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Rangers win streak ends with loss to Canucks; Buchnevich scores again
Alexandra Russo
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The New York Rangers (10-4-0) had their win streak broken at five as well as their home-ice winning streak. The Vancouver Canucks (5-8-1) snapped a nine game losing streak and scored a season high five goals, the most the Rangers have given up this season.
Usually, teams take penalties quite often when they are being pressured for extended periods of time. And that is exactly what the Canucks did. However, it didn’t cost them because the Rangers couldn’t seem to sustain any consistent zone time. Credit Vancouver for blocking some shots and passes, but the Rangers could have still done a better job with their playmaking. Maybe they needed some practice on the power play after not having one in the previous game against Boston.
Arguably the best chance of the first period came from the Rangers when Jimmy Vesey and Derek Stepan went racing down the ice on a two on one. Vesey waited just a little too long to make a pass, and Stepan wasn’t able to control it enough to get a shot off. Read the rest of this entry
Michael Grabner – Unlikely Scoring Sensation for the NYR
Luanne Duncan
For those who didn’t see, I posted a brief recap of last night’s game against Winnipeg. You can read that HERE.
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
If NY Ranger fans and analysts were asked at the start of this season, who would be leading the NYR in goal scoring after 13 games, who would be the top pick? Mats Zuccarello? Chris Kreider? Maybe one of the new kids – Jimmy Vesey or Pavel Buchnevich? Wrong, wrong and wrong. The answer is the surprise pick-up of the year, #40, Michael Grabner. The NYR acquired the 29 year old Austrian native from Toronto on July 1st to little fanfare. Grabner fetched a 2 year, $3.3M contract which is turning out to be the deal of the century for what this guy is now producing.
Most fans, if they even recognized the name at all, remember Grabner from playing five years with the NY Islanders. In 2010-2011, his first and best season with the rival franchise, he garnered 34 goals and 18 assists in 76 games. In September 2015 he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 80 games there, he scored a paltry 9 goals and 9 assists. It was no surprise he was not able to contribute significantly to the offensively challenged team ranked near the bottom of the league in goal scoring. However, with the way Grabs is currently playing for the Rangers, he is set to blow his best season stats out of the rink. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers down Boston for fourth straight win; Buchnevich scores first NHL goal
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Jim Rogash/Getty Images.
Okay, bad puns aside, now time for the real lede.
It took him seven games, but Pavel Buchnevich scored his first NHL goal as the Rangers (9-3-0) defeated the Bruins (6-5-0), scoring another five goals and winning their fourth straight game.
Pavel Buchnevich helped put the game out of the reach with a power play goal, sniping it past Tuukka Rask for his first ever goal in the NHL. The Rangers overcame a slow start and what was otherwise not a great game with that explosive offense. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers trounce Blues thanks to Jimmy Vesey and Henrik Lundqvist
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers (7-3-0) continued their three game homestand against the Blues, and surprisingly cruised past the St. Louis Blues (5-3-2), seeing their offense explode for another five goals in a shutout victory.
Henrik Lundqvist recorded his first shutout of the season and the 60th of his career, stopping 35 shots in the process. Dan Girardi opened up the scoring with his second goal of the year, and that was followed by goals from Jimmy Vesey, Rick Nash, Mats Zuccarello and Kevin Hayes.
Since these recaps are getting super long due to the Rangers scoring a ton, I’m going to recap all of the goals first, then head into opinions and observations.
Here’s the recap; Read the rest of this entry
Grabner’s hat trick leads Rangers to dominating win over Tampa Bay
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After a tough loss in Carolina, the Rangers (6-3-0) rebounded extremely well, scoring six goals and dominating Ben Bishop and the Tampa Bay Lightning (5-4-0) at Madison Square Garden.
Rick Nash opened the goal scoring in the second period, and from there the floodgates opened. Jimmy Vesey and JT Miller each scored in this period, while Michael Grabner netted the first of his hattrick in the middle period. Antti Raanta finished the game with 31 saves, surrendering a late goal to Steven Stamkos that spoiled the shutout.
Here’s my recap with some thoughts and observations; Read the rest of this entry
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