Hectic and action-packed is the best way to describe the New York Rangers’ 5-4 thrilling win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon.
In what was a pretty evenly matched first period, the Rangers were able to grab a 1-0 lead in the form of an Artemi Panarin goal off a feed from Mika Zibanejad with less than one minute to play in the second period.
Panarin had a productive offensive day, recording two goals and a team-leading seven shots on net.
His chemistry with Zibanejad is continuing to improve, which has helped spark the Rangers’ offensive attack.
Despite being teammates since 2019, Panarin and Zibanejad haven’t played a whole lot together over the years and have only recently been paired together at a consistent level.
“I think those guys have developed some chemistry. I think they've been driving a lot of offense when they've been in the lineup for the most part,” Mike Sullivan said of Panarin and Zibanejad. “I think Mika has the ability to think the game on the same level as Bread, and I think he has the ability and the talent level to execute the plays in particular off the rush because I think that that's one of Bread's strengths, is just his ability to generate off the rush, and I think Mika can play that game. He also has a responsible game. He sees it pretty well defensively also, and I think that's an important element of that line.”
Following a strong opening 20 minutes from Gabe Perreault, Sullivan elevated him to the top-six role on a line with Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller. Sullivan hinted that he could elevate Perreault into the top six if his play warranted it.
“If there's an opportunity to move him up, we'll move him up,” Sullivan said on Saturday morning.
Disaster struck for the Rangers in the middle frame.
It was a special-teams catastrophe for the Blueshirts, giving up two power-play goals and one shorthanded goal.
Going into this matchup, the Flyers were 0-16 on the power play over their previous seven games, but they were able to break through against the Rangers.
For a goalie of Igor Shesterkin’s caliber, the second period was clearly not his sharpest whatsoever.
Shesterkin gave up four goals on 11 shots through those 20 minutes, and he was extremely hard on himself when speaking to the media after the game.
“We went the second period without a goalie,” Shesterkin said. “They were easy goals. I was upset, but I just tried to come back and give us a chance to win. We played so well in the offensive zone today. I owe dinner for everyone.”
To kick off the third period, boos and chants of “Fire Drury” could be heard from the crowd, with hope all but lost for the Blueshirts.
However, life was brought back into Madison Square Garden after Vincent Trocheck was somehow able to trickle the puck past Samuel Ersson.
Shortly after Trocheck’s goal, J.T. Miller took a hit from Nick Seeler. He appeared to be laboring his right arm or shoulder.
Miller exited the game and ultimately did not return. Sullivan confirmed that Miller is being evaluated for an upper-body injury, but he did not provide any further details.
The Rangers’ power play bounced back in a big way late in the third period, as Zibanejad delivered a goal off a shot from the flank to tie the game 4-4 with less than three minutes remaining in regulation.
New York killed off two power plays in overtime, marking a true special-teams turnaround.
“You might have seen it (special teams) at its worst and at its best throughout the course of the game,” Sullivan emphasized. “Both sides, the penalty kill and the power play the first part of the game, neither one was a semblance of what we would like. When you look at the comeback, they're both an integral part of the difference.”
The game made its way into a shootout where goals from Panarin and Trocheck on top of three crucial saves from Shesterkin, propelled the Rangers to a victory.
Mike Sullivan Changes Philosophy Regarding Gabe Perreault's Usage
Mike Sullivan has had a change of heart regarding how he wants to utilize Gabe Perreault now that he’s back with the New York <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-rangers/">Rangers</a>.
It may have not been the Blueshirts’ most clean game from start to finish, but it took belief from the team, something the players preached during the second intermission, that allowed them to mount an impressive comeback.
“What I loved was the response we had in the third and just the resilience to be able to dig in and find a way to get it within striking distance,” Sullivan said. “We talked about just getting the next goal going out into the third period, and just having the ability to shrug it off, and not allowing it to bleed into our game moving forward.
“I think that's such a huge part of a team's ability to have success, and it starts with a belief. We got to believe we can do it. I thought the guys did a great job. I couldn't be more proud of them for how hard they played the third and in the overtime.”
The Rangers will be back in action on Sunday night against the Nashville Predators.