3 Rangers takeaways from 2-0 win against Kraken
The New York Rangers began their first lengthy road trip of the season with the kind of shutdown performance coaches love. The Rangers limited the Seattle Kraken to 24 shots on goal and Jonathan Quick stopped all of them in a 2-0 victory at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday night.
Quick has been a superb backup to Igor Shesterkin since joining the Rangers last season. He’s won all four of his starts this season, the past two without allowing a goal. It’s the first time he’s had consecutive shutouts since Oct. 18-22, 2011, when he had three in a row with the Los Angeles Kings.
He is the fourth goalie in the past 15 years to earn consecutive shutouts at the age of 38 or older, joining Mike Smith, Martin Brodeur and Dwayne Roloson.
Quick was quick to praise his teammates after his 62nd NHL shutout dropped his goals-against average to 0.91 and improved his save percentage to .970.
“That’s a testament to the way these guys are playing in front of me here,” he said postgame. “It’s not an easy travel day [Saturday], coming across the country, time change and everything. We kept it simple. We were great defensively. We only took one penalty. We put ourselves in a great opportunity to defend well and win a game.”
Alexis Lafreniere put the Rangers ahead late in the second period and Zac Jones added an insurance goal early in the third. Quick wasn’t bombarded with shots, but he was terrific when he had to be.
“I liked everything about the game,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said afterward. “I liked Jonathan’s game, it was really good. I thought we were good defensively. We made good decisions with the puck. When it did come time to defend, I thought we were in the right place.
“It was a really good road game.”
The Rangers are next headed for Western Canada, where they’ll visit the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, the Calgary Flames on Thursday and the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday, before returning to Madison Square Garden next Monday to host the St. Louis Blues. In all, the game in Seattle began a streak that will see the Rangers play eight games in 14 days.
Related: Rangers coach believes Jonny Brodzinski ‘good fit’ after Filip Chytil injury
3 takeaways from Rangers 2-0 win against Kraken
Here are three takeaways from the game Sunday.
1. Jonathan Quick continues to amaze
Quick is three wins away from becoming the first U.S.-born NHL goaltender with 400 wins. His 397 wins are 15th on the League’s all-time list.
But after the win, he downplayed his accomplishments and attributed them to the teammates he’s had over the years.
“Obviously, you’re honored to have those numbers,” Quick said. “At the end of the day as a goalie you’re very dependent on your team in front of you. All those numbers really mean is I’ve played with some great players, teams that value winning more than anything. I consider myself very grateful and lucky to have played with all those guys throughout the course of my career.”
What’s more amazing is that Quick is 22-6-2 in his 30 starts since joining the Rangers before the start of last season. He looked like his career was nearing an end after struggling with the Kings and Vegas Golden Knights in 2022-23.
The Jonathan Quick who’s taking the ice these days looks like the player who led the Kings to the Stanley Cup in 2012 and again in 2014 — when he outdueled Henrik Lundqvist in the Final.
2. Will Cuylle making physical impression
The second-year forward had the secondary assist on Jones’ goal. But his biggest impact came from his game-high 10 hits — a big reason the Rangers outhit the Kraken 41-19.
Cuylle is becoming a force as a third-line power forward who can score and hit. He has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 16 games, is second on the Rangers (and tops among forwards) at plus-12 — and fifth in the NHL with 69 hits.
The injury that has sidelined Filip Chytil, his regular center on the third line, led to increased opportunity for Cuylle — or it will as long as the Rangers earn some power plays, which they didn’t on Sunday. Cuylle was on the second power-play unit at the morning skate, and with Chytil not on the current trip, he’s in line to get some time when the Rangers have the extra man.
“He’s had a really strong start to his year,” Laviolette said. “I do see him as somebody who is probably eventually going to be a regular on a power-play unit, but we’ve got guys who have been there and those decisions are tough to make.”
3. Zac attack
Jones continues to make a positive impression. His first goal of the season, a shot from the left circle off the rush with 17:02 remaining, added some much-needed insurance.
The 24-year-old has been solid since he re-entered the lineup six games ago tp air with Braden Schneider. With rookie Victor Mancini now in the minors, Jones needs not look over his shoulder any more either. He’s a lineup regular.
“I’m trying to just get better each and every day,” said Jones, who has five points (one goal, four assists) and is plus-10 in 11 games, averaging 15:55 of ice time. “Just trying to keep improving, keep being consistent. That’s the biggest thing about being a pro, is trying to find the consistency level.
“Obviously, you’re not going to be feeling your best every night, but trying to be around a ‘B,’ ‘B-plus’ player every night — and then when you have an ‘A’ game, it’s great.”
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