3 Rangers takeaways from much-needed 2-1 win against Bruins
Well, that was a nice change of pace. The New York Rangers opened up 2025 with an exciting 2-1 win against the Boston Bruins at Madison Garden on Thursday.
The Rangers competed hard throughout, grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first period, got great goaltending from Jonathan Quick and snagged their first win in five games and just their fifth in the past 20 (5-15-0).
Sure, they relied on the spectacular Quick to get this one over the finish line and didn’t score themselves after the first period, but it was a solid team win, one certainly to feel good about.
Mika Zibanejad scored and played with jump, and also recorded his 700th NHL point. Brett Berard brought The Garden crowd to life when he fired a tracer past Jeremy Swayman off a 2-on-1 rush in the second period. Alexis Lafreniere, Reilly Smith and Artemi Panarin were among those skating with purpose and who generated quality scoring chances. Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren combined to block nine shots.
After playing well but still finding a way to lose in their previous game against the Florida Panthers, the Rangers deserved and earned this win against the Bruins.
“We played a great team game. Especially there in the third period,” Quick said afterward.
Maybe this New Year’s re-set paid dividends? Let’s see when they visit the first-place Washington Capitals on Saturday.
Related: Rangers Daily — including Jonathan Quick heroics, dramatic Avalanche win
3 takeaways from Rangers 2-1 win against Bruins
1. Quick answer
Quick was not just really good, he was outstanding filling in for the injured Igor Shesterkin on Thursday. He made 32 saves, 24 in the final two periods, and at least half a dozen of the spectacular variety throughout. His 399th NHL win just may have been his best in a Rangers uniform.
His crazy 1-2-3 sequence in the second period, stoning each member of the Bruins’ fourth line, including a crazy lunging glove save on John Beecher to finish it off was vintage stuff for the 38-year-old. Later in the period, his youthful athleticism was on full display when he flat-out robbed Charlie McAvoy with an incredible split after scrambling when an original shot was blocked.
The Rangers don’t win without those game-saving stops. But Smith pointed to another reason why Quick was so invaluable to the struggling Rangers on Thursday.
“He’s so calm and collected,” the veteran forward said. “He makes three huge saves in a row and he goes about it like nothing just happened.”
That calming presence, been-there-done-that aura, was exactly what the Rangers needed Thursday and will continue to need from Quick in Shesterkin’s absence.
2. Get the party started
Even with the Rangers holding a 1-0 lead in the first period, The Garden was pretty quiet. Perhaps the fans were waiting for something to bad to happen, as been the case so often the past two months.
Then Berard happened and MSG roared back to life. The 22-year-old rookie forward sent a massive jolt through the old building, first with third goal of the season (and first ever at The Garden) at 12:53. Then his passionate explosive celebration turned the volume up to 11.
Coach Peter Laviolette joked afterward that “we told him to shoot or else,” especially after Lafreniere passed up a great look earlier in the game off a 2-on-1 rush. Berard didn’t need much convincing. His snipe was a ferocious finish and a hugely important goal on so many levels.
“He’s a fiery guy. He plays that way,” Laviolette added. “He had big hits and was skating hard. He works relentlessly out there. Nice to see a guy like that get rewarded.”
3. 2-way night for top line
The Zibanejad line with Smith and Chris Kreider made a difference at both ends of the ice Thursday and were a big reason the Rangers opened the New Year with a victory. Zibanejad scored the first goal, tapping over the puck over the goal line after Smith shoveled an in-close shot off Swayman’s glove 9:48 into the game. The scoring sequence started with Zibanejad firing a hard shot from between the circles on net that created the rebound for Smith.
Zibanejad had four shots on goal and seven attempts, to go along with his first goal and point in nine games. Smith had a glorious opportunity in the first period set up by Kreider that was turned aside by Swayman. The line was noticeable offensively.
And on the other side of the puck, they did a good job helping holding the Bruins’ top line of David Pastrnak, Elias Lindholm and Brad Marchand at bay. Yes, that line scored Boston’s only goal, but at the end of the night Zibanejad’s line had a 73 percent expected goal share, and an 8-3 advantage in scoring chances, including 4-1 in the high-danger variety, per Natural Stat Trick.
“They were probably our most noticeable line, both defensively and offensively,” Laviolette said. “Their line was on for pretty much the whole night.”
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