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Game 30: NYR-LA, Lundqvist back between the pipes

December 10, 2019, 3:09 PM ET [86 Comments]
Jan Levine
New York Rangers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Rangers look to remain hot, taking on the Kings in LA tonight. Henrik Lundqvist, who missed the last three games with a minor ailment, will be back between the pipes. New York faces San Jose on Thursday and Anaheim on Saturday to close out their four-game, West Coast swing.

GM Jeff Gorton is on the trip and spoke yesterday to the media. The below is taken from the NY Post with my view’s underneath. I like what Gorton had to say.

The 23-year-old Bulgarian (Alexandar Georgiev) has now played 57 career games, and when he gets to No. 60, he can no longer be sent to AHL Hartford without clearing waivers (essentially meaning he can’t be sent down). But without hesitation, Gorton said “that’s not something I’m thinking about” and reinforced his confidence in the young netminder.

“Obviously Georgie is a big part of our team,” Gorton said. “There’s a lot written about who’s going to be here, and waivers and all that stuff. We’re just worried about the team playing well, and let events play themselves out.”

“Like we tell all of them, play well and then we’ll have to make decisions down the road,” Gorton said. “Igor has played really well, but it’s still pretty young in his North American pro career. But all signs are good. He’s been a real competitor. His teammates like him a lot. He’s done everything we’ve asked. I would expect he continue to do that and understand [to] wait for his opportunity.”


Georgie’s future status seems to have become the hill from which several will fall. I gave my view yesterday. If Georgiev plays well, the rest will resolve itself. At worst, his value rises and you get a greater return if he is dealt. At best, he proves that he can be a #1, creating additional competition down the road, at a minimum this season and into 2020-21 and beyond. Obstacles exist due to the presence of Henrik Lundqvist and Igor Shesterkin, but as we have seen, many times, these situations found a way towards a resolution on their own.

“We’re going to let people play through some stretches they deserve to play through, especially these young players,” (coach David) Quinn said. “If they’re making mistakes and have the right intentions, they’re going to continue to play. If they make mistakes where they’re lazy or their intentions aren’t in the right place, they’ll sit. So it’s a balancing act.”


I really like what Quinn said. To me, this reminds me of when Torts was here and Dubi, Cally, G etc. were learning on the job with little pressure early in their careers. The same exists here. With the team still rebuilding and the playoffs not the primary focus, making and learning from mistakes is paramount. Granted, as we watch the games, having that mindset isn’t easy but how we should treat these contests, at least in the short term.

Lines tonight should be the same as Sunday:
Artemi Panarin-Mika Zibanjead-Kaapo Kakko
Chris Kreider-Filip Chytil-Ryan Strome
Brendan Lemiuex-Brett Howden-Pavel Buchnevich
Brendan Smith-Greg McKegg-Jesper Fast

Brady Skjei-Jacob Trouba
Ryan Lindgren-Adam Fox
Marc Staal-Tony DeAngelo

Just imagine if the Rangers had hired Jim Montgomery. Granted, it’s possible the situation that led to his hiring was Dallas specific. But still….

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