The Rangers won their third straight game, defeating Edmonton 4-1 on Monday, Ryan Strome and the newly constituted second line, due to the absence of Artemi Panarin, carried play offensively for the Blueshirts, notching three goals in the victory. Strong defensive play by the blue line and Alexandar Georgiev were on full display as well. New York is off until Thursday, when they kick off a five-game road trip in Vegas.
Game recap:
A few thoughts: 1) The second line. Strome is showing he is not just a product of playing with Panarin. He set up the first goal, asking for the puck to be sent softly deep into the offensive zone, feeling he could beat Mikko Koskinen. Strome did so, then fed Alexis Lafreniere who scored into the empty net. He added an assist on Barclay Goodrow's tally in the second and then was the recipient of a fortunate bounce, as he was Sunday, for his goal. New York will be in a bit of a cap crunch next season and fitting in Strome's salary demands won't be easy. But he has shown that he needs to be back as the 2c and leader in the locker room.
Lafreniere. All it took was to be paired with a top center. He and Barclay Goodrow were skating on the third line with Filip Chytil and not much was happening. Laf moves to play with Strome and he looks like a different player. Granted, Laf scored Friday while on the third line, but he had a much different jump the past two games. The problem is that he is a left winger, like Panarin, so one would have to move to their off-side for Laf to remain with Strome.
Goodrow has had a resurgence since facing his old mates Friday. With his goal Monday, Goodrow is up to seven goals and nine assists on the season. Anything in the 30-35 point range, coupled with what else he does on the ice, would make the contract look even better. I think all of us were happy to have Goodrow come to and sign with New York, just the years and $ were high. But if he does what he did in Tampa and is the swiss army knife, able to move up and down the lineup, provide scoring and physical play, the contract itself will be less of a focus.
2) Georgiev was solid again between the pipes. Consistent playing time, which he received in early-December while Igor Shesterkin was sidelined, looks to be what he needed to re-find his game. With Igor back, the challenge will be for Georgiev to be used enough to keep him sharp. But it's a lot easier to start him while he is playing like now.
Making $2.2425 million on the second year or a two-year deal, Georgiev likely will be too pricey to keep. Much of the chatter from nearly all of us, including me, was that the team needed a better backup goalie this season, so moving Georgiev ASAP made sense. With New York having copious cap room, but especially due to his improved play, Georgiev is likely not going anywhere for now. After the season, as an RFA, I expect him to be moved. But in the immediate future, I expect coach Gerard Gallant and goaltending coach Benoit Allaire to use Georgiev sufficiently to keep him fresh and rest Igor.
Georgiev's save on Connor McDavid (see below) was a game-changer. As opposed to the lead being cut to 3-2 and the pressure rising, the score remained 3-1, giving New York breathing room. Georgiev was not tested heavily, despite seeing 33 shots, but came up big when needed.
Also
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 4, 2022
GEORGIE pic.twitter.com/is2Gr0h0Kh
MY GOODNESS GEORGIEV pic.twitter.com/NKw57jvF8G
— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) January 4, 2022
ï¸ 1st Place â¦@NYRangersâ© vs â¦@EdmontonOilersâ© Scoring Chances Report. #NYR
— Stephen Valiquette (@VallysView) January 4, 2022
Data Courtesy of â¦@csahockeyâ© pic.twitter.com/9VktSFJ4Uh
3) Zac Jones was solid again, this time replacing Nils Lundkvist, as Ryan Lindgren returned to the lineup. Gallant, when asked why Jones was in, "He's got some good jump and he looked confident out there again. Confidence is a big word, but he looks good and we want to see him a little bit... He’s getting an opportunity and we can see some of our prospects."
Jones has picked right up from where he left off last season. Gallant will have a difficult decision on who to sit, at least until Patrik Nemeth returns. But having the problem of too many defensemen playing well should be the worst issue on this team. Jones brings an offensive ability somewhat lacking on the squad due to his ability to make the breakout pass but also carry the puck. Paired with Libor Hajek, that duo were fairly solid, even in somewhat protected minutes.
Gallant has options and the ability to mix and match d-men pairs. Do you move Jones to play with Trouba, slide Lindgren down to skate with Lundkvist or Hajek and have Miller skate with Fox? I could see the team trying different options in the future, especially if Hajek continues to be passable at worst and mildly solid.
4) Bottom-six: Hunt - Chytil - Gauthier were somewhat invisible with the two wingers seeing under nine minutes of ice time each and Chytil just under 11 minutes. The fourth line of Rooney - McKegg - Reaves, with Rooney back from COVID protocol, a lot more noticeable with each player receiving around 12 minutes of ice time. When Panarin returns, Gauthier or Hunt could be the odd man out with Goodrow back to the third line. Morgan Barron might be a future option, but he does not appear to be a true consideration in the near term.
If a player is to go at the deadline, Chytil might be the one. The problem is that his value may be as low as it's been since arriving in New York, meaning he would need to be packaged with another asset or pick to bring back a reasonable return. Making $2.3 mil this year on the second year of a two-year deal, Chytil will be in line for a raise next season. With cap room a concern and the need for an upgrade at the 3C or 3W spot, Chytil may be the odd-man out.
4) Special teams. Arthur Staple posted some astonishing numbers today in his column, evidencing just how good the penalty kill has been. Patrik Nemeth goes out and Libor Hajek steps in. Kevin Rooney is sidelined and Greg McKegg fills that spot. Chris Kreider has excelled in his usage on the PK, which also has benefitted from excellent goaltending.
Where Georgiev and Shesterkin have shined most is on the penalty kill, which is where that save on McDavid happened. The numbers since Dec. 1 are ridiculous: Both goalies are sporting .967 save percentages on the PK, having allowed one goal on 30 shots each in that span of 14 games — seven starts for Georgiev and five for Shesterkin.The Rangers’ penalty kill ranks fifth at 84.9 percent. The team’s save percentage on the PK is .909 for the season, which ranks third. Tampa was the only team in the last 82-game season with an over-.900 PK save percentage at .901.
The power play has been partially driven by Chris Kreider's remarkable ability to deflect shots, resulting in him scoring 12 goals on the man advantage. Add in Adam Fox's ability to get pucks on net and Kreider's net-front, screening presence, and you have a PP clicking. Room for improvement exists, but the components are there and New York is seventh in the league with a 25% success rate.