Rangers Recap: Bruins Strike 3 Times Late to Sink Rangers, 3-0

After another much-longer-than-desired offseason, New York Rangers hockey is finally back. The Blueshirts shipped up to Boston for Game 1 of 84 as they paid the Boston Bruins a visit with aspirations of spoiling their home opener. With so many new faces in the Rangers lineup, including 18-year-old rookie defenseman and fifth overall pick in this past draft Alberts Smits, there was plenty of excitement surrounding the puck drop.

The opening-night lineup was as advertised given how the final roster decisions came together.

First Period

As one can imagine, it was a sloppy start with lots of rust being shaken off from both sides. Lots of turnovers, missed passes, and broken plays through the first half of the period. Smits definitely had some first-day jitters in the early stages but found his game as the night went on.

Just past the midway point of the first, the Rangers got the game's first power play as Alexis Lafrenière was tripped up by Tanner Jeannot along the boards. The top unit took some time to find its footing and ultimately was unable to convert.

As the period went on, the Rangers were getting some looks and starting to clean up their game ever so slightly. The newcomers were doing their part, specifically on defense, as Sean Durzi had a great blocked shot to keep the Bruins off the board.

With three minutes to go, Noah Laba was sent off for tripping to give Boston its first power play of the night. The Rangers' penalty kill looked sharp, with Joe Veleno making his presence felt on the forecheck. He and the rest of the penalty killers were successful in keeping the score tied at zero through the final minutes of the period.

Shots after the opening 20 were 7-5 in Boston's favor. As expected, Igor Shesterkin looked sharp with some solid saves. His defense helped him out with five blocked shots, and the Rangers had the physical edge, outhitting the Bruins 16-10.

Second Period

Momentum certainly picked up in the second as a shot from Morgan Geekie rang off the post, kicking off about eight minutes' worth of nonstop, back-and-forth action. Shesterkin shut down a couple of breakaways and partial breakaways from the Bruins. The Rangers had some more sloppy moments but also had spurts where they were hard on the forecheck, from the fourth line in particular.

Nearing the midway point of the period, Braden Schneider had a great chance in front to get the Rangers on the board but was turned away by Jeremy Swayman. Aside from that, it was still the Bruins getting the bulk of the chances, with Shesterkin keeping the Rangers in it. The majority of the chances on the Rangers' side were coming from the bottom six.

Two periods in, the score remained tied at zero with the Bruins outshooting the Rangers 15-14. That made the game sound closer than it really was, as the Bruins had the more dangerous scoring chances.

Third Period

Much of the same through the early stages of the third. Smits saw his first real test as a pro, facing David Pastrnak on a one-on-one rush. Smits held his own and was able to disrupt the play, despite breaking his stick in the process.

Nearing the midway point, Pavel Dorofeyev had a chance to score on a partial breakaway, and J.T. Miller was close behind to almost net the rebound. Swayman continued to stand tall, keeping this thing locked at zero.

On the following shift, another strong run from the fourth line nearly resulted in a goal for either Tye Kartye or Matt Rempe. After a battle along the boards, the puck made its way to the net, and both Kartye and Rempe were there to poke it home. Alas, the officials blew the play dead before it could cross the line. No review on the play.

Chances continued for the Bruins as well, with Pavel Zacha taking a turn hitting the post off a point-blank shot. With just under four minutes to go, the Bruins finally broke through as Fraser Minten let a strong wrist shot go to make it a 1-0 game late in the third.

That opened the floodgates, as a minute later, J.J. Peterka worked around Schneider to drive the puck in, 2-0 Boston. The Rangers attempted to pull Shesterkin for the extra attacker but, as it often goes, immediately gave up the empty-netter to finalize the score 3-0.

That would do it for a disappointing opener from the Rangers. Final shots on goal were somehow in their favor, 24-23. The Rangers have little time to waste as they head back to Midtown for their home opener against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.