The Rangers posted their second straight whitewash, shutting out the Predators 7-0 on Sunday. New York scored six goals on six shots in the first to cruise to the easy win. The Blueshirts kick off a home-and-home match up with the Metro Division leading Hurricanes on Tuesday at MSG.
Game recap:
Lines:
Panarin-Zibanejad-Tarasenko
Kreider-Trocheck-Kane
Lafreniere-Chytil-Kakko
Vesey-Goodrow-Motte
Mikkola-Fox
Miller-Trouba
Harpur-Schneider
A few thoughts:
1)
K'Andre Miller became the first defenseman in Rangers history to get four points (two goals, two assists) in a single period, notching that mark in the first period, Miller's teammates tried to get him the hat trick and he was shooting at will, but it was not meant to me. After a bobble in the middle third of the season, Miller, along with his pair mate, Jacob Trouba, have refound their game. If that pair is rolling, and Adam Fox regains his swagger once Ryan Lindgren, who missed his 11th straight game last night but might play tomorrow, returns, the Rangers become an even harder team to face.
Lindgren, sidelined with a shoulder injury, is reportedly close to getting back in the lineup. With the team on a roll, a valid question has been if Lindgren would be better served to remain sidelined to make sure he is 100% healthy heading into the playoffs. Ben Harpur and Niko Mikkola have been a lot better in this hot streak and can man one-third of the defense until Lindgren is truly. Would another week on the sidelines serve Lindgren and the team better than him suiting up?
2)
Chemistry - a large portion of the team's recent success has been attributed to the increased chemistry and comfortability on the ice. Throwing players together, even elite ones, takes time. We sometimes lose sight of that. Adding Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane and seeing how the team took a while to integrate the new parts and communication was a key served as a reminder to how difficult at times that can be. The comments from Miller and Mika Zibanejad, who notched his 37th of the season last night, evidence that the players feel the same.
"New guys are starting to get more comfortable with their linemates and more comfortable with just being in New York," Miller said "With that comfort comes chemistry and builds that team camaraderie that we're looking to build in this run toward the playoffs."
"When every line gets to play together more you get to talk to each other," Zibanejad said. "How do we want to play? How can we be most successful out there? How can you use your linemates and the understanding of what qualities you have to make this work in a good way? The more and more you get to play together you get a better understanding of how you can use each other's strengths and put each other in a good spot. That's the way we've been playing, all the lines and the 'D' pairs."
3)
Defensive structure.- yesterday would have been a perfect opportunity for the team to play firewagon hockey. Up 6-0 after scoring on six straight shots in a span of 10:59 in the first, five in 10:01, the squad didn't lose focus or stray from the game plan. Facing a Predators team missing Roman Josi, Ryan McDonagh, Filip Forsberg and Ryan Johansen, the Rangers could have easily started looking for breakaways, but they remained true to their structure. Unlike the Pittsburgh game, where the Penguins had 18 high-danger chances, Nashville had just seven for the game, and not many the last two periods.
"I don't think, especially the last two games, we've been cheating for offense or abandoning the 'D' zone just to play offense. I think we've been doing it the right way. We have the confidence. We have the feeling in here that we know that we can score. If we do a good job defensively, if we do a good job with everything that we've been saying, managing the puck, making sure we do the little right things and we're creating those good habits, that's a big thing for your confidence to know you can score and we score the right way." Zibanejad said
4)
Jaroslav Halak made 22 saves for his first shutout in more than two years. His last shutout came on March 11, 2021, when he made 27 saves against the Rangers as a member of the Bruins. The win was Halak's first since Feb. 11, snapping a five-game losing skid. It's been a year of streaks for Halak. A rough start to the season, followed by seven straight wins, then a five-game losing streak. Getting back on the right side of the ledger was important for him and keeps the team in striking distance of the Devils in the second spot in the Metro and keeps winning the division as an outside possibility.
5)
Top-six - Dan Rosen posted the following numbers in his column today. Since the 2-2 overtime loss to the Penguins where the newly created line of Kreider-Trocheck-Kane scored twice in the third period, the Rangers are 4-0-0 since. The top-six forward group has 35 points (14 goals, 21 assists), including 30 at even strength (11 goals, 19 assists). Zibanejad, Panarin and Tarasenko have 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists); Trocheck, Kreider and Kane have 15 (five goals, 10 assists). Pretty, pretty good, and to add on to that, the Kid Line had a strong game last night, which bodes well for the future.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
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