The Rangers headed out West with a 2-2 record and uneven play. Two games into the five-game trip, New York has notched 4-1 and 3-1 victories, the first coming in Seattle and second in Calgary. The Blueshirts still have contests in Edmonton, Vancouver, and Winnipeg, but after the up-and-down play to begin the season, the team has to be feeling much better about themselves.
In those two games, there have been lots of positive stories. Jonathan Quick, a major question of his poor 2022-23 campaign and preseason, backstopped the Blueshirts to the victory over the Kraken. He wasn’t overly tested, but when he needed to step up — especially in the third period — he was up to the task. Igor Shesterkin, chased in the 4-1 loss to Nashville prior to the trip, made 23 stops in the victory over the Flames. He, too, didn’t have to stand on his head, but like Quick, was big when needed and in the third period when Calgary made a little push.
The biggest positive has to be the play of the kids. Filip Chytil notched five assists in the two games and was evident throughout each contest. Kaapo Kakko potted his first of the year versus Seattle while the much-maligned Alexis Lafrenière tallied in each game, including a beautiful deflection goal on the power play Tuesday. Will Cuylle, more noticeable in the win over Seattle, has earned a spot on the man-advantage unit, where he is playing alongside Chytil, Kakko and Lafrenière.
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The fifth member of the unit has been the best signing to date this offseason by the team. Erik Gustafsson, who played for coach Peter Laviolette in Washington, added a goal and an assist Tuesday. Gustafsson, signed for $825K this offseason, has settled in more than nicely as the left-side blueliner on the third pair, helping the d-men learn Laviolette’s 1-3-1 system.
What should be noticeable from the above is that names such as Artemi Panarin (off to a hot start), Chris Kreider (with five goals already), and Mika Zibanejad have not been mentioned. Add in Adam Fox to that list and you can see why the 4-2 mark is viewed so positively. However, if the team loses their next three in a row, all bets are off.