Key takeaways after Rangers explode for 7 goals in road win over Lightning
It appears the dam burst, allowing the New York Rangers to score a flood of goals this week. Two days after putting up a six spot in their first home-ice win of the season, the Rangers surpassed that total in a 7-3 road victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena on Wednesday.
Vincent Trocheck and Will Cuylle each scored twice, and Artemi Panarin dished out four assists to lead a varied and high-powered Rangers attack. Eleven New York skaters made their way on to the score sheet, with Alexis Lafreniere, J.T. Miller, and Will Borgen also scoring goals.
Igor Shesterkin made 33 saves, including 26 in the final two periods, for the Rangers (9-7-2), who are an NHL-best 8-1-1 on the road. Andrei Vasilevskiy allowed goals on the first three shots he faced and finished with only eight saves on 13 shots over two periods for the Lightning, who had won seven of their previous games. Jonas Johansson stopped six of seven shots in the third period.
Though neither coach — Mike Sullivan of the Rangers, nor Jon Cooper of the Lightning — probably agrees, the first period was wildly entertaining. There were seven goals scored on 18 combined shots, and the Rangers skated into the first intermission with a 4-3 lead.
Cuylle scored a power-play goal just 1:09 into the game and the Rangers never trailed the rest of the way. Mika Zibanejad picked off a a cross-ice Nikita Kucherov pass in the neutral zone moments later, and the Rangers scored off the ensuing rush. Zibanejad zipped a pass to his left and Miller chipped the puck past Vasilevskiy to make it 2-0 at 3:31.
The Lightning got a rush goal themselves at 6:04, when rugged forward Scott Sabourin wired a left-circle shot over Shesterkin’s glove. But 64 seconds later, Lafreniere restored New York’s two-goal lead by scoring his fourth goal — you guessed it — off the rush.
Zemgus Girgensons snuck a rebound short side past Shesterkin for his third goal at 13:59 to cut the Rangers lead to 3-2. But the Rangers had an answer again, when Borgen scored his first off the season, a wrist shot from between the circles that went off a defenseman’s leg and changed direction up and over Vasilevskiy at 16:20.
It was that kind of night for the two-time Stanley Cup champion goaltender.
Yet, before the wild opening period ended, the Lightning cut into the Rangers lead again. This time Jake Guentzel scored on a short-handed breakaway at 17:32.
The scoring pace settled down in the second period, though the Rangers were badly outplayed early on. The Lightning recorded six shots in the opening six minutes of the period and added two more on a power play soon after.
Late in the period, the Rangers capitalized when Vasilevskiy lost his footing moving right to left to challenge Trocheck off the rush. As the Lightning goalie fell to the ice, Trocheck slid his first goal of the season under Vasilevskiy to make it 5-3 at 18:19 of the second period.
Trocheck scored again, 5:03 into the third, and Cuylle potted his team-leading sixth goal into an empty net with 2:11 left to play
The Rangers will try to keep this offensive explosion going Saturday, when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets
Key takeaways after Rangers defeat Lightning 7-3
Bald Bread
It’s safe to say that Panarin is on a serious heater. After a slow start offensively this season, the Breadman has nine points (three goals, six assists) in his past four games, coinciding with Panarin shaving his head before a road game against the Detroit Red Wings last Friday. He had three points that night, was blanked in a home loss against the Islanders on Saturday, and scored two goals in the 6-3 home win over the Nashville Predators on Monday.
Panarin followed that up with a brilliant offensive display in Tampa. He made a pretty feed to set up Lafreniere’s goal, and an even more impressive pass to spring Trocheck on his first goal of the night. Bread also had a pair of secondary helpers, and a prime scoring chance of his own on the doorstep that he misfired on.
Don’t look now, but Panarin took over the Rangers scoring lead Wednesday. He’s got 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) in 18 games, after leading the Rangers in scoring each of the past six seasons.
Igor! Igor!
Shesterkin allowed three goals on 10 first-period shots, but shook that off in a big way. He didn’t allow a goal and was simply outstanding the final two periods, stopping all 26 shots he faced.
It all began in the first period, though. Shesterkin absolutely robbed Gage Goncalves on the doorstep following a brilliant back-door pass from Kucherov less than a minute after the Lightning pulled to within 3-2. It just may have been a game-altering save. Two minutes later, Borgen’s goal made it 4-2 Rangers. Who knows if that scoring sequence even happens if Goncalves ties the game 3-3?
And Shesterkin was the difference in the second period, when the Rangers were on their heels much of the time. Shesterkin was under fire in the third period, but stopped all 14 shots in an impressive finish to even his record at 6-6-2 this season.
Short-handed hosts
Not only did the Lightning score their first short-handed goal of the season — a beauty by Guentzel on a clean breakaway — but the home team’s lineup was, to be honest, short-handed. The Lightning played without their top two defensemen — and two of the more reliable defenders in the League — with Victor Hedman and Ryan McDonagh each sidelined by injury. Forward Anthony Cirelli missed his second straight game and Dominic James landed on injured reserve.
It only got worse when forward Brandon Hagel was steamrolled by Rangers defenseman Carson Soucy in the first period and didn’t return to the game. To add insult to injury, the Rangers scored their third goal, with Soucy picking up an assist, on the ensuing rush the other way.
Offense from defense
Five of six Rangers defensemen recorded at least one point Wednesday. Adam Fox led the way — no surprise there — with two assists; he has 12 helpers and 15 points in 18 games. But how many of you had Borgen scoring his first goal since March 20 of last season on your Bingo card?
Urho Vaakanainen played his 200th NHL game and had the primary assist on Trocheck’s second goal. Vladislav Gavrikov had the secondary assist, setting Panarin off in full flight, on Trocheck’s first goal. And Soucy leveled Hagel to start the rush the other way that Lafreniere finished with his third goal in the past four games.
Braden Schneider? He had to settle for three hits and three blocked shots.
