After yet another long break, we are back with more Rangers hockey! This one’s story writes itself in the first real official matchup of Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko. There are plenty of takes on thoughts for this battle of the Hudson. Let’s dive in shall we?

  • I’ve always found it really funny when a guy scores not necessarily against a team he grew up cheering for, but from the same state. Andersson, Buchnevich, and DeAngelo the goal scorer make that play happen with beating people on one-on-one battles and a pretty lucky, but good shot by DeAngelo. DeAngelo’s skill set helps this team and really takes pressure off guys like Hajek and Skjei to be offensive dynamos.
  • Jack Hughes getting his first point against the Rangers would have been the easiest bet this NHL season than anything.
  • The refs for this game must have never called an NHL game before because no matter how much I like to see the Rangers power play–regardless of the result of a goal or not–the calls were pretty bad.
  • What’s worse is that call on Hall absolutely DEMOLISHING Fox with a fist and a follow through only got 2 minutes. The NHL needs to adapt what the NFL does and automatically review hits like this without the need of a coach’s challenge or the risk of human error as we saw tonight when a hit like that clearly deserved 5 and a game misconduct.
  • The Rangers needed their depth to start stepping up offensively and it was good to see a guy like Fast get on the board with a gritty goal. He’s another guy who has shown flashes previously, but it’s always nice to see physical results.
  • Trouba is not always going to get on the score sheet, but I am always impressed with his poise and how he just makes simple plays that lead to legitimate scoring chances. He handles the blue line in the offensive zone with good sense.
  • Pierre and Mike Milbury are an INSUFFERABLE combo and their bias against the Rangers is abundantly clear in any broadcast they are apart of. Imagine stating Kakko struggles with skating?
  • Ryan Strome needs to still be taken off the power play. He handles the puck like a hand grenade in the offensive zone and creates way too many turnovers while on the power play. The hope is of course to have PP1 firing on all cylinders at all times with the personnel and skill set, but that is just simply not realistic. PP2 needs to get going to have depth.
  • Filip Chytil CANNOT be called up soon enough.
  • 6 Penalties against is pretty terrible no matter how soft the calls might have been. Quinn and company need to instill discipline. The Rangers PK is better this season so far, but you are expecting too much out of your PK and goalie to bail you out that much in a single game.
  • On the flip side, 6 power play attempts and not scoring on any by a team who leads the league in goals against on the PK can’t happen.
  • Georgiev cannot be blamed for the majority of these goals, he played a solid game and the types of saves he had to make give me confidence going forward about load management with Lundqvist.
  • Nothing is worse as a New Jersey native than losing to the Devils, ugh.

Follow me on Twitter @TylerRichard93.

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