The Rangers entered Saturday's game against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena riding a two-game winning streak and welcomed the long-awaited return of backup goaltender Joonas Korpisalo. The veteran netminder was making his regular-season debut after recovering from a foot infection that developed following the first game of the season, when he was backing up Igor Shesterkin.
Korpisalo's return will be vital in balancing the Rangers' goaltending tandem alongside Dylan Garand. Garand has appeared in every game since Shesterkin's season-ending injury in Washington 12 games ago.
Adding another layer of intrigue, three former members of the Kraken were making their return to Seattle: Eeli Tolvanen, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and, most notably, Tye Kartye. Since Chris Drury claimed Kartye off waivers, the move has emerged as one of the Rangers GM's savviest and most important additions in rounding out the Blueshirts' lineup. Kartye has been instrumental in the Rangers' down-low puck-pressure game, helping drive consistent offensive production.
In late injury news, Albert Smits was a surprise scratch due to an upper-body injury, resulting in Matthew Robertson making his season debut.
The Rangers pounced on Seattle from the opening puck drop and controlled the 40 minutes of the game. Just 35 seconds into the first frame, they opened the scoring with the type of hard-working goal fans have grown accustomed to seeing. Mika Zibanejad won a battle along the boards and fed the puck to Gabe Perreault, who buried his own rebound to give New York an early lead.
Shortly afterward, Kartye scored on a power-play deflection off an Adam Fox point shot, extending the Rangers' advantage to 2-0. When Jaroslav Chmelař added another goal, the Rangers had scored three times on their first 10 shots against Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord, prompting Seattle to turn to backup Philipp Grubauer.
The Rangers kept pouring it on in the second period. The top line connected on a crisp passing sequence between Zibanejad, Alexis Lafrenière, and Pavel Dorofeyev, who finished the play with a backhand goal for his fourth tally in six games. Grubauer had little chance on the play as Seattle's defenders were completely out of position.
This game became far more interesting than it should have been based on the first 40 minutes of play.
In the third period, the Rangers' effort level dipped while the Kraken significantly raised theirs. Seattle struck early following some sloppy defensive play by New York's forwards. Former Ranger Kaapo Kakko scored on the weak side after Korpisalo was pulled out of position. The Kraken quickly followed with a power-play goal from Jordan Eberle.
Seattle pulled within one at the 4:58 mark of the third period. A defensive breakdown allowed Vince Dunn to fire a shot from the point that was inadvertently screened by Gabe Perreault, cutting the Rangers' lead to 4-3.
The Rangers narrowly held on and escaped Seattle with a victory that, quite frankly, should never have become a one-goal game.
More importantly, this contest highlighted a troubling trend that has surfaced for the Rangers. When they become comfortable with a lead and abandon the style of play that allows them to dominate games, opponents are given a path back into the contest. In the NHL, there are no easy games, and no lead is ever completely safe.
Korpisalo's 25 save performance offered an encouraging takeaway. None of the goals against were his fault, and he made several key stops to bail out his teammates when defensive breakdowns occurred. What was once a situation in which 24-year-old Dylan Garand was forced to shoulder an exhausting workload alone has rapidly transformed into what appears to be a legitimate 1A/1B goaltending tandem. If both goalies continue to perform at this level, the Rangers can keep each netminder fresh throughout the season.
Next up is a major test in Edmonton against one of the NHL's most dynamic offensive juggernauts. The Oilers play at a pace that often makes the game look like a video game, capable of dictating possession and bending the flow of a game to their will.
The Rangers cannot afford the kind of lapses in effort and execution they displayed in the third period against a team like Edmonton. The Oilers thrive on mistakes and have the firepower to punish virtually every one of them.
Still, the Rangers will gladly take the two points and head to Western Canada with another win in their pocket.
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