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The\u00a0New York Rangers\u00a0finally got the monkey off their back when they won their first game at Madison Square Garden Monday night against the\u00a0Nashville Predators. After going 0-6-1 in their first seven home games and only scoring six total goals in those games, they scored six against the Predators to help secure the win. A big reason for this win was that, for the first time this season, the Rangers had a completely balanced lineup. This is going to be a key factor to their drive to make it back to the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Vincent Trocheck played only one and a half games before going down with an upper-body injury. He missed the next 14 games, and his absence was felt in a big way during that stretch. Instead of playing Mika Zibanejad on the wing as was the plan to start the season, head coach Mike Sullivan had to move him back to center to help balance out the lineup. This also meant other players, such as Connor Sheary and Taylor Raddysh, had to play higher in the lineup than they are used to playing. This is not a recipe for success and a major reason why the Rangers have struggled to score goals this season, as they rank 28th in the NHL with 41.<\/p>\n
With Trocheck\u2019s return, Sullivan was able to place him back at center on his familiar line with Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere. This line combined for eight points in the win over Nashville, with Trocheck notching two assists. He is also a key player on both the power play and penalty kill, so getting him back should only help improve both of those areas. Sometimes, you don\u2019t realize how important a player is to a team until he\u2019s not playing every game, and this stretch of games proved how important Trocheck is to the Rangers\u2019 success.<\/p>\n
In addition to getting Trocheck back into the lineup, the Rangers made another move to help balance out their lineup and correct the scoring problem the team is facing. They called up\u00a0Gabe Perreault\u00a0from the American Hockey League (AHL). He was playing extremely well for the Hartford Wolf Pack, with five goals and 10 points in nine games. Perreault earned this call-up and was immediately placed on the top line with Zibanejad and J.T. Miller.<\/p>\n
He was one of the more noticeable players in the game, hitting a post in the first period that robbed him of getting his first NHL goal. He followed it up in the second period with a beautiful pass to Lafreniere, who scored on the power play to give Perreault his first NHL point. The Rangers have high hopes for Perreault, and if he can use this opportunity to help show why he should stick in the NHL for the rest of the season, that will only help him and the Rangers \u2014 his success means team success.<\/p>\n
With Trocheck and Perreault filling out the rest of the top-six forward group, the players on the bottom six are\u00a0playing exactly where they should be. Having to rely on players like Sheary and Raddysh to play top-six roles is not going to help the Rangers get to where they want to be. They are best suited to play on the bottom six, and with the team now having a more balanced roster, that is exactly where they are playing. Even a player like\u00a0Will Cuylle, who can play top-six minutes, is now on the third line and will get better matchups going forward.<\/p>\n
Even with\u00a0Matt Rempe\u00a0out for the long term, the Rangers have other players who can step into the bottom six if needed to, such as current healthy scratches Juuso Parssinen and Johnny Brodzinski. The Rangers have the depth a team needs to be a Stanley Cup contender; it all depends on whether the team can find out how to score more goals and if the players on the top six can remain healthy.<\/p>\n
The Rangers, despite having a terrible home record, are still in a decent spot thanks to their 7-1-1 road record. They are tied in points with both teams in the wild-card spots at 18, and they are only five points back of being first in the Metropolitan. Now that they have a more balanced roster, it\u2019s time to see if this was the spark they needed to get back on track and make it back to the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Save some goals for the rest of the game!\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Rangers and Lightning put on a goal-scoring clinic in the first period on Wednesday in Tampa Bay, tallying a combined seven goals with seven different skaters finding the back of the net.<\/p>\n
The wild opening frame marked the first time two teams notched seven-plus goals in a first period since March 16, 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The four goals scored through the first 7:08 marked the fastest time that teams had combined for that many goals this season.<\/p>\n
The Rangers had not scored four goals in a first period since April 10 against the Islanders.<\/p>\n
New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafreni\u00e8re celebrates his first period goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025, in Tampa, Fla.<\/p>\n\n