COLUMBUS, OHIO - OCTOBER 14: Justin Danforth #17 of the Columbus Blue Jackets is congratulated by Kent Johnson #91 after beating Igor Shesterkin #31 of the New York Rangers for a goal during the third period of the game at Nationwide Arena on October 14, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus defeated New York 5-3. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
Read about the Rangers’ battle In Columbus – a game filled with growing pains and unexpected twists.
The New York Rangers or any team won’t win them all. If you thought so, Saturday night served a dose of reality. After a dominant season-opening 5-1 win in Buffalo on Thursday, the favored Blueshirts fell to the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-3 at Nationwide Arena.
It’s a reminder that the team has some work ahead, especially when getting used to Peter Laviolette’s system. That’s part of the process. We knew it wouldn’t be smooth sailing this early in the season.
“The first game, we liked our game a lot,” captain Jacob Trouba said. “Today, I thought you saw some things you didn’t like as much that we can clean up and focus on and continue to build our game. It’s still, I won’t say, new, but we’re still learning this a little bit and getting a feel for it. You’re going to get in different scenarios and situations, and we’ll get more and more comfortable as we go.”
Before the puck dropped, the Rangers had some injury news – defenseman Ryan Lindgren wouldn’t be playing due to an upper-body injury. He took a shot to the hand in Buffalo and skated on Saturday morning. The Blueshirts, playing it safe, decided to sit him out since it was just the second game of the season. “He’s upper-body, day-day”, Laviolette said. “He’ll be reevaluated when we go back home” (Sunday).
In Lindgren’s place, Zac Jones joined the lineup, pairing up with Braden Schneider. Erik Gustafson, on the other hand, partnered with Adam Fox. It looked good on paper, but the results left much to be desired.
Early Excitement and Missed Opportunities:
The game kicked off with some good action from the fourth line. Jimmy Vesey and Tyler Pitlick connected, setting up a play where Adam Fox sent it to Erik Gustafsson. He tried to make a pass to a charging Barclay Goodrow, but the puck took a funny bounce off a Blue Jackets player’s skate and found the net, making it 1-0 for the Rangers just 50 seconds in. It was a lucky start for the Blueshirts and Gustafsson’s first with his new team.
A little later, New York had a great breakout from their defensive zone, with Artemi Panarin feeding the puck to Alexis Lafreniere. Lafreniere then fed Gustafson, who found Filip Chytil for a 2-0 lead. However, Columbus challenged the play, and after a review, it turned out that Lafreniere’s skate was offside, so the goal was called back.
The Jackets seized the momentum and managed to tie the game. Schneider attempted to pass the puck to Jones, but it bounced over Jones’s stick and landed with Kirill Marchenko. He sent it to the net, where captain Boone Jenner was right there for the rebound, leveling the score.
With 9:07 left in the period, Zibanejad swatted down an Erik Gudbranson clearing attempt and appeared to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead by scoring on Elvis Merzlikins. However, another offside review dashed their hopes of taking the lead. Moments later, Igor Shesterkin made a remarkable save on a shot from Patrik Laine, but the puck slipped past him and inched toward the goal line.
Trouba dived to make an incredible stop, seemingly preventing the puck from crossing the line. The goal was initially awarded, but after a review, it was clear that it didn’t count, keeping the score tied at 1-1. It was the third potential goal of the period to be overturned.
Yet, just before the first period ended, Jenner netted his second of the night, redirecting a shot from Johnny Gaudreau on a power play, putting Columbus ahead 2-1. The period had its ups and downs, but Columbus managed to sneak in front.
COLUMBUS, OHIO – OCTOBER 14: Erik Gustafsson #56 of the New York Rangers reacts after Spencer Martin #30 of the Columbus Blue Jackets stops a shot during the third period of the game at Nationwide Arena on October 14, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus defeated New York 5-3. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /
Second Period Blues:
In their 5-1 victory over Buffalo, the Rangers had their breakouts on point, executing with style. They smoothly transitioned out of their zone, making it look like a breeze. Yet fast forward to Saturday, they seemed to channel their inner struggle from last year. They were passive with the puck, and the Blue Jackets saw right through their 1-3-1 neutral zone trap.
“There were some odd-man rushes that I didn’t like and some things that snuck back in there that you’ve got to take out,” Laviolette quipped. “It wasn’t overwhelming amounts of them, but the ones that we didn’t take charge of, they came back the other way and bit us.”
On Thursday, the Rangers allowed a total of six high-danger chances. They let ten trickle through in Columbus, five in the first period.
The second period saw turnovers piling up for the Blueshirts. Kaapo Kakko made a crucial turnover at the point, and the Jackets took full advantage. After a few shots were blocked, Jenner showed his muscles as he outmuscled Jones and Schneider behind the net.
Then he just parked himself in front of the net, and Jones couldn’t find a way to move him. The result? A Jake Bean shot that got tipped by the Blue Jackets captain, giving him his second career hat trick and making it 3-1.
“You want to clear out the front of the net and not let those tips (happen),” Fox said. “We score some goals like that that are around the net and tips. It’s hard for the goalie. There’s nothing they can really do on those, so it’s tough. We had some breakdowns, and they took advantage of it.”
And if that wasn’t enough, it soon turned into a 4-1 Blueshirts deficit when David Jiricek decided to pop his first NHL goal. Jiricek had all the time in the world at the top of the right circle and fired a wrist shot past Shesterkin, glove side. It was not the finest night for the Rangers’ netminder, who finished with a -1.97 goals saved above expected. It also was a forgettable night for the Jones-Schneider pair, who were a -2. The loss dropped the Rangers’ record without Lindgren to 47-52-17, compared to 149-82-27 when he’s played since 2019.
COLUMBUS, OHIO – OCTOBER 14: Will Cuylle #50 of the New York Rangers is congratulated by Vincent Trocheck #16 and Artemi Panarin #10 after scoring his first career NHL goal during the third period of the game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on October 14, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus defeated New York 5-3. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /
Rangers Dominate, but Luck Eludes Them:
Don’t be deceived by the score – Rangers were in control. Despite some hiccups in the second period, they owned the ice in the final minutes of that frame and throughout the third. The boys were buzzing! They kicked off the third period with a fiery 13-shot barrage and bossed the puck possession.
The comeback seemed possible when Gustafsson’s slick keep-in set up Will Cuylle’s first NHL goal, a laser from the slot that beat Spencer Martin. The Columbus netminder, claimed off waivers from the Vancouver Canucks, stepped in for Merzlikins, who left after the second period due to illness but picked up right where his predecessor left off, making 15 saves and frustrating the Blueshirts’ attack.
It’s one of those nights when you hope the pucks that rang posts or took weird bounces off skates find the net. Sadly, it just wasn’t in the cards. A blocked shot led to the puck making a quick exit from the Jackets zone, resulting in a 2-on-0 break that Justin Danforth cashed in on, sealing the deal with Columbus’s first shot.
On the bright side, a Chris Kreider power play goal injected a little confidence into our special teams.
Despite outshooting the Jackets 42-21, beating them 15-10 in slot chances, and the money puck stats pointing in New York’s favor at 59%, the scoreboard had other plans. Hockey can be a fickle game; sometimes, it doesn’t go as it should.
“I don’t think it was a bad game out of us,” Fox said. “I thought it was just a few cracks in our coverage that gave up a little too many high-end chances. But overall, I thought we were in their zone a lot. I thought we had some good looks. Maybe you want to get a few more shots and a little bit more traffic, but if you give a team enough chances – a breakaway here, an odd-man rush here and there – they’re going to capitalize.”
