Rangers Recap: Fast Start Lifts Rangers Past Kraken, 4-3

The New York Rangers entered their game against the Seattle Kraken coming off a win and in third place in their division. The Rangers kept the same lines as they did in their win against the Philadelphia Flyers, except Alberts Smits was a last-second scratch with an injury, which led to Matthew Robertson making his season debut. Joonas Korpisalo also made his season debut defending between the pipes for the Rangers. For the Kraken, it was Joey Daccord in net, but they were without former Ranger Ryan Lindgren, who was out with an upper-body injury.

First Period

The Rangers came out of the gate firing and found the back of the net 1:35 into the opening period. Gabe Perreault and his partners on the first line made for some nifty puck moving to give them the early lead. Alexis Lafrenière took the initial shot, and Mika Zibanejad got the rebound, which he passed to Perreault, who beat Daccord.

A few minutes later, the Rangers headed to the power play because of a holding call against Berkly Catton. While the first unit was unsuccessful, the second unit scored with a goal from Tye Kartye. However, the goal was called back for being kicked into the net, but Kartye scored against his former team anyway. With about 40 seconds remaining in the period, Adam Fox's shot from the point was tipped by Kartye and gave the Rangers a 2-0 lead.

Not long after, it was the Rangers' fourth line, and Jaroslav Chmelar scored the third goal of the game for the Rangers. The Kraken were being pressured by Matt Rempe in their own zone, which forced a turnover to Noah Laba. Laba shot the puck, which was initially stopped, but Chmelar pounced on the rebound. After the goal, the Kraken pulled Daccord for Philipp Grubauer.

With 4:30 left to play in the period, Will Cuylle was caught holding Chandler Stephenson, which sent Seattle to its first power play of the game. The Kraken had a good look early in the period, but it bounced off Vince Dunn's stick and out of the zone. After that, the Rangers played tight on the penalty kill and kept Korpisalo's shutout intact.

Korpisalo came out with a strong save toward the end of the period and stopped all 10 shots he faced in the first. The Rangers had made it a habit to start the game strong, and tonight was no exception.

Second Period

The second period was off to a slower start than the previous period. Through the first seven minutes of the period, the Rangers beat out the Kraken 3-1 in shots on goal. The best chance in the first half of the period came on an odd-man rush with J.T. Miller and Oliver Bjorkstrand, but Miller's shot missed the net.

Just after the halfway point of the game, Brandon Montour was called for hooking against Perreault, which sent the Rangers to their second power play of the evening. Head coach Mike Sullivan sent out the second unit to start the man advantage. Right after the power play expired, the Rangers scored their fourth goal of the game. Zibanejad was able to set up Pavel Dorofeyev on the rush. Lafrenière was also credited with an assist.

After the goal from Dorofeyev, the Rangers continued to keep the pressure on and generated multiple scoring chances. Seattle answered in the final minutes with a long sustained shift in the Rangers' zone, but Korpisalo remained strong. The Rangers entered the third period with a 4-0.

Third Period

A little bit less than two minutes into the final period, it was former Ranger Kaapo Kakko who scored the first goal for Seattle. Kakko was able to wrap the puck around Korpisalo, ruining his shutout performance in his Rangers debut.

The Kraken quickly followed their first goal with multiple good chances. Six minutes into the period, Vladislav Gavrikov was called for tripping, sending Seattle to the power play. Thirty-seven seconds into the power play, Jordan Eberle received a great feed from Matty Beniers to beat Korpisalo. After entering the period with a four-goal lead, the Rangers led by only two with about 13 minutes left in regulation.

The two teams battled it out for the next few minutes with the Kraken applying pressure. The Rangers did not make it easy for Seattle, though, with Zibanejad coming up with a big block. At the 4:58 mark, Dunn was able to break through the Rangers' defenses and cut the score to 4-3. Dunn's one-timer hit the post before bouncing into the net. To that point, the Kraken had outshot the Rangers 14-1 in the third.

The two teams battled it out for the next few minutes with the Kraken applying pressure. The Rangers did not make it easy for Seattle, though, with Zibanejad coming up with a big block. At the 4:58 mark, Dunn was able to break through the Rangers' defenses and cut the score to 4-3. Dunn's one-timer hit the post before bouncing into the net. To that point, the Kraken had outshot the Rangers 14-1 in the third.

With 2:26 left in regulation, the Rangers went to the man advantage, which provided a great opportunity to end the game. The Rangers didn't send out either of their typical power-play units and had both Fox and Gavrikov on the ice. The Rangers didn't score on the power play but successfully ate up the clock.

The Kraken pulled the goalie with about 22 seconds left and put some quick pressure on but couldn't send the game to overtime. The Rangers won the game 4-3 and were able to hold onto their early lead.

The Rangers' next game is Monday at 8 p.m. ET against the Edmonton Oilers.