On November 30th, 2013, I drove into New York City with my dad to watch the New York Rangers play the Vancouver Canucks at Madison Square Garden. It was the first season that and a family friend and him had gotten season tickets, and it was also relatively early in my Rangers’ fandom so I was still trying to decide which player’s jersey I wanted to get. I had a few options, but none seemed right. Fast forward to just a few hours later and Chris Kreider had made the decision for me. Facing his former coach and the source of many healthy scratches in John Tortorella, Kreider potted his first career hat trick. While it was not his first notable moment as a Ranger, it was the one that made him my favorite player. When I left MSG that day, I had a brand-new Reebok (I’m really dating myself here) Chris Kreider jersey.
I could not help but think about that formative day last week when the rumors swirled that Kreids was likely heading to Anaheim. He has come a long way from being a guy I was worried about sticking in the NHL. He went from a supplemental piece on a veteran team to one of its key veterans and a fan favorite. He scored 52 goals in a season and is now third all-time in goal-scoring for an Original Six franchise. However, more important than the volume of goals he scored is when he scored them. Over 13 seasons Chris Kreider has given us a bevy of lifelong memories by scoring clutch goals. I think the best way to celebrate him is to relive those moments and share the nostalgia that we undoubtedly feel when just one of those goals crosses our minds. He has a lot, so I had to focus on the biggest ones.
You make your own luck
Perhaps the one that is least remembered, in large part because the Rangers ended up losing the game. Nonetheless, Kreider’s game-tying goal with 28.1 seconds left in game three of the 2014 Eastern Conference Finals against the Montreal Canadiens was nothing short of clutch.
With the Rangers up 2-0 in the series but down 2-1 late in the third, Dan Girardi skated down the boards and threw the puck in from a sharp angle. Kreider, who was screening Dustin Tokarski, tipped the puck into the crease and had it bounce off the skate of Alexei Emelin and in to tie the game.
He gets some puck luck on the goal but that's what you get when you get into the dirty areas and work for a goal. What really sticks out to me beyond the goal itself is the celebration. He pumps his fist a four times and then lets out what would become his signature scream. You know the one I’m talking about, where he just sticks his arms out and screams like he’s charging into battle. In the moment, this goal reinforced the feeling that that Rangers team was destined to win the Cup. They would go on to win the series in six games, thanks in part to three goals in this series from #20.
The season saver
The next big one came just a year later and in a very similar scenario. Facing the Washington Capitals in the second round, the Rangers trailed three games to one in the series and were trailing 1-0 late in game five. Derek Stepan skated the puck down the left wing into the offensive zone and laid it back to Kreider just above the left circle. Wasting no time, Kreider went down on a knee and swept the puck through traffic in front and past Braden Holtby to tie the game with 1:41 to go.
Still down on a knee, Kreider spread his arms and invited the MSG crowd to lose its mind with the season temporarily saved.
Ryan McDonagh would go on to win the game in OT with Kreider screening Holtby on the play and the Rangers would force game six back in Washington. Kreider played a huge role in game six as well, scoring two to force game seven. Destiny felt like it had a home in MSG again, especially after Derek Stepan’s series winner in OT. However, without Kreider’s game tying goal two games earlier, one of the most iconic moments in Rangers’ history does not happen.
