Slow start dooms Rangers in 3-1 loss to Sharks: Takeaways
The New York Rangers won’t be sorry to head back to the snow and cold of the Big Apple after completing an 0-fer of a California trip with a 3-1 loss to the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Friday night.
As has been the case in several games recently, the Rangers didn’t start on time. They spotted the Sharks a two-goal lead in the first 3:08 and, as has been the case recently, spent the rest of the night unsuccessfully chasing the game.
“We weren’t quite ready to play,” captain J.T. Miller said. “They came out with more urgency than we did.”
Macklin Celebrini, the first player taken in the 2024 NHL Draft, scored two of San Jose’s three first-period goals, all of which came in the first 7:37. Nearly three months to the day earlier, Celebrini had a hat trick and two assists in the Sharks’ 6-5 overtime win at Madison Square Garden. The 19-year-old has 26 goals in 50 games, one more than he scored last season while winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie. The 19-year-old became the second-youngest player in NHL history to score 50 career goals, trailing only Sidney Crosby.
Sam Carrick scored the lone Rangers’ goal and centered their best line for most of the night. But the Blueshirts hurt themselves by taking seven minor penalties; the Sharks cashed in their first two power plays and spent 12:25 playing a man up.
The loss in San Jose came after the Rangers fell 5-3 to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday and 4-3 to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, and it dropped them to 1-7-1 in their past nine games. At 21-25-6, they are last in the Eastern Conference – 12 points behind the Boston Bruins for the second wild-card spot in the East. The Bruins come to the Garden on Monday night.
It was also the 16th time this season the Rangers have scored one goal or been shut out. It was their first regulation loss to the Sharks since San Jose won 4-1 at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 23, 2017, ending an 11-0-3 run. San Jose hadn’t beaten the Rangers in regulation at SAP Center since winning 4-1 on March 19, 2016.
Puck drop was 7:12 local time in San Jose. Unfortunately for the Rangers, they weren’t ready to play – and paid the price.
Mika Zibanejad took a needless tripping penalty 29 seconds into the game, and Celebrini got his first of the night 40 seconds later. He was at the back door when Tyler Toffoli’s pass across the crease hit his leg and caromed past Spencer Martin.
Matthew Robertson air-mailed a clearing pass over the glass at 1:23, and the Sharks made the Rangers pay again. New York couldn’t clear the zone, and Michael Misa’s pass found Pavol Regenda alone in the slot. Regenda’s superb backhander zipped past Martin at 3:08 and it was 2-0.
“We have to do a better job of staying out of the box,” center Vincent Trocheck said.
Coach Mike Sullivan then called his timeout, but it didn’t help. San Jose’s Collin Graf took the puck away from Will Borgen and got it to Will Smith, who found Celebrini alone in the slot for a one-timer that beat Martin at 7:37 to make it 3-0.
At that point, the shots on goal were 9-1 for the Sharks, and it looked like the Rangers were going to get run out of the building. But to their credit, the visitors finally found their game and began pushing back.
Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin each got past San Jose’s defense but couldn’t beat Alex Nedeljkovic. But the fourth line could – Carrick capped a hard-working shift that kept the Sharks pinned in their own zone by scoring on a spinning wrister at 12:50 to cut the deficit to 3-1 — the period ended that way, with the Sharks outshooting the Rangers 17-11.
“Weren’t quite ready to play. You feel like you are, but they come out flying,” Miller said. “They draw two penalties. They capitalize. The building was rocking. I don’t know, we just kind of beat ourselves.”
There was a more positive vibe in the second period, when the Rangers outshot the Sharks 11-7 and had the better of the play. They had more zip in their step, kept the Sharks mostly to the outside while killing a pair of penalties and had the better chances at 5-on-5. What they didn’t get was a goal – neither team scored in the middle period.
The Sharks did an excellent job keeping the space in front of Nedeljkovic clear during the third period, and the Rangers didn’t help themselves by giving San Jose two more power plays. New York had plenty of zone time after pulling Martin with just under four minutes remaining but didn’t get a Grade A scoring chance before the final horn sounded.
Key takeaways after Rangers end California trip with 3-1 loss to Sharks
Another slow start = another loss
The Rangers played pretty well for the final 50 minutes. The problem was that by then, they were already in too big a hole.
San Jose came out flying, converting two early Rangers penalties into power-play goals. The Sharks were flying; the Rangers were not.
“There’s no hiding the fact that the start kills us, really,” Zibanejad said. “Even though we get that 3-1 goal and we’re trying to climb back. It’s, it’s just a constant try to come back and try to chase. We’re wasting a lot of energy on playing like that too.”
Sullivan blamed himself for the recent run of poor starts, which included allowing a goal 18 seconds into the loss in L.A.
“I have to do a better job preparing them,” he said. “I have to make sure they’re ready from the drop of the puck.”
The Rangers played a solid game for the final 2 1/2 periods. The problem was that by then, they were already in too big a hole.
Fourth line produces, top six don’t
Carrick was the Rangers’ best forward, scoring their only goal and combining with linemates Taylor Raddysh and Anton Blidh to generate a number of good scoring opportunities in their limited ice time.
In contrast, the top-six forwards didn’t do much.
Zibanejad (10-game point streak) and Miller (four-game multi-point streak) didn’t do much. Nor did Panarin, their leading scorer, who was held pointless for the second straight game after a 10-game streak.
All three were on the ice for the Sharks’ only even-strength goal.
Sharks win battle of No. 1 picks
The Rangers (2020) and Sharks (2024) had the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL Draft four years apart. Suffice it to say the Sharks are a lot happier with Celebrini than the Rangers are with Alexis Lafreniere.
Celebrini is a star in the making, and he’s the biggest reason the Sharks are contending for a playoff berth after finishing last overall in 2024-25. He was the most dangerous player on the ice for either team and is tied for third in the NHL scoring race with 74 points (26 goals, 48 assists).
“He’s been one of the best in the league,” Zibanejad said. “He’s not only showed that against us, he’s shown that against I feel like every team they’ve played. You look at what he’s been able to do, it’s obviously impressive. Unbelievable player, and at such a young age to be able to have the impact, that’s impressive. Kudos to him. Obviously, him playing well again didn’t help us.”
Meanwhile, Lafreniere went without a point in all three California games and has just 10 goals and 28 points in 52 games. Sullivan obviously wasn’t pleased with what he saw from No. 13 against the Sharks, giving him only 14:20 of ice time. It’s the third time in the past four games he played less than 15 minutes.
