3 Rangers takeaways from 3-1 preseason loss to Devils

The New York Rangers lost the battle of players likely to begin the season in the minor leagues when they dropped a 3-1 decision to the New Jersey Devils on Monday night at Prudential Center in the first of a home-and-home preseason series.
The Devils regulars flew to Europe earlier Monday to get ready for the NHL Global Series against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday and Saturday in Prague, leaving a roster comprised of minor leaguers and a couple of players on PTOs.
Rangers coach Peter Laviolette did the same; only backup goaltender Jonathan Quick, who went all the way, looks like he’s sure to be on the opening-night roster when the Rangers open the regular-season against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Oct. 9.
The score sheet says the Rangers outshot the Devils 30-28, but that’s deceiving. The Devils had a 25-15 edge in shots and a 2-0 lead through two periods.
“The first period, I thought we played pretty good, we just made a couple big mistakes and let them behind for breakaways,” Laviolette said. “Second period, I didn’t like. I didn’t think we were sharp at all.”
New York had a 15-3 shots advantage in the third but couldn’t beat Jeremy Brodeur (yes, Marty’s son, who was playing his first NHL preseason game in eight years) until Anton Blidh knocked in a rebound with 1:42 remaining and Quick on the bench for an extra attacker.
The Rangers kept Brodeur busy down the stretch but didn’t test him too often until Blidh scored on a rebound to break up the shutout.
“The third period I thought we pressed the whole way and kept looking to get into the game,” Laviolette said. “Finally, got one on the board, but too little too late.”
It was the Rangers first loss after beginning the preseason with three straight wins, and the Devils first win after an 0-4-0 start. The teams meet again Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.
Related: What’s next for Rangers after Jimmy Vesey injury
3 takeaways from Rangers’ 3-1 preseason loss to Devils

Here are three important takeaways from the game on Monday.
Jonathan Quick looks ready for regular season
Playing in front of a team without any NHL regulars is tough for any goaltender. But while Quick was beaten twice in the first period and once early in the third, the 38-year-old appears to be ready to reassume his role as an effective backup to Igor Shesterkin.
The two first-period goals came on breakaways after defensive breakdowns allowed Brian Halonen and Nathan Legare to race in alone from the red line to score. New Jersey’s other goal came 2:02 into the third period during a power play; longtime San Jose Sharks forward (and Staten Island native) Kevin Labanc scored on a screened wrist shot.
But Quick looked sharp otherwise in his third preseason appearance. The Rangers would have trailed by a lot more than two goals after two periods had Quick not played so well.
Young forward hopefuls shoot a lot but don’t score
The news that fourth-line forward Jimmy Vesey will be out for a few weeks with a lower-body injury opens up a roster spot that any of a number of hopefuls could fill. But only one of those players hit the score sheet on Monday, though not for a lack of shots on goal.
Brett Berard had an assist on Blidh’s goal; Brodeur stopped his shot on an odd-man rush, but Blidh buried the rebound. Berard, Brennan Othmann and Adam Edstrom each played 22 shifts, including more than six minutes each on the power play.
Berard attempted 10 shots on goal; four were stopped by Brodeur, three were blocked and three more missed the net. Othmann attempted eight shots, with Brodeur stopping him five times and the other three missing the net. Edstrom got four of his six attempts on goal, missing the net on one and having the other blocked.
Adam Erne, who’s in camp on a PTO and has a lower ceiling than the three youngsters, had the second assist on Blidh’s goal. He took three shots on goal, two were stopped and one was blocked. He also had a fighting major and a roughing minor after squaring off with Halonen at the end of the second period.
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Blidh makes his case for role with Rangers
Blidh is the definition of a journeyman hockey player. He’s played at least one game in the NHL in each of the past eight seasons — but never more than 32. The 29-year-old from Sweden was scoreless and played 5:21 in his lone appearance for the Rangers last season; he had 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 64 games for Hartford of the American Hockey League.
It’s most likely that Blidh is headed for a return trip to the Wolf Pack. But he did his best to leave the coaching staff with a good impression on Monday and position himself for a recall if and when injuries hit the forwards.
Blidh scored the Rangers lone goal, barely missed another on a 2-on-1 break, finished with four shots on goal and led the team with four hits while also getting to wear an “A.” His 18:13 of ice time included 5:15 on the power play.
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