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    3 takeaways from Rangers in 5-2 win over New York Islanders

    Pabio Posted on

    NHL: New York Islanders vs. New York Rangers
    Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images

    THE New York Rangers scored his eighth victory of the season in a 5-2 victory against the New York Islanders Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

    In a battle of special teams and goaltending, the Rangers beat their local rivals to improve to 8-2-1. That puts the Blueshirts first in the Metropolitan Division with 17 points and third overall in the NHL. They are led only by the Florida Panthers (9-3-1) and the Winnipeg Jets (11-1-0).

    The Rangers produced a well-deserved five-goal performance, while Igor Shesterkin was once again superb in front of the post, making 35 saves.

    Read also: Former Rangers forward sparks Blues with shocking fight against Maple Leafs

    3 takeaways from Rangers’ 5-2 win over Islanders

    NHL: New York Islanders vs. New York Rangers
    Danny Wild-Imagn Images

    Here are three takeaways from Sunday’s game.

    1. Special teams are gaining ground

    Without a doubt, the Rangers’ special teams ultimately won this game. Yes, Artemi Panarin scored a huge power play goal, but the real story here is the performance the penalty killers put in. First and foremost, the Rangers went a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. Not only that, but they also scored a shorthanded goal thanks to Chris Kreider, in a magnificent sequence with – who else? — Mika Zibanejad, to open the scoring in the first period.

    Kreider now has two shorties this season and his 11 shorthanded goals since the start of the 2021-22 season are the most in the NHL during that span.

    The Rangers almost scored two goals on the same attack, but for an unreal save from Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin after Kreider’s goal.

    In the 10 minutes the Rangers played shorthanded, they had two scoring chances, four blocks and one high-danger chance, while only allowing two blocks, per Natural Stats Tip. Their expected goals were 0.41 during that span, while the Islanders were just 0.58 through 10 power play minutes. To say that the numerically inferior unit prevailed is an understatement.

    2. Revamped lines survive the first test

    In an effort to spark more offensive production, coach Peter Laviolette threw the lines in a blender just a day before this game. It split the long-standing duo of Kreider and Zibanejad and broke the dynamic line of Panarin, Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafrenière. He even split the third line of Will Cuylle, Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko, who have played very well together so far.

    How did they react? Well, that’s up for debate, according to the statistics. At 5-on-5, the Rangers were outscored 30-20 and had 10 high-danger chances while allowing 14. So even though they managed to score three even-strength goals, including an empty net, and only granted two, they still haven’t done so. necessarily have the advantage on the line. That’s why the special teams and goaltenders won this victory. Still, the new lines looked decent when first tested, so it will be interesting to see if they stay the same in the future.

    First-hand look at Rangers 2024 top pick EJ Emery during North Dakota's visit to Cornell

    3. Mika Zibanejad fights back with a 3-point play

    NHL: New York Islanders vs. New York Rangers
    Danny Wild-Imagn Images

    Laviolette said the roster changes weren’t directly an attempt to move Zibanejad forward offensively, but it could have happened that way. Zibanejad had three assists and three shots on goal against the Islanders. He was on the ice for 10 chances for and 10 against, and was on the ice when the Rangers generated six high-danger chances for, four against.

    This is a pretty good response to the noises from his critics who have been rising against him recently.

    Although it would be good for him to find the back of the net, he is the subject of stares. Zibanejad finished the game with an individual expected goals total of 1.73, the second highest on the team. Despite only scoring two goals so far this season, Zibanejad has 10 points in 11 games, a solid pace to start the season. Consistency is lacking in his game. So let’s see what he does on Friday against the Buffalo Sabres.

    Dane Walsh is a longtime New York Rangers fan. Growing up in the tri-state area, Dane… Read more about Danish Walsh

    Mentioned in this article: Artemiy Panarin Chris Kreider Igor Shesterkin Mika Zibanejad

    Learn more about:New York Rangers News

    Pabio
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