The New York Rangers opened the season with a result they were trying to avoid, dropping a 3-0 decision to the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night. The game stayed tight for most of the night, but late mistakes turned a scoreless battle into a shutout loss.
That outcome also brought back an uncomfortable memory for the Rangers: they were blanked in a season opener for the second straight year. It was not the kind of start they wanted after an offseason that brought a lot of change, and it showed at times just how much work remains for this group to get on the same page.
There were still a few things to like, though. The Rangers generated a little more than two expected goals, and the clearest bright spot came from the second line featuring newly acquired Pavel Dorofeyev alongside J.T.
Miller and Oliver Bjorkstrand. That trio was the team’s best by a wide margin, posting an xGF% of 68.6% and standing as the only forward group above 50%.
The contrast with the top line was hard to miss. The first unit, which stayed together from the end of last season, finished with an xGF% of 38.3%. If the Rangers are going to produce more offense, that group will need to be better.
Igor Shesterkin kept New York alive for long stretches. In fact, the Bruins likely should have scored earlier if not for him, and the game could have unraveled much sooner without his work in net. The Rangers may have upgraded in a few areas this offseason, but they are still going to lean on their star goalie when nights get messy, and this was one of those nights.
For much of the third period, it still looked like Shesterkin and the Rangers might escape with something. Instead, a pair of late goals put the game away and left Shesterkin with a loss he did not deserve.
The bigger issue was how often the Rangers gave the puck away early and opened the door for Boston to attack in transition. Those miscues led to odd-man rushes, and while Shesterkin and the posts helped them survive some of it, that kind of hockey is a dangerous way to live. If New York is going to move forward, it has to be cleaner with the puck and better through the neutral zone.
That was one of the problems that haunted the team last season, and seeing it again in the opener is not ideal. Still, with a condensed offseason and plenty of new faces, the Rangers were clearly not at full speed.
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Bruins Make Key Behind The Scenes Changes Before Season 102
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Dean Malkoc also has a new role after spending four years as associate director of amateur scouting, and Kyle Chauvette has taken on a particularly unusual combination of responsibilities within the organization. Those changes, along with the rest of the front-office additions, show Boston continuing to fine-tune the infrastructure around the roster before the new season gets going. [Read more 🡒]
Peterka Already Changes How Dangerous Bostons Top Six Feels
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What makes the early return even more intriguing is where Peterka might fit as Boston keeps sorting out its best combinations. The Bruins are clearly trying to build chemistry that can make their top six feel more dangerous, and Peterka gives them a new piece to work with alongside established talent and a rookie still finding his place. If that alignment clicks, it could change the way opposing teams have to defend Boston every night. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Got The First Sign Their New Pieces Could Matter Fast
The Bruins did not need long to get a read on some of their newer faces Wednesday night at TD Garden, and the early answer was encouraging. Boston opened its season with a 3-0 win over the Rangers, with JJ Peterka and Mark Kastelic also finding the net and Mason Lohrei helping set up one of the key plays. In a game that stayed tight for most of the night, the Bruins got the sort of immediate contribution they had been hoping to see from pieces still settling into place.
Fraser Minten supplied the deciding goal, and the way Boston closed out the opener only added to the sense that the roster may already be finding some traction. Jeremy Swayman backed it up with a shutout against a Rangers team that had chances but could not solve him, while Igor Shesterkin was forced to handle repeated pressure at the other end. For a club looking to learn quickly what its new additions can bring, this was about as clean a first look as it could ask for. [Read more 🡒]