Blue Line Station
Fansided

Rangers badly outplayed in 4-0 loss to the Islanders

By Steve Paulus

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 14: In an empty Madison Square Garden, the New York Rangers host the New York Islanders in their season opener on January 14, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 14: In an empty Madison Square Garden, the New York Rangers host the New York Islanders in their season opener on January 14, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 14: Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers carries the puck during the second period against the New York Islanders at Madison Square Garden on January 14, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 14: Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers carries the puck during the second period against the New York Islanders at Madison Square Garden on January 14, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

My three Rangers stars of the game

  1. Mika Zibanejad deserves a  star for playing heavy minutes and leading the team in shots and being second in hits after only a couple days of practice.  Although his timing was clearly off, he looked like the Zibanejad of last season.
  2. Julien Gauthier only played just over ten minutes, but he used his speed and big body to throw a team high four hits and finish with two shots on goal.  if Gauthier continues to play this way, he will start to score and will earn a key role on this team.
  3. Brett Howden still shows his hands of stone, missing on a point blank shot, but he was a stalwart on the penalty kill.  He also won seven of 11 draws, best on the team.  If Howden continues to play this way, while he may never be a big scorer, he can be a valuable fourth line asset who can play a strong defensive game and win faceoffs.

The official three stars

  1. Semyon Varlamov
  2. Anders Lee
  3. Mathew Barzal

The East Division

Here are the other scores and standings for the East Division

Boston 3, New Jersey 2 (shootout)
Washington 6, Buffalo 4

Standings

1- Islanders         1-0-0  2 pts
—Philadelphia   1-0-0  2 pts
—Washington    1-0-0  2 pts
—Boston             1-0-0  2 pts.
5- New Jersey      0-0-1  1 pt
6- Rangers           0-1-0  0 pts
—Pittsburgh        0-1-0  0 pts.
—Buffalo              0-1-0  0 pts.

What’s next

The Rangers have a rematch Saturday night at 7pm against the Islanders.

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