Dennis Schneidler-Imagn ImagesThe New York Rangers lost their second game to the New York Islanders in the span of two days, suffering a 2-1 defeat on Thursday night, as the absence of Artemi Panarin is clearly taking a toll on the team.
On Wednesday night, just about an hour before the Rangers’ game at UBS Arena, it was announced that Artemi Panarin would be held out of the lineup due to roster management, and he won’t play in any games before the Olympic break, beginning on Feb. 5.
Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury reportedly held an individual meeting with Panarin shortly before releasing a letter on Jan. 16 outlining the team’s intentions to retool, and informed him that the Rangers do not plan to re-sign him past this season and will look to trade him to anywhere he wishes to go.
Over the past two games without Panarin in the lineup, the Rangers have scored a combined three goals.
Despite playing a defensively sound game and putting on sustained pressure throughout Thursday night’s contest, in which Mike Sullivan felt the Blueshirts did enough to win, they were missing the elusive offensive talent that Panarin has provided for the Rangers since 2019.
“I think he brings a unique element with the way he plays the game, and we try to give him that latitude, because he's a unique player,” Sullivan said of Panarin. “I think whatever line that he's on, he has a dimension to it that's different when he's not in our lineup, He's one of those types of players.
“He's a very good offensive talent, and he sees the game really, really well. I don't have to tell you guys that, he's got a pretty decent track record here, and everybody understands how good of a player he is, so it’s tough to replace those guys.”
Both Panarin the player and Panarin the person are deeply missed within the confines of the Rangers’ locker room.
The way in which Panarin was suddenly yanked out of the lineup on top of the uncertainty surrounding his future has been difficult for players to grasp.
“Stuff like that is emotional. ... It sucks. He’s a driver of the team, great guy,” J.T. Miller said of the Panarin situation. “But that being said, we have a job to do. It’s a part of the business and we need to show up and try to win hockey games.”
There have been multiple teams linked to be interested in Panarin’s services, including the Washington Capitals, Carolina Hurricanes. Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, and even the Islanders.
It’s unclear how imminent a trade for Panarin is at this point. It could happen any day now before the Feb. 4 roster freeze, or we could see this saga drag on even further, leading up to the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline.
“I feel like I answered that question for the last week. You guys asked it a million different ways, but I give you the same answer,” Sullivan said in frustration about addressing if the team is carrying an emotional burden because of the uncertainty around Panarin.
From a team perspective, this trade couldn’t come any sooner, as the longer this situation continues to linger, the more they’ll have to continue answering questions about Panarin’s absence with frustration building up.