Former Rangers enforcer recalls late-night vodka shots and basketball with Artemi Panarin
Ryan Reaves has had a lot of different teammates over his 15 seasons in the NHL. But one of his favorites was Artemi Panarin, from their time together with the New York Rangers.
“He’s one of the coolest guys, one of the coolest Russians I’ve met. Him and his wife are so humble,” Reaves explained on the Cam and Strick podcast.
The forwards were Rangers teammates for only a season-plus. Reaves signed with the Rangers ahead of the 2021-22 season and then was traded to the Minnesota Wild on Nov. 23, 2022. Panarin is set to begin his seventh season in New York after he signed aa a free agent before the 2019-20 season.
Reaves, one of the toughest players in the League, and Panarin, one of the most skilled players in the NHL, made for quite the Odd Couple. But the tough guy from Canada and the star from Russia each has an upbeat, fun-loving side — and they hit it off as Rangers teammates.
“He was a cool kid. He’d come over like after we landed (in Westchester) … from a road trip and we had the day off,” Reaves recounted. “He’d come over like one in the morning; he’d race home and grab a bottle of his Russian vodka, and we’d sit downstairs and take shots of vodka and play basketball at four in the morning. I love ‘Bread’.”
Good thing there were no late-night or early-morning hoops injuries.
It should be noted that Panarin had 96 points (22 goals, 74 assists) in that 2021-22 season, his most until two years later when he notched 120 points (49 goals, 71 assists), second-most in franchise history.
Related: Why bounce back from Rangers top line key to playoff hopes next season
Ryan Reaves recalls being Artemi Panarin’s ‘secretary’ with Rangers
Reaves provided more insight into Panarin with another story he shared.
“[Panarin] doesn’t carry around an iPhone, he’s got a flip phone only because people got to get ahold of him,” Reaves explained. “There’s an app we’d get our schedule on and this guy doesn’t have this app, so every day I gotta text him ‘Hey, we’ve got a meeting’ or ‘I’m picking you up.’ Whatever it was. But it was constant, like I was his secretary.”
Reaves, who turns 39 in January, was traded to the San Jose Sharks by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday and is entering the final season of a three-year contract. He appeared in 35 games for the Leafs last season, and this could be his final go-round in the NHL. He enters 2025-26 with 137 points (63 goals, 74 assists) and 1,100 penalty minutes in 912 games. The Sharks will be his seventh NHL team.
Panarin has been the Rangers’ top scorer for six straight seasons, including this past one when he finished with 89 points (37 goals, 52 assists) in 80 games. The best free-agent signing in franchise history, Panarin turns 34 on Oct. 30 and has been eligible to sign a contract extension since July 1. Rangers general manager Chris Drury recently sidestepped a question about Panarin’s future with the organization.
More About: New York Rangers News