The Islanders are getting exactly what they wanted from rookie Mathew Barzal. The 20-year-old center has quickly settled in between Jordan Eberle and Andrew Ladd on the team’s second line and played well in the Islanders’ 6-4 win over the Hurricanes on Thursday night at Barclays Center. The former first-round pick scored the game’s first […]
Read MoreCOLUMBUS, Ohio — After a string of six straight healthy scratches, defenseman Brendan Smith returned to the Rangers’ lineup. And for the time being, it seems like he will stay there. “I thought he had a good game, played within his game, and had the opportunity in that first [period] to give us a lead,” […]
Read MoreCOLUMBUS, Ohio — The pendulum is starting to swing back on the Rangers in this so-far streaky season, with a second straight loss following a six-game winning streak. The Rangers came to Nationwide Arena on Friday hoping to start a new streak after their poor finish in Wednesday’s loss at Chicago, only to fall, 2-0, […]
Read MoreThe city of Houston and the Olympics both serve the same purpose for the NHL. Both exist as points of leverage for commissioner Gary Bettman, who is never hesitant to accumulate chips to play when it comes to advising tax-paying citizens what they must do in order that their respective cities keep their teams and […]
Read MoreCOLUMBUS, Ohio — As the old adage goes, you’re never as good as when you’re on a winning streak and never as bad as when you’re on a losing streak. But that poor stretch to begin the season has cut down on the Rangers’ margin for error. They have to make sure this mini-skid doesn’t […]
Read MoreTAMPA, Fla. — Islanders coach Doug Weight had a simple message after a big lead was slipping away: Stay calm. Anders Lee scored twice and the Islanders held on after nearly blowing a four-goal lead, beating the Lightning 5-3 Saturday night. “He was just telling us what we needed to hear,” Islanders right wing Josh […]
Read MoreSix-plus months after the fact, the Rangers’ second-round, six-game playoff defeat to Ottawa that ultimately broke up that old gang on Broadway remains difficult to fathom. If it wasn’t quite the 1960 World Series, in which the Yankees outscored the Pirates 55-27 yet lost in seven games, the series was one-sided enough through the first […]
Read MoreThis was ugly, and gritty, and at times, downright nasty. But the Rangers were the ones able to come out on the winning side of this postseason rematch, getting the second shutout of the season for goalie Henrik Lundqvist as they took a 3-0 victory over the Senators on Sunday night at the Garden. In […]
Read MoreA quarter of the season down and the Rangers are essentially as projected: a flawed bubble team capable of capturing an eighth consecutive playoff but unlikely to end the franchise’s 23-year Stanley Cup drought. The downward progression for this group is stark in the wake of the trip to the 2014 final and of finishing […]
Read MoreBrady Skjei thought it was “hilarious” when he saw his jersey on a “ Saturday Night Live” skit. The Rangers’ second-year defenseman was watching the show late Saturday night with fellow blueliner Kevin Shattenkirk when the skit came on. It featured Chance the Rapper, who was hosting the show, playing a television sideline reporter who […]
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