Both sides of the Rangers overall were on display through the first two games of the 2024-25 season.
The team that defeated the lowly Penguins club also forced the up-and-coming Utah team to strengthen its defense.
The Rangers scored 11 points in six periods, but gave up five in 60 minutes (four of them in the first period).
The Rangers' first 124.05 minutes of play featured the good, the bad and the ugly.
Perhaps that's because they started the season with a 1-0-1 record.
Although the Rangers adjusted their offensive power, their defensive deficiencies were exposed early, partially due to the addition of three new defensive pairs with Ryan Lindgren, who was placed on injured reserve due to an upper-body injury.
“I think there was obviously some upside on each of our lines,” head coach Peter Laviolette said of Saturday night's 6-5 overtime loss to Utah. “We produced a lot. There were some bad moments where I thought we could have been better as a team or as individuals, but as I said after the game, it wasn't about the volume. It was too loud. I think four goals were scored near the crease, but that shouldn't happen, it's our responsibility to make this area better.”
Six goals in Game 1 and five in Game 2 shows just how much star power this Rangers team has.
That should dominate the good headlines heading into Monday's third game of the season against the Red Wings at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers are a group built to score goals against any team in the NHL, so they managed to pick up a point against Utah despite giving up five goals.
It also takes into account that key members of the top nine, including Chris Kreider, Alexis Lafreniere and Artemi Panarin, are off to a strong start.
Kreider has become a master threat to score almost every time he enters the offensive zone, while Lafreniere's confidence with the puck continues to grow.
Panarin, who already has two goals and two assists, has shown highlights both offensively and defensively.
The line of Panarin, Lafrenière and Vincent Trocheck has been solid, but the newly constructed third unit of Will Quill, Philippe Sitil and Kaapo Kakko has also made its presence felt in each contest thus far. succeeded in showing.
Oh, and goaltender Igor Shesterkin has been on a roll with 51 saves in two games. Many of them were saved at critical moments.
There wasn't anything particularly bad about the Rangers' season opener, but Saturday night's defensive mistakes were egregious. This cost the Rangers a winnable game against Utah.
Aside from the wobbly goal, Quandre Miller had a particularly rough game Saturday night, with one costly turnover and a big miss into an open net in the third period.
Captain Jacob Trouba was also caught out of position several times.
But that's not too much of a concern considering the defense is understandably still in an adjustment period after being retooled in Lindgren's absence.
But the number of times the Rangers left Shesterkin out to dry was the ugliest part of each game. Utah was able to get behind the D and hit Shesterkin with a shot from close range. It was also the only reason the Penguins didn't take the lead in the season opener after fending off a flurry of shots in the first period.
It's not pretty either that Mika Zibanejad had one shot on goal through six periods and overtime. It's still early, of course, but the Rangers' No. 1 center hasn't provided any offensive benefits to the lineup.
Two games into the season, the Rangers' self-evaluation is honest.
What ultimately matters is how you apply it.
