A year ago, the 1-3-1 came to life in a victorious season opener at Buffalo and served to set the template for Peter Laviolette's first season off the bench en route to the Presidents Trophy.
One year later, Wednesday in Pittsburgh, it was a big game, crushing the Penguins 6-0, with Igor Shesterkin making multiple great saves to put his team in an early game, and the Rangers scoring a 4-0 lead. The whole line roared in attack. At least that's the goal.
And this could serve as a template for the 2024-25 season, when Laviolette vows to have more players in the game in more situations. That's where Will Quill dipped his toe in the penalty-kill waters. The second power play unit had Kaapo Kakko and also had K'Andre Miller.
Alexis Lafreniere burst out and scored a great goal, just like he did in last year's opening game, which foreshadowed a breakout season for No. 13. Filip Sitil danced and performed all night, scoring one under the bar in the first period for his first regular season goal since March 28, 2023.
Chris Kreider scored two goals, including his league-leading 10th short goal since the start of the 2021-22 season, and the decision to use No. 20 on the penalty kill was made by former head coach Gerard Galant. This is the gift he left to his successor. The U.S. House of Representatives should convene a hearing if Mr. Crider is not on Team USA of the Four Nations.
Vincent Trocheck raced to score. Quill had a strong night, as did Kakko, who was stoned twice by netminder Tristan Jarry. Artemi Panarin made a great defensive play high in the zone and bounced off Lafreniere. The newly designed pair of Braden Schneider and Jacob Trouba was a standout.
Of course, it's a little different with a 4-0 lead after 40 minutes, but the ice time allocation is even: Johnny Brodzinski's 9:52 and Trocheck's 17:59. The forwards were packed in between. Victor Mancini logged 17 minutes, 27 seconds of ice time in his NHL debut and definitely didn't look out of place.
I didn't particularly like the final week of Rangers camp. I thought it was stagnant. Unique scenarios with demons did not help. But Laviolette's message never wavered. The coach talked about the importance of every session every day. He talked about the importance of the rookie game – and I've mentioned it several times before. In my experience, he references this more than any other coach.
From Laviolette's mouth, the lineup card for the opening game had Mancini on D, Brodzinski and Adam Edstrom flanking fourth-row center Sam Carrick, and Matt Lempe sitting in the stands as a healthy scratch. to. Do you know why? Because during camp, Brodzinski and Edstrom were both outperforming Rempe by a pretty large margin.
In fact, Laviolette never even hinted at it — maybe not to the extent of Yankees manager Aaron Boone, but it's not the head coach's style to criticize his players — but the Rangers… I can't imagine that he was into Rempe's camp.
“This isn't about hurting anyone,” Laviolette said after the morning skate when it became clear Rempe would be scratched. “Sometimes it's about the opponent and sometimes it's about the play.
“I think Johnny had a really good camp. He brings speed and scoring and plays in a variety of positions. I think Edstrom speaks for himself. He's in the same position as Mancini. He's He did everything right. He was big, physical and fast.
“It's really hard to ignore.”
At 2:24, Carrick and Brodzinski work together to control the puck battle in the left corner, and with a touch deflection, Trouba drives from the right side. As Carrick moves forward, Laviolette's mouth hits. It was transmitted to the scoreboard and the club's first goal of the season was scored. Thank you for your hard work in the trenches.
Listen, the Penguins may be a punching bag, so get hung up on the most decisive Opening Day win in franchise history and the first shutout victory since Gamper beat the Blackhawks in Chicago on Oct. 12, 1956. There's no reason.
But if this serves as a template, much like last year's tournament in Buffalo, this could be the start of something big.
