The New York Rangers are off to a hot start to the season - over the first four games, the Blueshirts have a record of 3-0-1 and are averaging five goals a game, the highest in the league.
Next up for the Rangers is Saturday night's contest against the Toronto Maple Leafs, their second game of a three-game road trip. New York looks to continue their undefeated (in regulation) start to the 2024-2025 NHL season.
Here's three Blueshirts to watch in Toronto.
1. Artemi Panarin
The Rangers are the highest-scoring team in the league right now, and a lot of that is because of Panarin. He's tied for first in the league in points (11) and second is goals (five). It's his second time in three years that he had 11 points in his first four games, along with the 2022-2023 season.
Panarin is coming off of a season where he totaled career highs in goals (49) and points (120). Obviously, we're only four games in, but he's on pace to break those totals.
2. Victor Mancini
On Thursday night in Detroit, Mancini - the Hancock, Mich. native - scored his first NHL goal. Moreover, he has a +2 rating through the first four games.
Mancini has showed potential to be on the Rangers' blue line for years to come, and with Ryan Lindgren's return imminent, will be competing with Zac Jones for the sixth defensive spot. With the way he is playing, he has a real chance.
3. Chris Kreider
Kreider's first appearance on the list comes after he's scored three goals to open up the season. The line with Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Reilly Smith has been decent, but not New York's best. This was a problem come the postseason, regardless of who was playing with Zibanejad and Kreider.
Nontheless, Kreider's has been good and will need to score some goals to get this line going.