Rangers Outscore Avalanche, 5-3, in Shesterkin’s NHL Debut

Igor Shesterkin survived a rocky start in his first NHL game, giving up two goals in the first seven minutes, but settled in and grew in confidence, and the Rangers’ provided enough offense to give Shesterkin a 5-3 win, Tuesday night at The Garden.

The Blueshirts got goals from some of their biggest names Tuesday: Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, Brady Skjei, Ryan Strome, and an empty netter from Artemi Panarin.

Shesterkin allowed two goals on the first four shots he faced, but stopped 27 of the last 28 shots he faced including 13 saves in the 3rd period.

Panarin [1G, 2A] and Jesper Fast [3A] each had three points for the Rangers.

The Rangers currently have three netminders on the roster: Shesterkin, Henrik Lundqvist, and Alexandar Georgiev.

The Rangers [now 20-18-4, 44 pts] host the New Jersey Devils Thursday night at The Garden.

Vegas Dominates Rangers, Wins 4-1

Two days after one of their most impressive wins of the season, the Rangers laid an egg, falling behind early to the Golden Knights, and losing to Vegas, 4-1, Monday night at The Garden. Alex Tuch scored a pair of goals in the first four minutes, and Vegas never looked back.

The Rangers shut out the Devils, 4-0, Saturday in Newark.

Henrik Lundqvist had a rough night, giving up four goals on 32 Vegas shots. The Golden Knights had 17 shots on goal in the 1st period. Malcolm Subban stopped 29 of 30 shots.

Tuch scored just 94 seconds into the game, on a play that was reviewed before being called a goal. Tuch then scored his 2nd of the game, and 4th of the season, a power play goal at 3:50, to make it 2-0.

Reilly Smith made it 3-0, 4:44 into the 2nd period, on a breakaway. And Max Pacioretty‘s power play goal at 6:20 made it a 4-0 game.

Brendan Lemieux scored the only Rangers goal, on a redirection, with 4:45 to play in the 2nd period, to make it 4-2. Lemieux now has five points in his last eight games. Neither team scored in the 3rd period.

The New York power play was 0-for-6. Vegas scored two power play goals in their only two chances.

The Rangers [now 13-10-3, 29 pts] play the Blue Jackets Wednesday night in Columbus.

Rangers Edge Carolina, 3-2, as Win Streak Hits Three

The Rangers scored three 1st period goals, and made it stand up, hanging on for a 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes Wednesday night at The Garden. The win gave the Rangers their first three-game winning streak of the season. Henrik Lundqvist had 41 saves and recorded his 456th career win.

The Blueshirts got goals from Mika Zibanejad, back on the ice after missing 12 games, Brendan Smith, and Adam Fox.

The Hurricanes closed the gap with two goals in 89 seconds midway through the 2nd period. Ryan Dzingel scored his 5th of the season, a power play goal, at 14:29, and Warren Foegele made it 3-2 at 15:58.

Neither team scored in the 3rd period. Lundqvist made 17 saves in the period. It was his 1,000th career game as a Ranger [regular season and post-season].

Fox finished the game with a goal and an assist. Artemi Panarin had two assists, another two-point game for him.

The Rangers [now 12-9-2, 26 pts] play the Bruins in Boston Friday afternoon.

Kakko and Fox Lead Rangers to 3-2 OT Win over Penguins

Kappo Kakko scored 2:24 into overtime – off a pass from Adam Fox – to give the Rangers a 3-2 win Tuesday night at The Garden. Kakko had two goals on the night, while Fox finished with a goal and an assist. It was the first multi-goal game of Kakko’s NHL career.

Kakko got the Blueshirts on the board in the 1st period with a breakaway goal, beating Matt Murray to make it 1-0 at 6:42. Fox added a goal with 11 seconds left in the period to make it 2-0.

In the 2nd period, Justin Schultz made it a 2-1 game with a goal just 73 seconds into the period. Jared McCann would tie the game, 2-2, at the 12:33 mark, with a powerplay goal.

Artemiy Panarin had an assist on the Fox goal, extending his scoring streak to nine games.

Alexandar Georgiev stopped 30 of 32 shots for the win. Murray made 24 saves.

The Rangers are now 5-1-1 in their last seven games.

The Rangers [now 8-6-2, 18 pts] start a two-game Florida road trip Thursday night in Tampa against the Lightning.

Rangers Rebound with 5-1 Win Over Red Wings

After an embarrassing home loss Monday at Ottawa, the Rangers rebounded with better, more urgent play at both ends of the rink, and beat the Detroit Red Wings, 5-1, Wednesday night at The Garden.

Henrik Lundqvist made 35 saves, including 16 in the 3rd period, after sitting out the last three games. It was his 452nd career win.

The Blueshirts got goals of all kinds: aneven strength goal from Chris Kreider, power play goals from Tony DeAngelo and Ryan Strome, a short-handed goal from Greg McKegg, and an empty-net goal from Artemiy Panarin.

The Red Wings are now 1-11-1 in their last 13 games.

The Rangers [now 6-6-1, 13 pts] are right back in action Thursday, playing the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh.

The Kids Are Alright: Kakko, Chytil, and Fox Spark Rangers to 4-1 Win

The Rangers, who played seven players aged 21 or younger, got goals from 18-year-old Kaapo Kakko, 20-year-old Filip Chytil, and 21-year-old Adam Fox, on their way to a come-from-behind 4-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning Tuesday night at The Garden.

23-year-old Alexandar Georgiev made 29 saves for the win.

The teams entered the 3rd period tied 1-1, after Nikita Kucherov scored for Tampa Bay in the 1st period, and Kakko scored a power-play goal in the 2nd period to tie the game. Chytil, in his first game since being called up from Hartford Monday, gave the Rangers a 2-1 lead with 7:14 to play, deflecting a Pavel Buchnevich shot past Andrei Vasilevskiy for his first goal of the season.

Then, with 2:36 to play, Fox scored the first goal of his NHL career, putting the rebound of a Chris Kreider shot past Vasilevskiy to make it 3-1.

Ryan Strome added an empty-net goal with 46 seconds left for the final 4-1 margin. Strome had a goal and an assist on the night. Ryan Lindgren had an assist in his first game of the season.

The Rangers [now 4-5-1, 9 pts] play the Predators in Nashville Saturday afternoon.

Rangers Fall to Arizona in OT, 3-2, as Losing Streak Hits 5

Christian Dvorak scored 64 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime, as Arizona beat the Rangers, 3-2, Tuesday night at The Garden. The Blueshirts have now lost five straight games.

The Rangers didn’t touch the puck in the overtime, as Arizona won the face-off and controlled the puck until the Dvorak goal. It was his 4th goal of the season.

Tony DeAngelo scored two 2nd period goals for the only two New York scores. Alexandar Georgiev made 32 saves in the loss.

The Coyotes came out and controlled the 1st period, out-shooting New York, 21-4. Lawson Crouse got the only goal of the period, to put Arizona up, 1-0.

In the 2nd, DeAngelo, off a rebound, tied the game, 1-1, at the 5:04 mark. Alex Goligoski made it 2-1 Arizona with a power play goal at 13:46.

DeAngelo scored a power play goal of his own, with 2:00 to play in the 2nd period, off a terrific assist from Ryan Strome, to tie the game 2-2. Neither team scored in the 3rd period. Kappo Kakko had an assist on the goal, for his first NHL assist.

The Rangers [now 2-4-1, 5 pts] host the Buffalo Sabres (who currently have the best record in the NHL) Thursday.

Rangers Come From Behind, Beat Jets, 6-4, in Season Opener

Brett Howden gave the Rangers a 5-4 lead with 4:09 to play, and the Blueshirts held on for a come-from-behind win over the Winnipeg Jets Thursday night at The Garden, 6-4, in the season-opening game for both teams.

Mika Zibanejad had a goal and three assists. Newcomer Jacob Trouba had a goal and two assists. And Antemiy Panarin had a goal and an assist in his first game as a Ranger.

Henrik Lundqvist stopped 43-of-47 shots, and recorded his 450th career win.

Marc Staal scored the team’s first goal of the season, 11:35 into the 1st period, to give the Blueshirts a 1-0 lead. Mark Scheifele tied the game, 1-1, at 17:23.

The teams traded goals in the 2nd period; Panarin and Trouba for the Rangers and Blake Wheeler scoring a pair of goals for the Jets, and the game was tied, 3-3, after 40 minutes.

In the 3rd, Kyle Connor‘s goal at 2:41 gave Winnipeg a 4-3 lead, but Zibanejad beat Conor Hellebuyck with a nifty backhander to tie the game, 4-4. That set the stage for Howden’s game-winner; he stuffed a rebound in at the 15:51 mark of the 3rd for the go-ahead goal.

Brendan Smith scored an empty-net goal with 17 seconds to play for the final 6-4 margin.

The Rangers [now 1-0-0, 2 pts] play the Senators Saturday night in Ottawa.

Rangers Draft Kaapo Kakko

The New York Rangers added a major offensive weapon Friday night in Vancouver, selecting Kaapo Kakko with the 2nd overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. Kakko, a prolific scorer, is expected to make an immediate impact this fall, when the 2019-20 season begins.

The 2019 NHL Draft continues Saturday, with Rounds 2 though 7.

In other news Friday, the league announced that the Rangers would play their 2019-20 home opener Thursday October 3rd against the Winnipeg Jets.

Rangers Close Out 2018-19 with OT Win Over Penguins

Ryan Strome‘s goal 2:09 into overtime gave the Rangers a 4-3 win over the Penguins Saturday night in Pittsburgh. The Blueshirts finished the 2018-19 season with a 32-36-14 record, for a total of 78 points, in Coach David Quinn’s first season.

Alexandar Georgiev made 36 saves in the win. Brendan Smith, Brady Skjei, and Vladislav Namestnikov had the other New York goals.

The Rangers had 23 games this season that needed overtime or a shootout to decide.