Blog Archives
Rangers lines for tonight in Philly; Lundqvist makes preseason debut
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Following the team’s first preseason loss, Alain Vigneault and the Rangers will take on the Philadelphia Flyers for game four of the preseason schedule. Here’s how they’ll line up;
Jimmy Vesey-Derek Stepan-Rick Nash
Brandon Pirri-Kevin Hayes-Pavel Buchnevich
JT Miller-Marek Hrivik-Robin Kovacs Read the rest of this entry
Fixing the Pirri Problem; How to best use the new breakout Ranger
Bobby Bevilacqua
Brandon Pirri needs to get into the lineup one way or another, but which option is the best? Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
When the Rangers signed Brandon Pirri, my first thought was that there had to be a trade in the team’s future. Pirri is a goal scoring threat and an underutilized top-nine talent, so they needed to make space for him.
The Rangers had already signed Jimmy Vesey and Pavel Buchnevich, filled out their bottom six, and re-signed Chris Kreider and JT Miller. I was thrilled with the signing because I had been watching Pirri since his 22 goal 2014-25 season, but I was just a bit confused.
It’s baffling that Brandon Pirri hasn’t secured a regular roster spot anywhere because he’s been scoring at an elite rate in the NHL for a while now. He’s scoring at a right of 1.31 goals per 60 minutes, which is higher than Evgeni Malkin, John Tavares, James Neal, Brad Marchand and Zach Parise over the last three years. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers preseason continues with game against the Devils; Vesey to start
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After a win in the first preseason contest against the Islanders, the Rangers host the Devils tonight at Madison Square Garden as the team continues to look at players fighting for roster spot and their roles in the regular season.
The Rangers announced the lines and defensive pairings the other day, and the top line is the most intriguing. Jimmy Vesey will make his first appearance with the team on the left wing. Kevin Hayes will center that line, and Rick Nash will play on the right. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers Recap: Observations following the preseason opener
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The offseason moves seem to already paying off, and the Rangers played differently than they did last year based on their personnel. For the preseason I won’t be doing goal breakdowns or a period-by-period summary, but instead a bullet list with observations.
- It’s too early to tell for sure because it’s only been one game, but the team played differently. Last year, speed was noticeably lacking and the team didn’t have an identity. The offseason moves made show that the team is looking for speed and youth. There was a lot of excellent transition, puck movement and breakaways, and I’m excited to see this team come together on the final roster.
A night of debuts as Rangers take on Isles in preseason opener
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After a long summer of waiting following a first round exit, New York Rangers hockey is back with the team beginning preseason play against the New York Islanders tonight at Madison Square Garden.
This marks the first of six preseason games that will be played before the team opens the regular season on October 13 at MSG against the Islanders. Following a lot of offseason moves and the development of young prospects, Alain Vigneault has a lot of new players to watch as he works on finalizing his roster.
Tonight, 11 of the 20 players on the ice for Vigneault have not appeared in a regular season game for the Rangers, including some exciting young prospects as well as offseason acquisitions. The top line features longtime Ranger Chris Kreider alongside Mika Zibanejad and highly touted Russian Prospect Pavel Buchnevich. And according to AV, they’ll be tough to play against. Read the rest of this entry
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