Rangers can't solve Varlamov; get shutout by Isles

The Rangers just can’t seem to solve Semyon Varlamov. The Isles netminder was near perfect in this one as the Isles shutout the Rangers. The Blueshirts didn’t really make him work until the third period, but a shutout is a shutout. Igor Shesterkin was equal to the task, until two very costly mistakes wound up in the back of their net.

The Rangers weren’t bad in this one, but they weren’t exactly great either. While the game was certainly boring, the lack of any scoring from Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider has really hurt the Rangers this season. Zibanejad especially was a key to the season, and he’s come up with nothing thus far.

So much for the winning streak in this one. Now the Rangers have a pair of dates with Boston.

Isles 1, Rangers 0 – The Hajek Turnover

Casey Cizikas finally breaks the scoreless tie against the Rangers pic.twitter.com/Z0HsrJJQst

— SB Nation NHL (@SBNation_NHL) February 9, 2021

Libor Hajek didn’t want to be recognized in this one, but he was. Blind backhand pass through the slot in a scoreless game in the third period. Quick turnover and a shot from the point, with Casey Cizikias cleaning up the garbage in front.

Isles 2, Rangers 0 – Anyone want to turn around?

And now Matt Martin extends the Isles' lead pic.twitter.com/OnUIRGKUaI

— SB Nation NHL (@SBNation_NHL) February 9, 2021

No one picked up Matt Martin off the bench. That’s it. That’s the goal.

Shot Heatmap – Isles Dominance

The Isles dominated the quantity in this one. This shouldn’t surprise anyone, as the Rangers did spend a lot of time in their defensive zone for most of this game. Even in the third, when the Rangers turned it on, they did spend a lot of time in their own zone.

Skater Results – Dull and Bad

A lot of dull and bad from the Rangers in this one. Again, not overly surprising given the game flow. The Isles are a good defensive team that is well coached. It is what it is.

On the bright side, the Rangers would usually look a lot worse in these low-event games. It shows how much better the roster has become, as they were able to adjust. The mistakes will happen, and they cost the Blueshirts a win. It’s never fun for the Rangers to get shutout, especially when it’s against the Isles. But on to the next.

Charts from Evolving-Hockey.com

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