Chris Kreider has only been a penalty killer for five seasons, but he's the longest-tenured Ranger and leads the NHL in shorthanded goals over that span.
After scoring his first shortstop goal of the season in the Blueshirts' shutout of the Penguins on Wednesday, Kreider now has 10 points in the NHL since former head coach Gerard Galant's first penalty kick of the 2021-22 season. is in the lead.
“We've often noticed that our power play players are very good penalty killers,” head coach Peter Laviolette said after Friday's practice. “They see the setup and they know what's going to happen. And in that moment of anticipation and positioning and his stick and his read, they often understand it and confirm it.
“They can be really effective penalty killers as well. I think he has that. And he has the explosiveness to make the power play tense because things can happen the other way.” So I think it's a combination of both. He's working on it.
“He's a smart guy. I think he thinks about the game pretty well. It's no surprise to me that he understands the penalty kill and chose to do it.”
Through his first nine seasons with the Rangers, Kreider totaled just over 40 minutes of shorthanded ice time.
His penalty minutes jumped to 125 total minutes in 2021-22 alone, over 130 minutes the following season, and 128 minutes last season.
During last season's playoffs, Kreider scored two goals on short shots and had one assist on a penalty kick.
He racked up a total of six shorthanded shot attempts in 16 postseason contests.
Jimmy Vesey (lower body) skated alone on Friday, while Ryan Lindgren (upper body) continued to practice in his green non-contact jersey.
Rangers defensemen also still wear full-face shields.
Matt Lempe will make his first start on the fourth line alongside Sam Carrick and Adam Edstrom, with the 6-foot-8 1/2-inch forward likely to make his season debut Saturday against Utah HC at Madison Square Garden. suggested that there is.
To further hint at that, Johnny Brodzinski, who played the right wing position in the opener, skated as an extra defenseman along with No. 7 defenseman Chad Ruhwedel.
