Rangers building confidence during extended point streak

NHL: Columbus Blue Jackets at New York Rangers
Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images

The New York Rangers picked up another big win on Saturday night, beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 1-0 in a shootout, and earning the extra point over their Metropolitan Division counterpart as they look to climb back into the playoff race.

With points in seven straight games and eight of their last nine, the Rangers are beginning to build some serious confidence in the locker room and on the ice.

“I think winning does that,” Peter Laviolette said postgame. “I got asked this when we were losing, when it wasn’t going our way, the confidence. You have to do the right things in order to get a win, but then at the end of the day, it’s the winning that helps build the confidence. The game builds it, and then the results build it as well. I do think it’s starting to build because we’re starting to put some wins in the column.”

One noticeable difference in New York’s game is their ability to rebound after a period where they didn’t play as well as they would probably like. Against the Blue Jackets and in the previous game against the Utah Hockey Club, the Rangers came out a step behind in the first period. Columbus out shot the Rangers 15-4 in the first, and it was a similar story against Utah, where they were outshot 15-8 in the first.

Related: 3 Rangers takeaways after 1-0 shootout victory over Blue Jackets

Rangers’ confident brand of hockey turning games around

A month ago, when the Rangers were in the midst of their dismal 4-15-0 run, a slow start would lead to a complete dud of a game. No response in the following period, no fight. Now, the Rangers are coming out after a slow period looking like a new team, showing response, and showing fight. They’re playing with the confidence that they can beat any team, no matter what has happened in the game to that point.

“Winning games, confidence is coming back, or is back,” said forward Vincent Trocheck. “We’re just playing better hockey all around I think. Whenever you play a smarter, better brand of hockey, then you just feel more confident about your game. Going into games, or going into second and third periods down, or not playing as well as you’d like, you have the confidence to turn that around.”

Not only are the Rangers turning around games in which they’ve started off slowly, but they’re beginning to turn their season around. At one point, the Rangers had fallen all the way to the bottom of the Metropolitan Division standings in what was one of the most severe drop-offs in recent memory.

Now, with points in seven straight games, the Rangers are right in the mix for a wild card spot. They’re just three points shy of the Ottawa Senators, who hold the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, and four points back of the Blue Jackets, which is another reason why Saturday’s game carried so much importance.

“You could ask any team when they’re winning games, it’s just a lot better vibe and a lot better energy,” explained defenseman Adam Fox. “It was easy for us to kind of pack it in when things weren’t going so well and we were dropping in the standings, but we know the team we have in here, we know what we’re capable of. We’re taking it game by game and just trying to work our way back up the standings.”

Thanks to the shootout winner from Trocheck and a 27-save shutout from Igor Shesterkin, the Rangers keep their point streak alive, and keep building confidence as they head to Montreal to take on the red-hot Canadiens on Sunday night.

It’ll be another big test for the Rangers, as Montreal has gone on an incredible run as of late. They’re 11-3-1 in their last 15 games, and after a slow start to the season, are also fighting for a wild card spot. They sit just one point above the Rangers, making this another very significant game in the playoff race.

Two teams budding with confidence going head to head in an Original Six matchup should make for one spirited hockey game.

Dane Walsh is a life-long fan of the New York Rangers. Growing up in the tri-state area, Dane has ... More about Dane Walsh
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