Postgame takeaways: NY Rangers skid continues with fourth straight loss

Yahoo

02-04-2025

WINNIPEG - The Rangers opened this three-game road trip exactly how they left off at home.
With another loss.
They played better while dropping a 2-1 result Tuesday at Canada Life Centre against the Winnipeg Jets, who are marching toward the Presidents' Trophy that belonged to New York last season. But the Rangers have fallen off a cliff since that memorable 2023-24 campaign, with slight improvement in a losing effort no consolation given their precarious position in the standings.
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"That's what makes it way worse," defenseman Braden Schneider said. "That last effort we had (in Sunday's 7-3 loss to Columbus) was not a good game for us. And I thought we played hard (Tuesday); we just couldn't get any past them. We need the two points, and it's tough to swallow."
Analysis: Rangers' man-to-man defense has major holes
They've gone from the best record in the league a year ago to two points out of a wild-card spot with 17 games to play. That's far from insurmountable, with the rival Devils doing the Blueshirts a favor by knocking off the Blue Jackets' team they're chasing on Tuesday. But their recent skid isn't inspiring confidence in their ability to rally.
The Rangers (31-28-6) have now lost four straight for the first time since Dec. 22-30, which concluded a nightmare 4-15 stretch at the time and created the current hole they're trying to dig out of.
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"We're in a playoff fight right now," defenseman Will Borgen said. "We're battling for every point, and when you don't get the outcome you want, it sucks. That's part of a long season, too. You're going to go through these droughts, but we've got to string along some wins if we want to make the playoffs."
There aren't many soft spots left on the schedule to make up ground, either. They travel to Minnesota next to face the Wild on Thursday, continuing a stretch of eight consecutive games against teams currently in playoff position.
Those matchups with the NHL's upper echelon haven't worked out well to this point, with the Rangers 9-18-4 against postseason-bound opponents.
"It's frustrating, for sure," head coach Peter Laviolette said. "Our guys did play hard tonight, (but) we couldn't get it to swing our way."
Mar 11, 2025; Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN; Winnipeg Jets forward Gabriel Vilardi (13) is congratulated by his teammates on his goal against New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin (31) during the second period at Canada Life Centre.
'The gray areas'
It's probably not a great sign that we've reached the point where putting forth quality effort is viewed as a positive takeaway, but the Rangers mostly hung with the best of the Western Conference.
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The problem is, their five-on-five scoring has dried up lately and they can't seem to avoid costly defensive breakdowns.
There were a few glaring examples Tuesday, including at least three breakaways allowed and a total of 17 high-danger scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick. But the one that hurt the most came on sloppy transition coverage 5:18 into the game.
Cole Perfetti made a sharp cut to the left side as he approached the Rangers' net, drawing Igor Shesterkin out of position in the process, and while all five New York skaters backchecked their way into the play, no one bothered to put a body on Vladislav Namestnikov.
The collective puck-watching allowed the former Blueshirt to charge toward the far post and get a wide-open look on Perfetti's centering pass.
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"We've got to do a better job at sorting out in our end," Schneider said. "It's all the gray areas. It's all those ones that you get mixed up and and guys are crisscrossing, and you lose the man a little bit. We've just got to make sure we're doing a better job at sorting out and and taking away those big chances that are backside, that our goalie doesn't have chance to save."
Power play finally gets one, but nothing at 5v5
That made it 1-0 Jets, but the Rangers would respond by shaking their recent power-play woes.
They entered having only scored once in their previous 21 attempts, including zero PP goals in their last four games. But J.T. Miller found Mika Zibanejad for a one-timer in the slot at the 11:00 mark that ended the drought and tied the score at 1-1.
Unfortunately for the Rangers, they couldn't muster anything at even strength. They managed only 22 shots and failed to solve Vezina Trophy front-runner Connor Hellebuyck on all but one of them.
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"They get a lot of blocks," said Zibanejad, referring to Winnipeg's 21 blocks. "I still think we can do a better job. I think we're going to the net, but (we're not) giving our (defensemen) an option on the side of net, and just getting other looks than what we did today. Once we get down there, we put pressure on them, and I think we get a good cycle game going. But it's obviously not enough to score only one goal."
The forwards they count on to carry the scoring load were mostly held in check.
Zibanejad led the team with 10 shot attempts (only three of which made it on net), but Miller (zero), Chris Kreider (one), Alexis Lafrenière (zero), Artemi Panarin (two) and Vincent Trocheck (one) combined for only four shots on goal.
The most effective line in that regard was the fourth featuring Jonny Brodzinski with rookies Brennan Othmann and Matt Rempe. They produced more SOG (six) than any other Rangers' trio while allowing only two, despite receiving the least ice time together (5:28).
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"We had looks," Laviolette said. "I think we hit the post three times. I think there was enough there; we just didn't walk away with anything, and that goes back to the frustrating part of it. Defensively, we held them down. We held their attempts down, zone time down. We did a pretty good job with regard to that, and then just not able to get the run support that we need to win."
A rare PK letdown
Winnipeg would add a PP goal of its own to take a 2-1 lead in the second period.
The Rangers' penalty kill − one of their few true strengths this season − was in control for its first 3:55 of shorthanded ice time against the league's top power play, but the final five seconds of their second PK proved fatal.
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It was Perfetti with the setup once again, this time finding an open Gabriel Vilardi in the slot for what turned out to be the winning goal.
"It was kind of a broken play," Laviolette said. "When something happens and it's a broken play, everything gets off a little bit. The defender's timing, the goalie's timing, whatever it might be. It just gets off for a second, but they've got a top power play unit. I thought our guys did a pretty good job."
The Rangers probably shouldn't have been in that position in the first place.
The goalie interference penalty that led to the PP goal was highly suspect, with Rempe clearly getting pushed by Jets forward Morgan Barron to cause the contact with Hellebuyck. But the 6-foot-9 forward always seems to have the attention of the referees and rarely gets the benefit of the doubt.
"They're saying they want to protect the goaltenders," Laviolette said. "But I just didn't agree with it."
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Winnipeg had a third goal overturned on a successful goalie interference challenge by Laviolette, but it didn't end up mattering.
Questionable lineup change
Laviolette felt he needed to make a change following Sunday's 7-3 loss to the Blue Jackets, but his choice for who to pull from the lineup was a questionable one.
Granted, rookie Brett Berard has his share of defensive miscues. But that could be said about the entire team − and at least with the 22-year-old winger, you know he's going to bring it every shift.
Berard's non-stop motor is especially noticeable on the forecheck, where his speed-and-hustle combo makes him a pest for opposing teams to deal with, and he adds a shooting mentality that several regular forwards lack.
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It's not only in the Rangers' best long-term interest to give him valuable experience, but he also gives them the best chance to win right now. Yet, as former Ranger Kaapo Kakko pointed out the day before being traded to Seattle in December, it's often the young guys who make the easiest targets.
"It's 12 forwards that can go in, and so, it's tough," Laviolette said prior to the game. "But he's a young player. You can see the energy. We talk with him and work with him on the game and the defensive part of it to try and continue to grow his game and improve his game. But you've got to love his fire and his energy that he brings."
Arthur Kaliyev slotted in for Berard, making his first appearance since Feb. 23 following seven straight healthy scratches. Outside of one shift where he earned his only shot on goal, the 23-year-old wasn't much of a factor while logging a team-low 7:49 TOI.
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Postgame takeaways: NY Rangers skid continues with fourth straight loss