Mika Zibanejad Breaks Out Of Scoring Slump With Two-Goal Performance In Rangers’ Win Over Flames

Mika Zibanejad’s offensive game came alive on Wednesday night, as he scored two goals in the New York Rangers’ 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames.

Entering Wednesday night’s contest, Zibanejad had gone scoreless over his previous seven games and had just three goals in 19 games.

It was in the second period when Zibanejad scored his first goal, gliding through the Flames’ defense before tucking the puck past Devin Cooley, who was out of position, just before wrapping around the net.

Despite it looking like a pass, Zibanejad actually intended to bank the puck off Cooley’s pad in what was a clever play.

"I tried to bank it off of him, because I felt like he came out,” Zibanejad said. “He left the post, I guess. I just try to put it in there, hoping that he backs into it. And luckily, it worked this time."

Zibanejad’s second goal came about ten minutes later. The 33-year-old forward ripped a one-timer past Cooley from the left flank on the power play to give the Rangers a 2-0 lead.

The Rangers’ power play had been struggling going into this matchup, but Zibanejad was encouraged by the look they were able to generate on his goal.

“I think it's our puck movement. It's our intention to attack more,” Zibanejad said of the Rangers’ power play. “I feel like we've been doing it more too, attacking more off the setups that we have and we did today.”

At times this season, we’ve seen Zibanejad pass up shots to try and create scoring opportunities for his teammates.

While Zibanejad has built a reputation for being a strong facilitator and playmaker, he also has a potent shot that Mike Sullivan would like to see him continue to utilize.

“He can really shoot the puck,” Sullivan said of Zibanejad. “I'm happy for him. Obviously, he's an important player for us, and he's a real good hockey player. He's one of our better goal scorers, and we like to see him shoot the puck and think more shot first.”

With J.T. Miller oftentimes being utilized in a defensive role, matched up against opposing teams’ top lines, Zibanejad has been counted on to be the Rangers’ main offensive catalyst at the center position.

When Zibanejad is able to get going like he did on Wednesday night, it helps maximize the team’s offensive potential and galvanize the whole group.

“I think he's (Zibanejad) so important to our team,” Sullivan said. “He drives offense in so many ways. He drives his line. He drives offense on the power play. He just impacts the game in so many different ways and obviously when he's scoring goals, it's good for him, it’s good for us.”