Adam Edstrom joins prestigious list of New York Rangers rookies to score in first NHL game
Adam Edstrom added his name to the list of New York Rangers rookies to score in their NHL debut when he registered his first with just 3 seconds on the clock.
In the dying seconds of a 5-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Friday night, Edstrom took a feed from Barclay Goodrow off an odd-man rush to beat Lukas Dostal high over the blocker. Defenseman Braden Schneider picked up the secondary assist, who coincidentally was the last Rangers’ rookie to score in his debut on January 13, 2022 (3-0 win over the Sharks in San Jose).
“I was just trying to keep my nerves cool,” Edstrom smiled. “I got a good pass from Goodrow there in the middle and I just tried to get it on net with time running out.”
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Adam Edstrom scores in NHL debut
Edstrom, 23, joined another list with the Rangers last night as the third-tallest skater in franchise history.
The hulking 6’7″ and 234 pound forward from Karlstad, Sweden is a big man that can skate, and he used it effectively against the Ducks. In just 9:30 of action, he scored a goal on 3 shots, registered 2 hits, 1 takeaway, and finished a +1.
“He played a really good game,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “It was nice to see him come in there under those circumstance and play a big game… He had a real good showing and should be proud of himself.”
The circumstance that the 2019 sixth-round selection faced was being told by Nick Bonino, who was feeling under the weather, just after warmups that he was going in.
“Bones came up to me at the end of warmup to say he wasn’t playing,” a joyous Edstrom revealed. “I was a bit shocked, because I really didn’t do any reps out there. I was just standing around stick handling, but it was time to get to it I guess.”
Coach Laviolette also credited the Hartford Wolf Pack for doing such a fine job in preparing players to join the big club. This season, Edstrom has registered 7 goals and 2 assists for 9 points in 21 AHL games.
At the end of the day, it was great to see Edstrom play so well in his debut. However, it will be a long time before any Rangers rookie tops Derek Stepan’s hat-trick performance in his first game in the league.
Below is a list of New York Rangers rookies to score more than 1 goal in their NHL debut:
| Player | Debut | Opponent | Goals |
| Derek Stepan | 10/9/2010 | @Buffalo | 3 |
| Eddie Wares | 2/23/1937 | Toronto | 2 |
| Goerge Allen | 12/20/1938 | Detroit | 2 |
| Rick Middleton | 10/9/1974 | Washington | 2 |
| Don Murdoch | 10/6/1976 | Minnesota | 2 |
| Dan McCarthy | 11/1/1980 | @Montreal | 2 |
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