New York Rangers Daily: A special meltdown in Tampa, Rod Brind’Amour’s milestone win
The numbers are staggeringly bad for the New York Rangers, and got even worse after their 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night at Amalie Arena.
The Rangers (16-18-1) are two games below the generous NHL .500 mark for the first time this season. They’ve lost three straight and six of seven. They’re 4-14-0 in the past 18 games. Their power power play was 0-for-4 against the Lightning and is now in a 0-for-20 funk. Oh, they also surrendered two short-handed goals. As well as two power-play goals by the Lightning that make it five PP goals allowed in the past two games.
We could go on and on. Igor Shesterkin was pulled for the second time in his past five starts and allowed five or more goals for the sixth time this season. Mika Zibanejad was held without a point for the seventh straight game, was minus-2 and dropped to a dreadful minus-21 on the season.
Yada. Yada. Yada.
You get the point. Things aren’t going so well for the Broadway Blueshirts, who now reside all alone in the Metropolitan Division cellar, since the Islanders knocked off the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday.
The Rangers are now tied for 13th in the Eastern Conference with the Montreal Canadiens. Remember, there are only 16 teams in the conference.
Believe it or not, the Rangers actually did some good things in their latest loss, and there’re actually areas they can build on for their next game Monday at the Florida Panthers.
So, there’s some Rangers positivity for your day.
CLICK HERE to shop at the Forever Blueshirts store
New York Rangers news
Let’s start with our three Rangers takeaways from Saturday, which include their special teams being especially bad in this one.
We took a dive into what’s ahead for key prospect Brennan Othmann, who returned from a two-month injury absence and had an assist Friday for the Hartford Wolf Pack.
Another top Rangers prospect, forward Gabe Perreault, assisted on Ryan Leonard’s eventual game-winning goal when the United States defeated Latvia 5-1 at the 2025 World Junior Championship on Saturday. Perreault has four points (two goals, two assists) in two games, so far, He and the U.S. play Finland on Sunday.
NHL news
The Colorado Avalanche acquired forward Juuso Parssinen and a draft pick from the Nashville Predators for a prospect and a pick. It was the first trade after the NHL roster freeze lifted at midnight Friday.
The Athletic reported that the Dallas Stars are being investigated by the NHL for a possible rules violation for a voluntary practice during the League’s holiday break.
Rod Brind’Amour became the fastest coach to reach 300 wins in the NHL, doing so in his 488th game behind the Carolina Hurricanes bench, a 5-2 win against the New Jersey Devils.
Jakub Dobes made sure that his NHL debut was one to remember. The Montreal Canadiens rookie goalie stopped all 33 shots he faced in a 4-0 win against the Florida Panthers.
Alex Ovechkin was back in the Washington Capitals lineup after being sidelined with a fractured leg and scored an empty-net goal in their 5-2 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Great 8 is now 26 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record (894).
Here’s some good news for the Rangers (grasping at straws here), the Ottawa Senators lost their second straight game, 4-2 to the Winnipeg Jets. The Senators still hold the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, and the Rangers are just five points back — though with four teams between them.
Watch Quinton Byfield score OT game-winner for the Los Angeles Kings in a 4-3 victory against the Edmonton Oilers.
More About:New York Rangers News
Read This Next
