Quick Hits- Rangers vs Oilers 11/13

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    Here is my Quick Hits recap of the Rangers 3-1 win over the Oilers.

  • Michael Grabner – What else is there to say about this guy? Michael Grabner continues to impress and amaze with his play through the first 16 games of the season. He picked up 2 more goals tonight, bringing the total to 10, which is good for second in the league. He is in the company of Sidney Crosby, Patrik Laine, Mark Scheifele and David Pastrnak, all of whom are noted goal scorers. Grabner is turning heads so far this year, and he can prove to be a real valuable asset as the season wears on.

    • https://twitter.com/NHLDaily365/status/798017885742448640

  • Jesper Fast – When you think of Jesper Fast, the first thing that comes to mind is a heart and soul player. He never complains, knows his role, and executes it as best as he can. And tonight was no exception. He was manhandled a couple times by Kassian, got up and kept trucking along. He may be one of the most undervalued players in the National Hockey League
  • Kevin Hayes – Kevin Hayes has had a great start to the season, and it continued tonight. He contributed with the primary assist on the goal from Dan Girardi, and was all over the ice. He made the smart plays when he had the puck, and made sure to backcheck hard, including 2 blocked shots. The work ethic that he has shown so far this year is something that he should look to build on as the season continues.

  • Antti Raanta – Antti Raanta continued to show why the Rangers have the best goalie tandem in the league. Raanta stopped 38 of 39 Edmonton shots, and was calm and collected for almost the entire game. He was constantly under fire, but he stood tall and helped get the Rangers the win. He will need to keep up his level of play, so the Rangers can go into any game knowing they will have a top quality goaltender every night.

    • https://twitter.com/NHLDaily365/status/798004407551954944

  • Dan Girardi – For all of the Dan Girardi haters out there, tonight was a throwback performance. Girardi did a great job as Ryan McDonagh’s partner on the shutdown line with 3 hits, and 4 blocked shots. He and Mcdonagh both played about 23 minutes, and were always in good position to break up an Edmonton attack. Girardi also scored what would end up being the game winner, after a Kevin Hayes shot-pass redirected off of Girardi’s foot and passed Oilers goalie Cam Talbot. Girardi seems to be rounding back to the form the Rangers and its fans had expected.

  • Nick Holden – Holden had one of his better games of the season last night against the Oilers. He played just about 20 minutes, and had 2 hits and 2 blocked shots. Holden was brought in as a shot blocking machine, that will make a good first pass to get the attack started. And so far this season, he has done just that. He plays a very simple, defense first game, and that will be important as the season continues.
  • Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich – With all of these positives, there unfortunately is a couple negatives. And those are Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich. Both players were held out of the lineup because of injury. AV said that Kreider had an upper-body injury, and that he would be evaluated on Monday. Buchnevich, on the other hand, had come off the ice after warmups and started having back spasms. He had dealt with back spasms early in the season, and this is a small concern for the Rangers. He has been living up to all of the hype so far this year, and was playing really well. Hopefully both players can get back on the ice ASAP, and continue contributing to the Blueshirts.
  • Team Defense – The Oilers controlled a lot of the play, and that forced the Rangers to play solid team defense. And they responded. The team blocked 22 shots, including 10 by the forwards. This is a good sign for the Rangers. It shows that they will be able to grind out games when they don’t put up 5 or 6 goals.
  • Heart – And finally, this team won because they played with heart. After a win in Calgary on Saturday night, the Rangers had to get right back at it with the game against the Oilers. Guys were tired, but the team grinded out a win. AV essentially went to 9 forwards for most of the game, with Pirri and Lindberg playing less than 10 minutes, and everyone made sure to support their teammates, and battle for the pucks to make life as hard as possible on the Oilers. A good team win like this comes from within, and the Rangers showed that.

    • Next Game: The Blueshirts head to British Columbia to finish the Western Canada swing when they take on the Canucks on Tuesday. Puck drops at 10!

    LETS GO RANGERS!

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