Not the Start the Rangers Wanted

There is always a lot of promise heading into a new NHL season. This was supposed to be the case for the New York Rangers. For starters, the team has a clean slate. Everything that happened last season no longer matters and everyone on the team is given a fresh start. Players like Mika Zibanejad, Adam Fox, and to a degree Igor Shesterkin can wipe away last season and get back to being the great Rangers they have always been. There is also hope that things will be better moving forward. After not making the Stanley Cup playoffs, the potential is there for them to get back to being playoff contenders this season even though both the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference are very competitive.

With all of that said, however, the team's performance in their first game of the season was alarming. Yes, it is only one game, but it was one against a team that has not made the postseason since the 2021-22 season and is expected to miss again this year. That is right, folks. The Blueshirts were blanked by the Pittsburgh Penguins by a score of 3-0 on opening night at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night. There were a few things that should be red flagged when it comes to the team's play in their first game of the season.

For starters, the team's offense was lifeless. While the Rangers were credited with 25 shots on goal, not many of them could be considered quality scoring chances. They made life very easy for Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs as they frequently put pucks into him, did not create enough traffic in front of him, and were not able to pounce on loose pucks around the net. Secondly, the team's defense still looked lost at times on the ice. There were several plays where they were caught out of position, which was especially the case on the Penguins' opening goal scored by Justin Brazeau. Lastly, after having one of the league's worst power plays last season, the Rangers went 0-for-2 with the man advantage and only had few shots on their opportunities. This is something that will need to change in a hurry if they want to have success this season.

In my first article here, I predicted that the Rangers were going to be a bubble team this season. I questioned where the team's offense was going to come from and I still worried how the team would play in front of their star netminder Igor Shesterkin. Based on the team's play in their first game, it appears I was right to question those areas of their game. The team's offense was quiet and the team's inconsistent defensive play last night forced Shesterkin to make several great stops. It might be one game, but the Rangers need to change their narrative quickly or it will be another long season on Broadway.