The New York Rangers were able to spoil the Detroit Red Wings' home opener, something they couldn't do at the start of the week in Boston, with a 2-0 victory to start the season 2-1-0. It was a hard-fought win that came a night after a very big night in New York, and it came with some winners and a really big loser.
Let's talk about it.
First winner: Dylan Garand
The entire world that celebrates and follows this team knows that President and General Manager Chris Drury made a mistake trading for Joonas Koprisalo over the summer. Dylan Garand earned his place as Igor Shesterkin's backup before this start against the Red Wings, but this shutout win just put a stamp on it.
There is no more discussion to be made about this kid, as he is the real deal. Garand was able to stop all 22 shots from Detroit, and there was an excess of medium to high-danger saves, with six. Although the Red Wings are having a bit of an identity crisis, they still have superstar-type players in Lucas Raymond to contend with.
The Rangers have a stud in Shesterkin, and they might have found a very good backup for him in Garand. To think that he was almost let go for free- let that be a lesson to Drury.
Second winner: Sean Durzi
Sean Durzi was able to finally step into his own as the last of the new hires this summer to settle in with the Blueshirts. Pavel Dorofeyev was quickly acclimated, as were Oliver Bjorkstrand and Eeli Tolvanen. Even Marcus Pettersson is finding comfort with his new team early, and that really left No. 5 as a bit of an outlier.
But that all changed with Durzi scoring the lone goal in this game, which could have been two if Bjorkstrand was not caught offside. The right-handed shot had his best game of the young season so far, and there is an expectation that this is exactly what Drury went out to go and get this summer. A solid, offensive defenseman that can back up Adam Fox on the second pairing.
One big loser: Dylan Larkin
This was a rough watch as a hockey fan in general. Dylan Larkin, who was under the bright lights of every major news outlet this summer after requesting a trade from the team he was the captain of, was showcased in the home-opener. It went just about as expected.
Dylan Larkin got BOO'D during the Wings home opener intros 😳 pic.twitter.com/x58up8q11S
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) October 2, 2026
This is a continuing storyline throughout the season, and it will be interesting to see when the Rangers play the Red Wings on December 11, if Larkin will be slotted back in. If not, watch for J.T. Miller to have another solid game, as he did in this 2-0 win.
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