In this final stretch of the season in which every game is more important than the last for the Rangers, Artemi Panarin, the engine that powers the offense, got his 30th goal of the season just over a minute into the game.
For the next 58 minutes of the game, the Rangers vanished. Nazem Kadri picked up an uncontested rebound midway through the frame to tie it, and then found Matt Coronato in the high slot to take the lead on a late period power play.
From there, the Rangers had no answer for the pressure the Flames were applying in all three zones. It was actually difficult to watch. Mishandled puck after mishandled puck, turnover after turnover, missed shot after missed shot. The Rangers simply couldn’t do anything right.
The flames resumed their typical offensive struggles, and Igor Shesterkin had another strong game, so the 2-1 score from the end of the first would stand as the final score. This game was the most disappointing one since the dark days of December, and was a glaring reminder of why the Rangers are in the situation they’re in. They once again fall out of a wild card spot courtesy of the Montreal Canadiens defeating the Ottawa Senators 6-3, and the New York Islanders moved back into striking distance with another come from behind win in the third period, this time against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Calgary Flames simply applied pressure all over the ice for the entire game. Teams around the league know that this is how you beat the Rangers. They can be outworked and outmuscled. Calgary, in a tight playoff race of their own, wanted this win more, and imposed their will. They showed no doubt in their game after giving up an early goal, dug in, earned the lead back, and refused to give it up. Textbook methodology for playing this Rangers team.
The Rangers have to completely change their offensive philosophy. With time winding down in the third, Sam Rosen mentioned on the broadcast that the Rangers had over 40 shot attempts, but more than half of them simply missed the net. This has been a problem for a long time but more-so than usual over the last two games. You never see the Rangers throw the puck into the mixer down low, they’d rather shoot from the tops of the circles and miss high and wide. They don’t want to battle for pucks down low, they want to live on the perimeter. It’s not going to work now, and it certainly wouldn’t work in the playoffs.
After a game like that, I question if I even could stand to watch them in a playoff series right now. They only made the Flames backup goalie Dan Vladar try to make a save 13 times. He made 12 saves and won the game. This is the team we want to see face the dominant Washington Capitals? I’m almost willing to settle for a better draft pick at this point.
This coaching staff just doesn’t do what it needs to do. From top to bottom, it needs to be gutted. The team refuses to get dirty, can’t fucking defend man to man, and special teams have completely fallen apart. There is no accountability for players on one way deals. Guys like Brett Berard and Brennan Othmann, who play the game the right way, find themselves getting shuffled in and out of the press box, while Chris Kreider is going for a skate for 18 minutes a night. Panarin, JT Miller, and Mika Zibanejad continue to put more puck marks on the glass behind the goal just to have to turn around and chase it back the other way. Penalty after penalty at the worse times stifles any momentum the Rangers might be generating and puts them back on their heels even more than they were before. It’s not winning hockey. Without Shesterkin they would genuinely be in the lottery conversation. Nobody is adjusting, nobody is held accountable, and nothing is going to change with Laviolette, Muse, Peca, and Housley running the bench.
The Morning Skate 