Rangers roll in Minnesota with seven goal outburst.

Despite playing in a building that has recently not been kind to the franchise (5-8 in the previous 13 games entering this one), the New York Rangers excelled at Xcel energy arena on Thursday night, as a four-point evening by Artemi Panarin, and 33 saves by Igor Shesterkin propelled them to a 7-3 victory over the Minnesota Wild, for a 2-0 start to the season.

Here are some takeaways from tonight’s road-opener:

EAST-WEST BETTER THAN THE REST:
It’s been well-documented that the Rangers’ preference is to go cross-ice when it pertains to scoring, as they were one of the top five teams in goals coming off “East-West” plays last season, and their three-goal burst in the first period was no exception.

The Blueshirts had an apprehensive start to things, as they passed a bit too quickly, leading to some turnovers and a slew of Minnesota scoring chances fought off by Igor Shesterkin.

However, coach Gerard Gallant promptly went to his fourth line, allowing the team to find their legs, and the scrappy Dryden Hunt, taking the place of the injured Vitaly Kravtsov, to make an impact physically, drawing a Wild penalty.

On New York’s first tally, Panarin sent a cross-seam feed to Mika Zibanejad, who found Chris Kreider for the tap-in and a 1-0 lead.

Once again, the second goal involved the motion offense.

Panarin went up the left side, skated behind the net, and found his new rightwinger, Alexis Lafreniere, on the right, who found a streaking Adam Fox in the slot to double the Rangers’ margin.

The cyclists enabled a late strike to complete the clinical frame in the final minute.

A battle along the boards won by Lafreniere maintained possession in the offensive zone, eventually leading to Panarin reconnecting with NO13.

He drew the defense to him, hitting the breadman, who interestingly crossed from left to right before beating Marc-Andre Fleury’s top corner, making it 3-0 with 13 seconds to go, all the goals involving their cross-coast creativity.

This game style allows the Rangers to open up the ice and gives everyone on the line, even the defenseman, a job to do.

A NEW TRIPLE THREAT:
The expectation was it would take a bit of time for the Rangers’ second line of Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, and Alexis Lafreniere to jell.

Still, as Steve Paulus articulated recently, there was no time for experimenting, especially with the team in a top-heavy Metropolitan Division.

On Thursday Night, the Blueshirts benefited from a performance that could be a catalyst to the line becoming an offensive juggernaut this season.

Panarin had a four-point night, while Trocheck and Lafreniere had two points each.

The trio had a +/- of 2 in approximately 13 minutes of ice time and led the goal-fest combining for three tallies, even getting Adam Fox involved in the show, as he added a goal and an assist.

It wasn’t just the production but the veritable skill that preceded it, constantly exasperating the Minnesota defensive corps.

SHESTERKINATOR:
The 7-3 scoreline may make it seem like it was a rough evening for the netminder considering his lofty standards as the NHL’s Vezina-winner, but don’t let that fool you, for Igor’s 33 saves were the reason for the lopsided conclusion.

The Rangers may have taken a 3-0 lead into the first intermission, but it was Shesterkin’s 15 saves, including a few on a Wild powerplay, solidifying the luxury.

It didn’t help that Minnesota’s lethal transition game had the Blueshirts on their heels for much of the second period, ultimately resulting in four Wild power plays.

In Tuesday’s 3-1 season-opening win over the Lightning, New York’s penalty killing succeeded throughout their five-kill evening, limiting the Bolts scoring chances.

But that wasn’t the case in Minneapolis as the Wild peppered Igor’s cage, and hit paydirt when former Blueshirt Mats Zuccarello rocketed one past him with 7:45 remaining in the second period to put the Wild on the board.

Shesterkin was under siege moments later, as Adam Fox was penalized for tripping.
With the pendulum turning the way of the hosts, the Rangers leaned on their goalie, who robbed Joel Eriksson Ek, lunging out of his crease to make the glove stop and preserve the 3-1 lead.

Not even Chris Kreider being docked for his actions of retribution to Ek jamming away at Igor’s glove following that shot, giving Minnesota a five on three deterred him, as NO31 backstopped his teammates out of trouble, accumulating an additional 12 saves in the period.

With 3:06 left, Filip Chytil pounced on a Fox point blast, sending home the rebound, and despite the furious push from the Wild, New York maintained their three-goal lead at 4-1 after 40 minutes, thanks in large part to their keeper.

SPREADING THE WEALTH AROUND:
The play in the third period was akin to a street hockey game, as a combined four goals were scored in a span of 2:02, which included what is sure to be our first of many Ryan Reaves fights this season; Thursday’s challenger was Nick Foligno.

When the dust settled, Vincent Trocheck netted his first as a Ranger, cashing in on a sweet feed from Panarin, who registered his third assist and fourth point of the game.

Sandwiched in between two Matt Boldy goals was brilliance by Kaapo  Kakko, as the 21year-old showcased breathtaking skill for a flashy first tally of the season.

Chris Kreider bookended the game’s scoresheet by tipping home a shot from K’andre Miller.
All in all, six of the team’s seven goals were at even strength, with 10 different Rangers picking up points and five(Panarin, Kreider, Lafreniere, Trocheck, Zibanejad) posting-multi point efforts.