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

Artemi Panarin redeemed himself somewhat by becoming the latest in a long line of Game Seven heroes as the New York Rangers eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins in thrilling fashion on Sunday.

As was the case for most of the First Round, the Blueshirts made life hard for themselves as they twice found themselves in a hole, only to somehow climb out of it and advance to the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2016-17.

Chris Kreider got the Rangers on the board in the first period with his fifth goal of the postseason, but the Penguins were able to take a 2-1 lead into the second thanks to two goals on the power play from Danton Heinen and Jake Guentzel.

K’Andre Miller’s first career postseason goal made it a tied game before a shorthanded effort from Evan Rodrigues put Pittsburgh back on top, and you just got the feeling that maybe their superior playoff experience would prove to be the difference.

However, as they proved time and time again in this series, the Rangers don’t go down without a fight and, after Mika Zibanejad scored the game-tying goal at 14:15 in the third period, that set the stage for Panarin to play hero and score the winner in OT to help the Blueshirts eliminate the Penguins and advance.

And, we’re going to start our takeaways feature with a look at the key ingredient that has spearheaded the Rangers’ considerable postseason efforts so far…

Fight until the bitter end

This has been a theme throughout the playoffs for the Rangers so far, and it will likely continue to be a trend given that the Rangers just don’t know when they are beat.

Finding themselves 3-1 down in their series against the Penguins, the Rangers had to come back and erase deficits in Games Five, Six and Seven. In doing so, they became the first team in Stanley Cup Playoff history to come from behind and win three consecutive elimination games in the same series.

That should tell you everything you need to know about the makeup of this team, and it is a good omen going forward given that it will only get tougher from here on out.

Game Seven was perhaps the microcosm of the Rangers’ entire year in that they had to withstand body blow after body blow, going 2-1 down and then 3-2 down, with the Penguins well-versed in grinding out games in the playoffs given their recent history.

However, as they’ve made a habit of doing, they refused to quit and they hung on in there, with Mika Zibanejad making it a tied game late in the third with a wicked shot, while also proving that getting pucks on net is always the right thing to do.

We know the rest of the story as Artemi Panarin had his best moment of the series with the game-winner in OT, sealing an incredible comeback and hammering home emphatically that this team will not be an easy out in the playoffs.

As talented as they are, Head Coach Gerard Gallant has instilled a toughness and a grit in the locker room that is paying dividends, and that key ingredient could prove to be an unstoppable weapon that could fire the Rangers towards a deep, deep run.

Because, no matter who they play, they won’t go down without one almighty fight and it could be tough for any team to kill that spirit and never-say-die attitude in a best-of-seven series.

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.

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.