3 Rangers takeaways from convincing 6-1 win against Flyers

For the second straight game, the New York Rangers thrashed an opponent that’s supposedly battling them for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They pulled away from the Philadelphia Flyers with a convincing 6-1 win at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, just as they throttled the Ottawa Senators 5-0 on Tuesday.
A month ago, the Rangers were losing to these middle-of-the-road NHL teams. Now, they dispose of them and have the look of a true playoff contender, which is what was expected when the 2024-25 season commenced back in October.
The Rangers (24-20-4) extended their point streak to 10 games (7-0-3) and ended the Flyers run of six games with a point (5-0-1). They also once again showed a team battling for the same playoff spots the Rangers are, that they are the superior team. That brutal 4-15-0 stretch of terrible hockey? It’s in the past. That is not who the Rangers are now.
As such, the Rangers moved to within a point of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. They trail the Tampa Bay Lightning and Columbus Blue Jackets by one point each. It just feels like a matter of time before they reclaim a spot in the top eight in the East.
The road gets a bit tougher, when the Colorado Avalanche and Carolina Hurricanes visit MSG on Sunday and Tuesday respectively. But these Rangers look ready for any challenge right about now.
Related: Why surging Rangers should shift trade focus away from J.T. Miller, look to upgrade elsewhere
3 takeaways from Rangers win against Flyers

Here are three takeaways from another victory on Thursday.
1. Get to the net
Each of New York’s first four goals was a direct result of getting bodies to the net to cause chaos in front of Flyers goalie Sam Ersson and deflect pucks on the way in. That’s often what it takes to win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That’s not the kind of will nor compete level the Rangers showed in November and December.
Reilly Smith charged to the net in the first period seeking to redirect a Braden Schneider pass, though just as effective, it hit a Flyers stick and went into the net. Adam Edstrom was like a shark in the water, constantly moving until perfectly positioned between the circles to deflect a Ryan Lindgren shot past Ersson to make it 2-1 in the first.
K’Andre Miller zipped a perfectly-placed shot through a Vincent Trocheck screen early in the second period. And Filip Chytil won a battle to get to the front of the net to tip Urho Vaakanainen’s shot into the cage early in the third for a 4-1 lead.
It’s not an easy way to play. But it’s a winning formula.
2. Offensive defenseman
Earlier this season, the play of the Rangers defense corps could be referred to as “offensive.” That’s not a positive. But Thursday, these blueliners were offensive defensemen in the best possible way.
Each New York defenseman recorded at least one point in the victory. That hasn’t happened for the Rangers since Dec. 8, 2019 against the Vegas Golden Knights. Three of the six d-men scored goals (Adam Fox, Schneider and Miller) and Fox and Miller had two-points apiece.
It’s just another example of how the Rangers are getting contributions throughout their lineup during this excellent run. All told, 12 of New York’s 18 skaters had at least one point.
That is also a winning formula.
3. Fourth line scores again
Speaking of everyone contributing, the fourth line struck again for the Rangers, when Edstrom scored what turned out to be the game-winning goal at 10:24 of the first period. As mentioned above, that goal featured power and determination to get to the right spot, and a some skill to perfectly deflect the shot by Lindgren.
The fourth line has been displaying its skill and grit quite a bit during the Rangers turnaround. Edstrom, Sam Carrick and Matt Rempe scored goals in consecutive games and combined for six in the past eight games. Edstrom has three goals in seven games, Carrick has three in 11 games (not including one wiped off the score sheet by a Rempe offside against Ottawa) and Rempe scored his first of the season Tuesday night.
On Thursday, Edstrom also led the Rangers with four blocked shots, including one off his knee. Rempe led the Blueshirts with three hits. Carrick tied for second on the team with four shots on goal.
In 7:54 TOI together 5v5, Edstrom, Carrick and Rempe out-shot the Flyers 10-2, out-chanced them 5-2 and had an xGF of 53.24 percent, per Natural Stat Trick.
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