March 19th, 2023
NY Rangers 6-0 victory over reeling Pens
Today is yet another glorious day in Ranger-ville, we had
an opposite of Murphy’s Law, anything that COULD go
RIGHT, in fact, Did go right!!! How about that?
Pittsburgh came into last nights game determined to
show the NYR and the East that they still are a team to
be reckoned with. To be fair, they came out flying and
had Grade A after Grade A chance. It had nothing to do
with bad D-Zone play, just great work done below the
hashes and in the corners, where a Sid Crosby can make
a slick play or 2 . It could have easily been 2-0 Penguins,
early, but it wasn’t. Why, you ask? Two words, Vintage
Igor. Igor was at his best early, often and later. He was a
man on a mission. Focused, the puck looking like a
frisbee. He could track it at all times, and he did. In a
game where every Ranger seemed to score or make a
perfect pass, Igor Shesterkin was the star.
With the Rangers a little bit on their heels, it was Igor
who gave the Ranger players to settle in and find their
collective games. The Top line of Mika, Vladdy and Bread
feeing off the saves by Shesterkin, struck first again to
give the home team a 1-0 lead. Mika Zibanejad’s 36th
goal off a rebound from a Jacob Trouba shot was created
by the Rangerss constant pressure in the O-Zone with
Panarin making the big play of blocking an exit pass,
controlling the puck and making the correct pass to make
sure a good shot was taken. Panarin does not get an
assist on the play, but his hustle and stickwork ,the
catalyst for that goal. With Igor doing his thing, the
Rangers pulled off a dandy of a goal on the PP where
again, a little slight of stickwork allowed the Rangers to
maintain the puck in the O-Zone, this time Panarin was
the beneficiary. He wasted no time, rifling a puck past
Pitt goalie Tristen Jarry off a feed from Adam Fox. It only
happened because Patrick Kane lifted the stick of a
Penguin defenseman, it was so subtle, yet so smart. Fox
was able to pick it up on the move and make a perfect
feed to Panarin for his 21st goal of the season. Another
1
st period won by the Rangers and that was just the
beginning….
Pittsburgh came out again hunting the puck in the 2nd
,
the Rangers had to kill a penalty and right after they did,
the flood gates opened. Imagine being Jarry and seeing
this 3 headed monster bearing down on you, Mika, Bread
and Vladdy, yet again, there seems to be a theme here,
me thinks, busting down on a 3 on 1, Mika carrying the
puck, flanked by Vladdy, Bread, rushing down the off
wing. Mika and Vlad seemed to toy with Jarry.
Tarasenko ripped a one-timer nicking off the inside post,
carom in, so hard, it flew back out to the blue line! 3-0
Rangers. 1st line is feeling it. The next rush occurred off
a bad pinch by a Penguin defenseman. K’Andre Miller
scooped up the puck near the red line, bombing in, got
the puck to Trocheck, who fed it to Kane, who subtley
backhanded a saucer pass to a streaking Kreider for a
tape to tape goal. 4-0! Jarry pulled. Enter Casey De
Smith. Didn’t seem to matter to the Rangers. Jacob
Trouba came down the wing, got about parallel to the
goal line and banked a shot off the side of DeSmiths
head….5-0! Trouba now has 4 goals in 7 games. The
final nail in the proverbial coffin was on a tic tac toe, doe
see doe passing sequence from Chytil to Kane to Panarin.
It was a thing of beauty, of players knowing where other
players are going to be, and executing it. Man oh man.
The 3rd period was a mere formality. All of Ranger-ville
wanted a shutout for Igor. The Pens, try as they might,
could not score, as Igor kept putting on a show. Poke
checks, glove saves, pad saves, and a scorpion save. It
was a highlight reel, yet it was one game. He is on top of
his game, at the most opportune time. Finding his
groove with only 13 games til the playoffs start, and so
are these new look Rangers. Watch out.
Side note……. Nico Mikkola. How great has he played
these past 6 games? Hes been better than advertised.
Blocking shots, using his size to bully players, stick
checking and making plays by carrying the puck. He
made Finland proud. He may not have the fancy stat
sheet, but just watching him make the right play, time
after time, is his stat sheet. Kudo’s.
Reminder….. I said these 5 home games will show us
exactly who these Rangers really are. Practice time,
comradery, familiararity, confidence. Having 18 players
dressed and healthy. Every line knowing their roles. Igor
finding his game. 3-0 so far on this homestand, 5-0-1 in the last 6.
Next up: Nashville Predators, who somehow are still
alive for a playoff spot, March 19th. They were sellers at
the deadline, but still have a good, veteran squad.
Old friend…..and one time Captain of the NYR, Ryan
McDonaugh returns to his old stomping grounds of MSG.
Still a fan and player favorite, you will see #27 jerseys in
the crowd to this day. In one of the greatest trades in
NYR history, the Rangers obtained McDonaugh from the
Canadiens, in essence, for an aging and over paid Scott
Gomez. McDonaugh was the foundation of the black and
blueshirts, leading the NYR to the Stanley Cup Finals in
2014, all while SKATING on a BROKEN ANKLE. He’s an
animal. Heart of a lion. He got his 2 rings as a Lightning
player. No coincidence that when he got to Tampa, they
won back to back titles. Just a great leader. He’s the
bridge to Kreider and this team. Play hard, play right,
play for your teammates and your city. Thank you Ryan
McDonaugh.
Let’s make it 4 in a row at home today vs Nashville.
Halak gets the nod. Don’t look past this Predator team.