The elusive first win on home ice has finally been grasped by the Rangers.
Nearly five weeks, five shutout losses and eight games later, the Blueshirts finally defended Madison Square Garden and, in front of their home crowd, emerged victorious for the first time this season following a convincing 6-3 win over the Predators on Monday night
It took too long.
Way too long.
The Rangers were previously 0-6-1 at home, where they were also outscored 9-1 through the first four games and 8-0 in the past two.
Monday’s win against a sliding Nashville team, however, represented more than just breaking through on home ice.
It was the first look at a reinforced Rangers lineup.
Not only did Vincent Trocheck return from long-term injured reserve after a 14-game absence, but top prospect Gabe Perreault earned his first recall from AHL Hartford and made his season debut.
The additions made for a more formidable and dynamic top six as the team competed for its first Garden win.
Trocheck’s presence alone makes the Rangers a deeper team, but his contributions in all situations were gravely missed during his recovery from an upper-body injury.
And with Perreault on the right wing of the top line and on the second power-play unit, the Rangers added an offensive-minded skater they desperately needed.
Offense was not an issue for once, as Trocheck’s linemates, Alexis Lafrenière and Artemi Panarin, led the way.
In addition to Lafrenière’s goal and two assists, Panarin registered his first multigoal performance of the season with two tallies.
Mika Zibanejad gave the MSG crowd its first thing to cheer for in what felt like weeks.
Sprung by Adam Fox, the Swede split two Predators defenders and buried the puck past Predators goalie Juuse Saros for the 1-0 lead.
Fans in attendance reached a decibel the players haven’t heard in quite some time.
With Braden Schneider in the box for tripping, however, the crowd’s boos of disagreement with the call didn’t stop Nashville from tying the game up on the power play.
Igor Shesterkin made back-to-back saves on Brady Skjei and Michael Bunting before Matthew Wood’s shot flipped up and over the Rangers goalie.
A wicked shot from the top of the zone from Vladislav Gavrikov later regained the lead for the Rangers.
Gavrikov was particularly active in the win, racking up three shots on goal to go along with his two-point effort.
The Rangers took it to the Predators in the second period, scoring three times on four shots to take a 5-1 lead into the third period.
It ultimately ended Saros’ night and brought in backup Justus Annunen.
Perreault notched his first NHL point with an assist on Lafrenière’s power-play goal just under a minute and a half into the middle frame.
The Rangers only pushed harder from there, riding a momentum they never seemed able to muster in any of their earlier home contests.
After Panarin’s long one-timer gave the Rangers a three-goal lead, Will Cuylle’s fourth goal of the season came with 9.6 seconds left in the second.
Panarin later answered Woods’ second goal of the game by matching him.
Banking the puck in off Annunen’s skate, Panarin tied Zibanejad and Taylor Raddysh with a team-leading fifth goal.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
