First Period:
- Filip Chytil (20) Assists: K’Andre Miller (29), Jaroslav Halak (1)
- Mika Zibanejad (37) Assists: Artemi Panarin (56)
- Tyler Motte (5) Assists: Jacob Trouba (19), K’Andre Miller (30)
- K’Andre Miller (7) Assists: Vincent Trocheck (37), Artemi Panarin (57)
- Artemi Panarin (23) (Power Play) Assists: Adam Fox (53), Mika Zibanejad (40)
- K’Andre Miller (8) Assists: Kaapo Kakko (21), Barclay Goodrow (15)
Second Period:
- Chris Kreider (32) Assists: Vincent Trocheck (38), Jacob Trouba (20)
Third Period:
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Three Stars:
- 3: Artemi Panarin
- 2: Jaro Halak
- 1: K’Andre Miller
Stats:
- 13 goals for and 0 against in a back to back this weekend, 15 consecutive goals, 4 straight wins and a team that looks confident, is in sync and looking very much like the contenders they are supposed to be.
- The Predators sold some key players at the deadline, seemed to be missing all of their good players, outside of Juuse Saros, and the Rangers did exactly what they should have done to a team like that: they clobbered them. It’s one thing to win a game against a team you should beat and it’s another to clobber them with a 60-minute effort.
- Jaro Halak didn’t have to be as good as Igor Shesterkin was last night, but he made some big saves in each of the first two periods.
- My favorite part of the whole weekend was that these big leads allowed Gerard Gallant to limit ice times for the key players. Any amount of extra rest those guys can get leading into the rest of the season, let alone the playoffs, will be beneficial.
- For as easy at times as these two games over the weekend have been, the next two at Carolina should be grudge matches. The Hurricanes lead the Metro, but the Rangers have had their number and have won four straight dating back to Games 6 and 7 of the playoffs last year. That doesn’t mean much leading into Tuesday and Thursday’s games, but the Rangers have shown that they can match up and play the Hurricanes well.
- Overall this was a huge weekend for the Rangers. They didn’t play the best of the best, but they played the game in front of them, took what was given offensively, played well enough defensively and when they didn’t, their goaltending was terrific. They also didn’t let up and start trying to make fancy plays and then turn pucks over. They are showing themselves how they need to play to win. It won’t always be this easy for them, but they are setting the foundation for how they will need to play and how they will need to win when the playoffs start.
- The next three games will continue to be good tests for the Rangers. Carolina on Tuesday and Thursday and the Panthers might climb into a playoff spot by Saturday’s game. They can’t look past those three games, or even Columbus early next week, but they will head to New Jersey a week from Thursday.