After beating the Winnipeg Jets in overtime, the New York Rangers set a franchise first, by sweeping a roadtrip of a least five games for the first time ever. Coming off the disappointing loss to the Nashville Predators just prior to this roadtrip, no one expected them to win all five games in a row.
The Rangers now have a 7-2-0 record and are currently first in the Metropolitan Division. There were several factors that contributed to this monumental trip, but here are just three factors that led to perfect road trip for the Rangers.
Special Teams Were Outstanding
The Rangers’ special teams were a key factor to the success of the road trip. The penalty kill only allowed one power-play goal in the five games, which was to the Vancouver Canucks, and the Rangers were three seconds away from killing the penalty. The Rangers have been guilty of taking too many penalties in certain games this season. This was the case in Vancouver, but the Rangers were able to overcome the odds and only allow one goal in six attempts by the Canucks. Other than that game, the Rangers were perfect on the kill the rest of the trip. The team currently ranks 11th in the league on the penalty kill and based on the way the played on this trip, they should be higher on the list.
The power play was even more effective on this road trip. The Rangers have scored power-play goals in eight of their nine games this season, and scored them in four out of five games on this road trip. Their power play was the key to victory in Vancouver and it also allowed them to tie the game in Winnipeg. The Rangers rank second in the league on the power play, only behind the New Jersey Devils. Adam Fox leads all defensemen so far this season in power-play points and goals. The Rangers have had an elite power play for the past few seasons, but this season, it feels that they are even more dangerous.
Superb Goaltending
The goaltending has been very good to start this season, and it was a key factor to why the Rangers were able to win all five games. One of the biggest surprises to start the season is the play of Jonathan Quick. After looking unplayable in the preseason, Quick has started his season better than anyone could have expected. He is 2-0 and has one shutout, when he made 29 saves against the Edmonton Oilers. He has been as good as can be so far and it is crazy to think that just a few weeks prior, he was seen as a massive problem. He made plenty of key saves in the two games he played on the road trip and hopefully, he can keep his play up as the season goes along.
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Igor Shesterkin was also fantastic on the road trip. He played in three games and won all three and was the reason why the Rangers were able to win in overtime against the Canucks. He made remarkable saves to keep the Rangers in the game and he has looked good ever since he was pulled in the game against the Predators. Shesterkin is looking more comfortable and is looking more like the goalie fans expected to see this season. He is currently tied for second in the league in wins and his numbers can only get better if he can keep playing like he is now.
The Key Players Showed Up
The Rangers were able to wins these games because their star players played like it. Artemi Panarin has 15 points in nine games played and has a nine-game point-scoring streak to start the season. He has scored key goals and set up key plays all season long. He is currently playing his best hockey of his career and his line with Filip Chytil and Alexis Lafreniere has been excellent. Fox has been incredible as mentioned earlier. He has already matched his career high in power-play goals and he has points in eight of the nine games this season. He scored two power-play goals on the road trip and his defense has been excellent. They are not the only stars players who showed up on this road trip.
Mika Zibanejad finally got on the scoresheet with his first two goals of the season during this road trip. He scored the game-winning goal in overtime against Winnipeg to secure the perfect road trip. Zibanejad has played well all season, but wasn’t able to score goals. Now that he has, the flood gates are open and he showed up when the team needed him to.
The Rangers come back home from this trip feeling great; now the longest road trip of their season is behind them and they were excellent. If they can build off the success of this trip and use it to further their game the rest the season, the Rangers are going to be a dangerous team to play against.
