Lafreniere Shines Despite Rangers’ OT Loss

This was the kind of spirited show that Rangers supporters and coach Mike Sullivan were eager to witness from Alexis Lafreniere, even if it didn’t translate into a win.

The former first overall pick notched a goal and an assist during Sunday’s 3-2 overtime defeat to the Golden Knights, prompting Sullivan to remark that it was “one of the better games I’ve played all season.”

“That’s what he’s capable of,” Sullivan noted post-game. “I thought he handled the puck well. He was controlling the play in the offensive zone. The goals he scored were from leading scorers. But honestly, it was more than just that. I thought he was effective throughout. He was strong with the puck. Definitely, the goals were from top scorers, but it was his overall play that stood out. He was really good with the puck. I mean, I thought he was strong and effective. His ability to score was certainly a part of it.”

Continuing, Sullivan observed, “He was around the net, winning puck battles, and positioning himself well. He was holding onto the puck and taking on defenders. He’s a fantastic one-on-one player, and we’ve encouraged him to challenge opponents, really go hard when he’s near the net. He’s got the size and skills to do that. I felt tonight was a significant performance in that sense.”

Lafreniere, aged 24, had been struggling with just two goals and a lone assist over his previous twelve games but was involved in two of the Rangers’ goals during the second period. He assisted on Mika Zibanejad’s tying goal with a crucial redirection and then scored his seventh of the season shortly after to give the Rangers a 2-1 advantage.

The Rangers also made some adjustments by sending Brennan Osman back to Hartford, allowing him to play for the Wolfpack against Bridgeport that evening. Following this, Jaroslav Šmeral was called up.

Chimerar participated in his third NHL game on Sunday night, stepping in for Taylor Radish while playing alongside Sam Carrick and Johnny Brodzinski on the fourth line.

In other moves, left-shot defenseman Brandon Scanlin cleared waivers and was assigned to AHL Hartford after recovering from a lower-body injury sustained during training camp.

Meanwhile, Zibanejad recorded an assist on Artemi Panarin’s game-tying goal in the third period on Saturday, which allowed him to surpass Ron Grechner for the seventh-most points (611) in franchise history. Entering Sunday’s game, he was riding a six-game point streak with three goals and four assists, tying him for the fifth-longest streak among NHL players.