Daily Report – 10/16/26
Rangers
Chalk it up as a one-off stinker. Flush it. Let it go.
But don’t pretend it didn’t happen.
Last night at The Rock, the Rangers reminded everybody what happens when they don’t play well. For the first few weeks of the season, the Rangers defied expectations, and fans forgot their team is still retooling. It was nice while it lasted, but yesterday was a massive reality check.
A 7-1 loss was the last thing this crew needed. Not to discredit the Rangers, whose effort has been evident through their first nine games, but they aren’t suited to overcome large deficits. This is a byproduct of their incomplete roster and Igor Shesterkin’s absence.
It wasn’t his fault the Rangers lost, but Dylan Garand was visibly unsteady in net last night. The Rangers played an impressive opening 19 minutes, including a two-minute five-on-three penalty kill that pushed momentum in their favor. They checked with authority throughout the period, but momentum can change quickly in hockey, especially with a young goalie.
With 30 seconds left in the opening frame, captain JT Miller slipped in the defensive zone and turned the puck over to Evan Rodrigues, who didn’t miss. During the first intermission, the Rangers prepared to put Miller’s error behind them in the next period, but the captain had already set the tone.
“We’re a confident group,” Miller said. “Today we just didn’t have it. [We were] disconnected all over the place, and giving up chances we haven’t been giving up.”
Last season, one of the Rangers’ biggest weaknesses was giving up goals in the first and final minutes of periods. Knowing how vulnerable this Rangers squad can be, the Devils quickly took advantage in the second frame. They didn’t even give the Rangers a chance to defend.
18 seconds into the second period, Garand misread Luke Hughes’s shot. As he slid, the puck deflected off Adam Fox’s skate, and the Devils took a 2-0 lead.
Four minutes later, the Devils scored two goals in 31 seconds, reminding the Rangers of another weakness from last season: constantly allowing multiple goals in under a minute.
At 4:08, Garand tried to play the puck, but Fox couldn’t play it in his own zone. The Devils kept it in, and Nico Hischier passed it to Timo Meier in the slot. The first shot was stopped, but Hischier shoveled the rebound around Garand’s skate.
A few seconds later, the Devils stopped a Rangers zone entry and raced into the offensive zone. Garand stopped Arseny Gritsyuk’s initial breakaway shot, but New Jersey maintained possession. A few passes later, Jack Hughes’s shot rebounded to Gritsyuk, who broke away from Marcus Pettersson and scored.
The Devils took a 4-0 lead, and the Rangers subbed Spencer Martin in for Garand. It wasn’t Garand’s fault, though. According to Clear Sight Analytics, the Rangers allowed 14 high-danger chances while only generating three. Meanwhile, against Tampa Bay on Tuesday, the Rangers had 13 high-danger chances while the Lightning had four.
Pettersson wasn’t the only Ranger to falter defensively before the Devils scored their fourth goal. After checking Gritsyuk in the corner, he egregiously stopped skating. But the Rangers were broken defensively throughout the second period, including Fox, the Rangers’ top defenseman, who was in the wrong place on the Devils’ first goals of the frame. He was a team-worst minus-4.
“They’re getting odd-man rushes, getting chances,” Fox said. “They’re a fast, skilled team. You’re pushing, and they’re going to capitalize, so just one of those forgettable games.”
Among NHL defensemen, Fox is tied for second with nine assists, but this was an unusual defensive off-night. He and Miller make up two-thirds of the Rangers’ leadership group. Remember, aside from a few players like Mika Zibanejad and Pavel Dorofeyev, this is a young, developing team. Even the goalie is a rookie.
The retooling Rangers rely on their leadership group to win games. Sure, the roster is deeper than last year, but if Fox and Miller don’t bounce back, the rest of the team will crumble.
Just like last year.
And the year before.
Which is the last thing the Rangers need.
“We’ve learned a lot about ourselves over the last couple of weeks – the last month – and I think we have a high-character group in here,” Miller said. “All we can do is learn from today, move forward, be ready for the next game, and come out firing.”
Schedule
Saturday 10/17:
7:00 PM (6:00 PM CDT): NYR at CBJ; MSG, DAZN
Sunday 10/18:
1:00 PM (12:00 PM CDT): NFL on FOX, Week 6 – New York Giants (3-1-1) vs. New Orleans Saints (1-4); FOX, FOX ONE
1:00 PM (12:00 PM CDT): NFL on CBS, Week 6 – New York Jets (2-3) at New England Patriots (3-2); CBS, Paramount+
8:20 PM (7:20 PM CDT): Sunday Night Football (SNF), Week 6 – Dallas Cowboys (2-3) at Green Bay Packers (3-2); NBC, Peacock
7:00 PM (6:00 PM CDT): Football Night in America (FNIA); NBC, Peacock
8:00 PM (7:00 PM CDT): Hyundai Sunday Night Kickoff; NBC, Peacock
8:10 PM (7:10 PM CDT): GEICO Sunday Night Anthem; NBC, Peacock
Cover Image Courtesy: New York Rangers
