Blue Line Station
Fansided

A solid 6-3 win gives hope to the improbable

By Steve Paulus

Apr 25, 2021; New York, New York, USA; Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers is surrounded by teammates after he scored a hat trick in the second period against the Buffalo Sabres at Madison Square Garden on April 25, 2021 in New York City. Mandatory Credit: Elsa/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 25, 2021; New York, New York, USA; Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers is surrounded by teammates after he scored a hat trick in the second period against the Buffalo Sabres at Madison Square Garden on April 25, 2021 in New York City. Mandatory Credit: Elsa/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 3
Next
Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers is congratulated by teammate Ryan Lindgren #55 after Zibanejad scored a hat trick (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Mika Zibanejad #93 of the New York Rangers is congratulated by teammate Ryan Lindgren #55 after Zibanejad scored a hat trick (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

My 3 Rangers stars of the game

  1. Mika Zibanejad is playing now like played last season. He scored three goals in his first 27 games. In his last 22 games he has scored 16 goals.  His .72 Goal Per Game number in those games is the same average he had last year.  In other words, after an insanely bad start, he is the player he was last season.
  2. Adam Fox strengthened his case of a Norris Trophy adding three assists to his total.  While the assists were good, it was his pass to Kaapo Kakko that he one-timed for a goal was sublime.
  3. Kaapo Kakko is getting hard to knock off the puck.  For his first goal, he controlled the puck in the offensive zone, dished it off and got in position for the shot.   His second goal was in a battle in front of the Sabres’ goal, a  battle that Kakko won.

The official 3 stars

  1. Mika Zibanejad
  2. Adam Fox
  3. Kaapo Kakko

East Divsion

It’s getting tighter.  No need to scoreboard watch on Monday as no East teams are in action.

Sunday’s games

Rangers 6, Sabres 3
Penguins 1, Bruins 0
Flyers 4, Devils 3 (shootout)

Standings
1- Pittsburgh          49    32-14-3      67 points
2- Washington       48     31-13-4      66 points
3-  Islanders            48     29-14-5      63 points
4- Boston                47     27-14-6      60 points
5- Rangers              49     25-18-6      56 points
6–Philadelphia       48     22-19-7      51 points
7- New Jersey *      48    14-27-7      35 points
8- Buffalo*              49    13-29-7       33 points

* Eliminated from the playoffs

What’s next

It’s Buffalo again on Tuesday night as the Rangers try to gain more ground on the Bruins and the Islanders.  Boston plays Pittsburgh who moved into first place with their win on Sunday.  The Islanders face the Capitals who dropped into second place.  The good news is both the Penguins and Capitals have a lot to play for, but then again, so do the Bruins and Islanders.

Home/Rangers News