The Rangers kept their slim playoff hopes alive last night after beating the Flyers at MSG 4-1. The Rangers also got some much needed help from the Buffalo Sabres, who defeated the Boston Bruins 6-4. With the win and a Bruins loss the Rangers now trail by just 6 points in the standings. The Rangers needed a bounce back game after two poor performances this week against the Islanders and Flyers. Just like in Thursday’s match up with Philly the Rangers jumped out to a first period lead but this time they didn’t look back and played a solid 60 minute game. Here are the game highlights from last night:
A few takeaways from last night.
20 Goal Club
Chris Krieder and Pavel Buchnevich both hit the 20 goal milestone last night. The Rangers are one of just three teams (Winnipeg & Edmonton) to have two players with 20 goals. After a 9 game goal-less streak Krieder is heating up again and now has scored 3 goals in the last 5 games. For Buchnevich it is the second time in his career he has reached the 20 goal mark. Buch is having a breakout season and showing the potential the Rangers saw in him as a solid top 6 forward. He is making the decision to resign him very easy for the Rangers front office.
Alexis Lafrenière
Alexis has played very well the last two games on the top line. Last night he recorded his second career multi-point game, scoring his 9th goal of the season and assisting on Buch’s 20th. His 9 goals on the year rank him 7th among NHL rookies on the year. His game has been noticeably better this last month as he settles into NHL life. I know he is not having the rookie season most people predicted but in a strange covid season of no rookie camp and getting thrown into the mix in New York City, it seems as though he getting more comfortable now. I would also like to see him stay on that top line with Zibanejad and look for his shot more. His 15.5% shooting percentage puts him 5th on the team right behind Panarin. When the kid shoots good things happen!
Zac Jones
After making his debut Thursday night, Jones looked much more comfortable in his second career NHL game. It looks like the coaching staff took notice as well and he played 4 more minutes than his debut. He saw 13:42 minutes of ice, finished with a +1 rating, threw 3 hits, and played on the second power play unit. He was much more noticeable on the ice and looked comfortable in the defensive zone. When Trouba does return to the line up I think it will be and easy decision for the coaching staff to leave Jones in and take Hajek out. These last 8 games will be great for his development as he builds confidence heading into the 2021-2022 season.
What’s Ahead
The Rangers kick off a two game series with the Sabres Sunday night up at MSG. After losing twice this week the Rangers cannot afford a slip up against the worst team in the division. Having said that Buffalo has played very well against the Rangers this year. The Rangers are 4-1-1 against them, but three games have gone to OT and all but one game has been decided by one goal. The one game not decided by one was a 5-3 Rangers win where they scored an empty net goal so each game has come down to the wire. So basically this is not a lay up 4 point series the Rangers need to stay focused and grind out these wins.
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