New York Rangers Daily: Making contenders look like pretenders, Gary Bettman retirement talk
It’s once again a good morning in the Big Apple, where the New York Rangers dismissed another Eastern Conference playoff pretender — er. contender — with a 6-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday.
Contributions up and down the lineup highlighted this latest win. That’s becoming the norm now for the Rangers, who are playing with equal parts grit and skill in a 7-0-3 run — the 14th time in franchise history they’ve had a 10-game point streak.
It should be noted that, yes, these are the same players who played two months of embarrassing hockey on their way to a 4-15-0 stretch that dropped them to the bottom of the standings in the East. Yet, they wake up Friday one point out of the a wild-card spot in the conference.
This 6-1 win was again fueled by a three-goal third period, just as was the 5-0 victory against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. There were other similarities in the victories, but one big difference is that Igor Shesterkin had to work much harder and be more sharp against the Flyers than against the Senators.
Shesterkin made 33 saves Thursday, including 17 in a sensational second period. The 29-year-old faced just 20 shots Tuesday.
Friday is a day off for the Rangers, who return to practice Saturday and skate against the Colorado Avalanche in a Sunday matinee at MSG.
Click HERE to receive 20 percent off when you shop at Forever Blueshirts store
New York Rangers news
Our three takeaways from the latest victory includes a look at how the Rangers achieved much success by going hard to the Flyers net, scoring four goals directly because of that.
Ryan Lindgren admitted there were doubts a month ago if the Rangers were capable of making a playoff run.
There’s plenty of J.T. Miller trade chatter, but Tom Castro makes the case that the Rangers should upgrade other parts of the lineup instead of re-acquiring the former first-round pick.
In our weekly Rangers NCAA prospects report, Gabe Perreault and Boston College are flying high, moving to the top of recent polls.
NHL news
Word spread that the NHL is planning for Gary Bettman to retire as commissioner “in a couple years,” and the League’s executive committee has already started the early stages of searching for his successor. Bettman became Commissioner of the NHL on Feb. 1, 1993.
Alex Ovechkin is now 20 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL record after he netted No. 875 in a 3-0 Washington Capitals win against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday. That’s Washington’s sixth straight victory.
The Islanders say defenseman Noah Dobson will not require surgery, but is week to week after sustaining what appeared to be a lower-body injury earlier in the week.
Vegas Golden Knights forward William Karlsson also is week to week to with a lower-body injury.
Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman is sidelined with a “minor upper-body issue” and is considered day to day. Joonas Korpisalo stepped in and made 30 saves in a 2-0 Bruins win against the Ottawa Senators.
Despite playing without the injured Patrick Kane, the Detroit Red Wings doubled up the Montreal Canadiens 4-2.
The Pittsburgh Penguins not only lost 5-1 to the Anaheim Ducks, but forward Bryan Rust left the game in the second period with a lower-body injury.
It was revenge time for the Edmonton Oilers, who hammered the Vancouver Canucks 6-2 despite playing without suspended superstar Connor McDavid.
A strong game from Jakob Pelletier led the Calgary Flames to a 5-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres.
Watch the Carolina Hurricanes score five goals in the second period in a 7-4 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
More About:New York Rangers News