So let me say this without anyone suggesting that I call Alexis Lafreniere a failure or a disappointment, or somehow an example of how the Rangers don’t know how to raise teens.
But for the third consecutive game in which open ice was expensive and the game contested in tight spaces, David Quinn dropped the first-overall draft selection from the rotation in the second half of the third period.
The concept’s first-overall roster for 2020 got two shifts worth 1:24 from the final 11:56 of Monday’s 2-0 Garden defeat to the Islanders, in which the visitors struck twice within 2 : 05 after a winless first 51:15.
This after No. 13 received two teams from 57 seconds in the final 10:40 of Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Capitals, which was a match after he received two teams from 1:29 in the final 11:13 of the 3-1 win over the Penguins on Feb. 1.
It is funny. People more or less assumed – and you, me, and Felix Unger all know what happens when you do – that Lafreniere would obviously improve his game after scoring his first NHL goal with the game winner in overtime. Buffalo on January 28. For whatever reason, however, the 19-year-old’s game stalled.
He’s not on or around the puck that often. Instead, he’s stuck in traffic, unable to get into the open ice. Of course, it was also two consecutive games on the third line with Brett Howden, who has many admirable qualities, but serving his wingers’ attack is not at the top of that list.
Lafreniere played a sum of 2:02, including 2:00 on the second unit of the power play that accomplished little in this affair that could have had a Jacques Lemaire from circa 1995 behind both benches for 40 minutes. The Islanders had a more effective front back than the Rangers, who generally turned on the puck at line changes and therefore had little chance of creating puck support. Lafreniere was credited with five hits, but he did not record a shot attempt.
In addition, he was part of the group on the ice due to the massive confusion that hit the 2-0 goal on his last shift, though perhaps the least guilty. That was Lafreniere’s last shift of the night, with Kaapo Kakko getting time with the extra forward who had previously moved to number 13.
Casey Cizikas had one in the goal at 11:15 to take advantage of an unfortunate giveaway from the left corner by Libor Hajek. Now the islanders broke out unopposed, as they were allowed to do much of the night. Mathew Barzal snaked through the neutral zone and threw it in front to Cal Clutterbuck, who fired it in the right corner.
Somehow Matt Martin had unexpectedly slipped down the left side. The Rangers seemed frozen in time as Clutterbuck crossed a pass that threw Martin home from the left door at 1:20 PM. Howden and Anthony Bitetto, both on site, stood with their gloves outstretched. Their pleas went unanswered.
“It was a one-on-four and we just didn’t play it well,” said Quinn, whose team played lockdown quite well, but ended his own attacking game at the same time. “Clutterbuck is in the corner, we leave the middle and our back checker stops back checking.
“We had four-to-two and I think everyone assumes someone else is going to do something. It was poorly read. It was just confusion in general because I thought we had too many men who had a chance to do something and no one was doing anything. “
The Rangers were minimalist in the attack zone. Semyon Varlamov, who has scored 120:00 this season without giving up a goal in the Garden with this one after his opening night shutout, made a few convenient stops on Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin, but the Blueshirts were unable to neither create traffic for the goalkeeper, nor generate second chances. Pretty much one-and-done.
Stuck on one goal and two assists in eleven games and one point (one assist) in his last eight games, Zibanejad played more of a role in the attacking zone. But Chris Kreider didn’t make much of an impression and neither did linemate Pavel Buchnevich. However, that unit was more effective than the Panarin-Ryan Strome-Kakko triumvirate which yielded much more than it created.
There was a lot to do outside the puck and in the defense zone. The Rangers surrendered just 30 shots, just a few taps above the 27.7 average they put into the game that accounts for 10th place in the NHL. Last year, the Blueshirts surrendered the second highest number in the league with 34 shots to per. Two years ago they were the third worst with 33.8 against per. That is real progress.
The Rangers don’t get a break from the schedule, with the Bruins taking their turn for a pair on Broadway. They are not known for allowing a lot of open ice. We’ll see how much of any kind is awarded late to Lafreniere when the stake is at stake.