A blast and a bloop
After the 2014-15 season the Rangers would regress. They exited the playoffs early in the next two seasons and then missed it entirely for four more (I’m not counting the 2020 play-in round as the playoffs). During that time, Kreider battled blood clots in 2017-18, missed two months, and saw many of the team’s veterans be traded or leave in free agency. Despite the health problems and roster turnover, Kreider stayed.
And boy did he reward the Rangers for letting him do so. The 2021-22 season saw Kreider score a career high 52 goals (the first time he had even broken the 30 mark) and the Rangers returned to the playoffs. Facing the Penguins in the first round, the Rangers would find themselves trailing in the series 3-1. After fighting off the Penguins in game five the Rangers were tied at three late in game six with their backs against the wall. Already with one goal in the game, Kreider got the puck just inside the blueline and let go a slap shot with Mika Zibanejad crashing the net. Pittsburgh netminder Louis Domingue got his blocker on it but not solidly enough. The puck popped in the air, dropped behind him, and crossed the goal line with 1:28 to play to give New York a 4-3 lead and force game seven back at MSG.
As the Rangers celebrated on the ice I also did so by jumping up in down in my living room while watching with my family. Chris Kreider had saved the Rangers again. In the series overall, Kreider scored five goals, including two in game six, and the opening goal in game seven (which induced that signature primal yell in celebration). The Rangers would go on to win the series in game seven on Artemi Panarin’s OT winner (during which Kreider was causing traffic in front of the Tristan Jarry). Once again, here is an iconic Rangers moment that would not happen if Chris Kreider had not saved the season first.
