Despite an ugly 6-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 7, the New York Rangers are 8-3-1 thanks to excellent goaltending and Artemi Panarin’s hot start to the season. At 33 years old, he is still an elite player and he has also elevated the play of his linemates. His play is a bright spot for the Blueshirts in their first 12 games of 2024-25.
Panarin’s Play in 2024-25
The Rangers started the season 5-0-1 and Panarin had six goals and seven assists in those games. He was excellent at the point on the power play, getting accurate wrist shots through traffic and setting up teammates with cross-ice passes. His line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere consistently generated offense at even strength.
Panarin had two assists in a 6-0 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 9, two goals in a 6-5 loss to the Utah Hockey Club on Oct. 12, and three assists in a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 14. In their next game on Oct. 17, another matchup with the Red Wings, he scored on a wrist shot after a cross-ice feed from Trocheck to give them a 1-0 lead.
He scored again with a beautiful wrist shot through traffic on the power play to make it 2-0. He then secured a hat trick with another power-play goal, scoring on a slap shot. He later added an assist in a 5-2 victory.
Additionally, Panarin has come through in games where the team has struggled to create scoring chances. He scored on a quick wrist shot after a steal by Lafreniere in a 2-1 win over the Ottawa Senators on Nov. 1. In the 6-1 loss to the Sabres and a 3-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Oct. 24, he assisted on the Rangers’ only goal. He has at least one point in 11 of the Blueshirts’ 12 games this season and already has nine goals and 10 assists.
Last season, Panarin set career highs in goals (49) and points (120) and he is continuing his excellent play this season. This is his sixth season with the Rangers and he has 158 goals and 480 points in 362 games.
Panarin Needs Help
While Panarin is playing great, the Rangers need some of their other star players to step up. Head coach Peter Laviolette broke up the team’s lines after getting outplayed badly in two consecutive games and opted to play struggling center Mika Zibanejad with Panarin. In a 5-2 victory over the rival New York Islanders on Nov. 3, Zibanejad had three assists and Panarin scored two goals.
Zibanejad is in the third season of an eight-season contract and needs to produce more offense. On a team with lots of great playmakers, he is one of their proven scorers but he has just two goals in 12 games and one of them was scored on an empty net. His slap shot made him a weapon on the power play in past seasons but his timing has been off in the first 12 games. He has gotten off to a slow start in past seasons and then come through but the Rangers need him to start scoring more goals.
Related: Rangers Suffering From Zibanejad’s Early Season Struggles
Zibanejad does have eight assists but just four have come at even strength. He has played well defensively but his lines have struggled to sustain pressure in the offensive zone at even strength in part because he has stopped playing with physicality. He has just two hits this season.
Panarin is one player who the Rangers are not relying on to play with physicality but as a team, they need to play with more intensity and use their size to their advantage. Important defenseman K’Andre Miller has gotten off to a slow start and repeatedly looked to stick check rather than taking the body. He also has yet to break out offensively this season and has two points after he finished with 30 points in 2023-24 and 43 points in 2022-23.
Through 12 games, Igor Shesterkin and Panarin have carried the Rangers but they need key players like Zibanejad, Miller, Adam Fox, and Chris Kreider to step up. The great play of a few stars has helped them win a few games even though the majority of the team played poorly but that is not sustainable. Right now no one besides Panarin has more than 10 points.
For Panarin Moving Forward
The Rangers need Panarin to continue his strong play and he has proven throughout his career that he can be relied on to produce offensively. After an injury scare in the preseason, he has been the team’s best player besides Shesterkin. However, other key players need to raise their level of play for the team to reach their potential this season.
