4 Takeaways from the Rangers' 4-3 loss against Toronto

The New York Rangers have dropped another game on home ice.

The Rangers most recent win at Madison Square Garden was a March 3rd 4-0 shutout over the New York Islanders. Since then, the Blueshirts have lost each of their past five games at MSG, each labeled a “must-win” for playoff contention. The Rangers are now under .500 at home (16-17-3) on the 2024-25 season.

Let's breakdown how exactly the Rangers got their latest loss with four key takeaways from the matchup.

1. Artemi Panarin Shines

Starting off on a positive for the Blueshirts, Artemi Panarin scored a goal at the 18:38 mark in the second frame. In the midst of burying the rebound he is now on his fifth point streak of 10+ (11) games with the Rangers. The only Ranger to have more is the great Rod Gilbert; however Panarin is quickly approaching his record of eight.

While the Russian skater has tallied seven goals and seven assists for 14 points over the past 11 games, New York has still only come away victorious in just four of those 11 (4-5-2).

2. A Nightmare for K'Andre Miller

It was a nightmarish performance for defenseman K’Andre Miller on Thursday. The defenseman was minus-three with two penalty minutes in 21:16 TOI. First, he fell while pinching in the offensive zone, which led to Toronto’s first goal. Then, he let Toronto's Bobby McMann get a step on him with mere seconds remaining in that frame, and then the Maple Leafs forward tipped in a shot from the point to put the Toronto ahead 2-1. He also failed to connect on a pass with Adam Fox, which directly led to Toronto’s fourth and final goal.

3. Igor Shesterkin's Dynamic Performance

While giving up four goals is certainly not his best work, goaltender Igor Shesterkin put up 24 saves against a powerful Toronto offense for a .857 save percentage. More than that it seems the netminder has started taken the offense in his own hands via a breathtaking stretch pass.

4. Fire Laviolette Movement Growing

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette made some lineup tweaks heading into this game. The deployment of the top-4 pairs saw plenty of issues as a result. One shift it was Adam Fox and Carson Soucy, followed by K'Andre Miller and Will Borgen. The next it was Miller and Fox, followed by Soucy and Borgen. It seemed to switch multiple times throughout the Original Six matchup, which could not have been easy for the Blueshirts. Among the previously mentioned abysmal 16-17-3 home record, hearing “Fire Lavi” chants from the MSG Faithful tells you all you need to know about how the fans are feeling about the New York Rangers Head Coach and former player.