leftover spoils as they reflect on the goals they had and the kerfuffles in-between. Then they can go find Panarin’s glove that he threw at Marchand in the remaining seconds of the game.
In all seriousness, the Bruins looked like they came to play in the first period. Even the second. It took until the third period for the Rangers to look like they were finally free of all the turkey they might have eaten the day before. Despite another slow start, the Rangers were able to put Boston out to pasture. Five goals from five different players is not a bad way to win over a good Bruins team.
What We Learned This Week
Once you get points, you can’t stop. At least for a while. This week saw Kreider and Kakko get goals and points. Many would say this is the most consistent start Kreider has had since he’s been a Rangers. However, some would point out that this might be just another one of his point spurts, and it just happens to have come at the beginning of the season instead of the middle or end. Regardless, his overall play appears to have improved. Perhaps he’s enjoying himself more than in past seasons. As for Kakko, some were worried about his development, but it seems that their fears might be a little premature. Since getting his first assist and goal of the season against the New Jersey Devils, that switch is still in the “on” position.
The Rangers are now 13-4-3. Although the team isn’t perfect, they are still finding ways to win games, and it’s the win that counts.
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Main Image Credit: Embed from Getty Images
