Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

A Dud For The New York Rangers

10/14/2021 at 8:45am EDT

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

The Rangers beefed up, you might have heard, but their success this season will still in large measure be determined by the talent-laden top two lines.

So if you learn that in Wednesday night’s opener here against the Capitals that neither Mika Zibanejad nor Artemi Panarin was credited with a shot, that the top six forwards that also feature Chris Kreider, Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Strome and Alexis Lafreniere combined for a sum of six shots at even strength, how would you think the Blueshirts had fared?

Correct. Final score in a game toward which the Rangers had pointed to and built toward for months, 5-1 against.

When it was over, the team took care not to beat itself up. Oh and by the way, there was no beating up of Tom Wilson. There was no beating up of anyone in a game in which the Blueshirts did attempt to set a physical tone — step right up, Sammy Blais — but never veered out of control.

A stat to chew on as head coach Gerard Gallant started the Zibanejad line rather than the fourth line including Ryan Reaves: No. 75 was on the ice at the same time as Mr. Wilson for a sum of 0:09.

But here is a more pertinent stat: Trailing 1-0 after the first period on the first of three Washington power-play goals and then 2-0 at 12:38 on another PPG and 3-0 just 24 seconds later, the Blueshirts went the final 18:41 of the second period without an even-strength shot on goal. They went 13:33 without a shot of any kind from 3:50 to 17:23, finishing with five for the middle 20 minutes.

continued

Game highlights are below.

Create an Account

In order to leave a comment, please create an account.

About Kukla's Korner Hockey

Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.

Email Paul anytime at [email protected]

Most Recent Posts

Most Recent Comments

Comment by Paul in Kukla's Korner Hockey from the entry NHL Short Notes - 4 hours ago
Comment by Paul in Kukla's Korner Hockey from the entry NHL Short Notes - 4 hours ago
Comment by Steeb in Abel to Yzerman from the entry Quick Recap- Wings/Hurricanes - 4 hours ago
Comment by calquake in Abel to Yzerman from the entry Quick Recap- Wings/Hurricanes - 5 hours ago
Comment by StargateSG1 in Abel to Yzerman from the entry Quick Recap- Wings/Hurricanes - 5 hours ago