At the beginning of the 2023-24 season, the New York Rangers embraced new head coach Peter Laviolette’s defensive structure and ran with it. In their first five wins, the Blueshirts held their opponents to one or fewer goals, and held their opponents to three or fewer goals in their first 14 wins.
The recipe for success was simple: play a structured, defensive-style game and rely on your special teams and offensive talent to capitalize on the opportunities presented during the game. It worked, propelling the Rangers to the top of the league standings, but that defensive structure evaded them as injuries started to hit and play loosened.
Igor Shesterkin, the Rangers’ Vezina-winning goaltender, hit a rough stretch, and without his usual heroics, the Blueshirts faltered. Before the Rangers victories over the Anaheim Ducks and Boston Bruins, Laviolette’s team had allowed four or more goals in four of five contests.
They were terrible in their own zone during Shesterkin’s three starts over that span, allowing 17 goals over those games and seemingly reverting back to the defensive play that ended their season prematurely in years past. But a gut check and bounce back has occurred over the last two games that better resembles the style of play in which the Rangers found success early on.
A 5-1 win over the lowly Ducks and a 2-1 overtime win over the Atlantic Division top dogs, the Bruins, look to have the Rangers back on the defensive track they need to be on. On Tuesday, the Rangers will travel to Toronto to take on the Maple Leafs, a team that potted seven goals on them on Dec. 12.
The emphasis on defense and the defense-first approach that has carried the Rangers to a historic start must remain at the forefront as they look to exact revenge on a talented Toronto squad. Before looking too far ahead, let’s examine the improvement made over the last two contests.
Rangers Shut Down Ducks, Bruins
Since his return from injury, Adam Fox has yet to look like himself. Call it rust or just a bad stretch, but he has found his game in the Rangers’ last two victories, a welcome sight for a team looking for answers in their defensive zone. The Rangers have tightened things up as a collective group, especially in the game against the Bruins, a crucial contest to right the ship for Shesterkin.
The matchup against the Ducks started similarly to their previous defeats, with Anaheim scoring first and creating high-danger chances. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Rangers managed to right the ship, yielding just 10 high-danger chances to their 12. They got great goaltending from Jonathan Quick when called upon and were able to pull away from a team that they should handle on paper.
Saturday’s contest with the Bruins was a tightly contested defensive game. The Bruins didn’t give the Rangers much at five-on-five, and the Rangers also limited the Bruins’ offense. There were 16 combined high-danger chances at five-on-five during the contest, nine of which belonged to Boston.
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Shesterkin was sharp, although the Rangers limited the Bruins to 22 shots on goal. The collective effort to minimize chances and keep Boston to the outside paid off, giving Shesterkin his first win in his last four starts and allowing fewer than four goals for the first time in those starts.
Essentially, the Rangers rediscovered the formula that worked for them early in the season and one that will work almost always in this league. Give up under three goals, which they did, allowing just one in each contest, and win the game. The offense was hard to come by in the game against Boston, which is to be expected considering the Bruins’ defensive prowess.
Yet, in the end, the Rangers’ commitment to the defensive zone paid off, tying the game late in the third and winning the game in overtime, with both goals coming courtesy of Vincent Trocheck. Getting two points is always the most important thing, but how the Rangers got the two points in each matchup is still critical at this juncture of the season.
Laviolette has preached good habits since he was announced as the Rangers’ head coach, habits which escaped them recently. But these last two games closely resemble the style of play that the Rangers need to have all season.
Rangers Need to Continue Defensive Hockey
With Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko still missing from the forwards, the Rangers must remember that the defensive zone is the priority. When they excel there, the rest of their game follows suit; when they open things up and start getting sloppy with the puck, their game crumbles.
The Rangers are a perfect 13-0-0 when their opponent scores two or fewer goals in a game this season. It seems pretty self-explanatory, but they are virtually unbeatable when the Rangers stay composed and structured. Yes, Quick has helped with his exceptional play, and when right, Shesterkin can bail this team out nightly.
But the Rangers control their destiny, and by playing defense first, they give themselves a great chance to win every night. Last season, the Rangers had a perfect record when scoring four or more goals in a game. This season, that priority has switched to the defensive side of the puck, and their perfect record is in the form of games in which they allowed two or fewer goals.
The Rangers’ offense and goaltending thrive in tight, low-scoring contests and get shaky when the game becomes an open-rush style of hockey. Success has been had early and often this campaign when the Rangers stack the neutral zone and make opponents work hard just to establish their forecheck and offensive zone presence. When the Blueshirts are weak in the neutral zone, they give up a lot.
Over the last two games, we have seen the defensive style of play that made the Rangers successful early on, and if that continues, they will be sitting near the top of the league when the season draws to a close.
