Alexis Lafrenière gave the Rangers exactly the kind of jolt they needed in a rivalry game that finally tilted hard their way. He scored three times, including two empty-netters, and added an assist as New York knocked off the Islanders 5-2 on Tuesday night for its fourth straight win.
The Rangers have now gone unbeaten since being blanked in their opener a week ago at Boston, and they’ve started 3-0 at home. That’s a sharp turnaround from a year ago, when they dropped their first seven games at Madison Square Garden.
Mika Zibanejad piled up three assists, while Igor Shesterkin stopped 17 shots to pick up the win. His own little run came to an end, though, after he had an assist Sunday and scored a goalie goal Thursday.
The game opened slowly for New York in terms of chances, but the first one it got turned into a quick strike. The Rangers didn’t even register a shot until 6:40 into the game, and Oliver Bjorkstrand buried that attempt for his first goal with his new team. Bjorkstrand would finish with two goals, and he and Lafrenière made the most of Semyon Varlamov’s return to the Islanders net.
Varlamov was back in an NHL game for the first time since Nov. 29, 2024, after completing his comeback from double partial knee replacement surgeries. The rust showed at times. He allowed three goals on 22 shots.
For the Islanders, captain Bo Horvat and Calum Ritchie found the net, but the night also featured a few near-misses from Matthew Schaefer. The reigning rookie-of-the-year defenseman rang the post twice and fired 12 shots overall.
There was also a scare late in the first period when Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom took a puck to the face on a clearing attempt by Rangers defenseman Sean Durzi. Holmstrom did come back in the second period.
The Rangers also got a debut from Cole Beaudoin. The 20-year-old center, acquired in the return for trading Vincent Trocheck to Utah on July 1, was called up from the minors after Joe Veleno was hurt against the Mammoth on Sunday.
Up next, the Islanders host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night, while the Rangers head to Washington to face the Capitals on Friday night.
In Other News...
Alexis Lafrenire Just Became The Face Of This Rangers Surge
The Rangers latest surge kept rolling at home with a 5-2 win over the Islanders, their fourth straight victory, and it came with a little bit of everything the building could have asked for. Cole Beaudoin made his NHL debut after being recalled because Joe Veleno was sidelined by injury, while Semyon Varlamov got his first regular-season start in 676 days after going through knee surgeries. It was the kind of night that felt like another small marker for a team trying to stack wins and settle into something sturdier.
Alexis Lafrenire was at the center of it again, driving the offense in a game where the Rangers looked increasingly comfortable pressing the pace and closing it out. His latest performance only added to the sense that New York has found a reliable front-facing spark during this run, especially with the way the wins are starting to come in different forms. The bigger question now is whether this stretch is the start of something more lasting, with Lafrenire right in the middle of it. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Face A Different Capitals Threat In Ovechkins Final Run
The Rangers have responded to an opening-night shutout loss by rattling off four straight wins, but the next stretch of the schedule brings a different kind of attention to the Metropolitan Division. Washington is still built around Alex Ovechkins presence, and the Capitals remain one of the leagues more familiar rivals for New York as this young season starts to settle in.
Ovechkins final NHL run gives every meeting with Washington a little extra weight, even as the Capitals have quietly adjusted their look up front. With new faces around the roster and a franchise icon in his last lap, the matchup carries both the usual division stakes and a hint of transition, making the Rangers next check-in with the Caps feel like more than just another early-season game. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Sullivan Is Already Changing The Feel Around These Rangers
The early tone around the Rangers has shifted quickly this season, and Mike Sullivan deserves a big share of the credit for it. New York has looked sharper and more connected in the opening stretch, with better chemistry and a more competitive edge showing up in the way the team is playing. Sullivan has already left his mark not just on the bench, but in the way the roster is being handled and in the steadier performances coming from the lineup.
For a team that spent so much time searching for the right mix, that matters. The change in feel is obvious enough that Sullivan is already drawing attention beyond the day-to-day results, with some of the early-season buzz centering on what his impact could mean over a full year. The Rangers are moving in the right direction, and the next question is how long this momentum can last once the league starts testing them more seriously. [Read more 🡒]