New York Rangers: Main takeaways as Artemi Panarin plays hero in thrilling Game 7 win

Motte’s understated role

Artemi Panarin was the hero of Game Seven and there were a handful of other players who deserve their stripes after this one, but someone who flew under the radar somewhat was Tyler Motte.

Back in the lineup for Game Six after suffering what the team described as a “significant” upper-body injury on April 7, the bottom-six spark plug gave the Rangers a different dimension in the latter stages of this series.

Used on the top-line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider at times in Game Seven in order to match up against Pittsburgh’s top lines, Motte was physical and kept it simple which is probably the best policy in the postseason.

He logged 15:35 of total ice time, including 2:36 on the penalty kill where he thrives, and he was just a dominant wrecking ball throughout, registering five hits while recording two shots on goal and one blocked shot.

You need substance perhaps more than style in the playoffs and Motte gave this lineup plenty of that in Game Seven, getting to the hard areas, playing a simple yet effective game and providing a spark of energy.

It proved crucial in the series-decider and it will be key in Round Two, and you need players like Motte if you want to win rings, as the Tampa Bay Lightning proved with Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman during their back-to-back championships.

Shesterkin answers the bell

Much was made of Igor Shesterkin’s struggles in Games Three and Four in Pittsburgh and, while he bounced back in Games Five and Six, Game Seven was his masterpiece.

With Tristan Jarry back between the pipes and Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell both back in the line-up, the Penguins were always going to be a tough out and they were always going to bring it hard.

However, while they were the more polished team with 42 shots on goal to the Rangers’ 30, Shesterkin was ready to answer the bell. And boy did he.

With what was his best performance since Games One and Two, the Vezina Trophy finalist finished with 39 saves and he was unlucky with the three goals he did allow, and you can argue that Jake Guentzel’s goal in the second period should not have counted.

As the Rangers broke down in the defensive zone and gave up odd-man rush after odd-man rush, while committing a boatload of turnovers, Shesterkin stood tall and came up clutch in big moment after big moment. He made four great saves in a crazy span of 27 seconds that eventually led to Chris Kreider lighting the lamp, and he faced a busy first period overall.

Pittsburgh registered 23 shot attempts and had nine high-danger scoring chances in the opening frame, per Natural Stat Trick, but Shesterkin handled pretty much everything thrown at him and that was the case throughout the game.

The Rangers have leaned on Shesterkin all year and, in the biggest game of the season with the chips down, their stud goalie delivered his best performance of the postseason to get the job done and prove that Games Two and Three were nothing but a minor roadblock.

Stars live up to their name

Big players have the ability to deliver in the biggest moments with the pressure really on, and the Rangers got that from three of their biggest stars and leaders in Game Seven.

It wasn’t the best series for Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider or Artemi Panarin, particularly the latter, but all three played a starring role in eliminating the Penguins and advancing to the Second Round.

After recording a four-point night in Game Six without having to worry about Sidney Crosby, Zibanejad was able to stay hot even with the Penguins’ Captain back in the lineup, leading a breakaway and dishing the puck to Kreider for the first goal of the game in the first period.

The center also tied the game in the third period with an absolute snipe after deciding just to get the puck on the net, and he finished his night with three points after claiming a secondary assist on Panarin’s game-winner.

Don’t overlook the fact that he won 18 of 25 faceoffs including all three in the offensive zone on the game winning power play.

Kreider scored three goals in the final two games of the series while Zibanejad had seven points (three goals, four assists) across Games Six and Seven, with that duo getting hot ultimately proving the difference.

Panarin meanwhile, had a tough series with six points (two goals, four assists) heading into Game Seven, while he was unable to be as much of a difference maker as the Rangers would have hoped, consistently being shut down by Pittsburgh, with Sunday’s game particularly frustrating for the forward as the puck just didn’t bounce for him and he gave up turnover after turnover.

However, what makes the great players elite is their ability to make something happen out of nothing and, while he had been a non-factor, Panarin stayed locked in to make the biggest play in the entire season for his team.

Seeing a small but gettable lane in Overtime, Panarin glided forward and used that deadly release of his to devastating effect, using Kreider as a screen before wristing the game-winner on the power play past Tristan Jarry.

It was exactly the confidence-booster that Panarin needed after his First-Round struggles and, if the playmaker can now get hot and use that goal to propel himself to new heights in Round Two, that could be the key against the Carolina Hurricanes.