Mike Sullivan Returns To Pittsburgh With Rangers Dominant 6-1 Win | New York Rangers

Mike Sullivan Returns To Pittsburgh With Rangers Dominant 6-1 Win | New York Rangers

Here we go with the MercedesBenz Rangers postgame show. Great to have you with us here from our Delta MSG studios. Bill Pedo along with Henrik Lungquist and Steve Alakette. Rangers dominant tonight in Pittsburgh. Mike Sullivan wins his return to Pittsburgh. Final score 6-1. Henrik, why was this outcome so much different than the season opening three nothing loss to Pittsburgh here in New York? Well, we were looking for more speed. We were looking for more traffic and battles all over the ice. We got it all. and they should feel very pleased with with this performance as a team. You look at the score sheet, you had pretty much everyone get involved. You had great goalending. The special teams obviously in the first period played a huge part scoring short-handed, but that kind of set the tone as well. You know, the way they, you know, paid attention to the details within the special teams, that’s going to give them a lot of confidence moving forward. But what a team effort. Yeah. You know, there’s not a lot of things here where you watch the game sometimes you win and you feel like we need to do this better. Yeah. Yes. The first period was kind of even, but after that they took over this game completely. You know, one thing you can’t get lost on this game, guys, is that it is a week where they’re playing four games. And with a game tomorrow, it’s nice to have a balanced lineup uh ice time wise. There were only three Rangers in this game that had fewer than 20 shifts. So that’s balance for everybody. You get ahead early in a game, plus you’re not taxing your goalie, who you could use tomorrow if you so choose to do it, but you most likely go with Jonathan Quick, who’s going to be fresh. So in a week that’s pretty tough to start a NHL season, you’ve got a well-rested lineup for a backto-back tomorrow against Washington. Pittsburgh had nine shots in the first period, 10 total in periods two and three combined. Big game for Adam Fox. He is our Jersey Mike’s sub above player as Fox had a three-point night with two goals and one assist. Fourth career two-goal game, 21st career three-point game. He’s got 25 career games against the Penguins with eight goals, 14 assists, and a plus 15 rating. He’s got three goals this season. Steve only scored 10 all of last year and he had two of the goals uh two of the three goals Ranger scored in the second period, one on the power play. Let’s talk about how effective Adam Fox was on offense. Yeah, you could talk about his offense, you could talk about his defense. He was all over the ice. He had that look, Bill, when you were interviewing him in the second remission where he had the the red the beat red face. That’s when you know I have that impact on people. Well, that’s when you know he’s playing his game, which is defense first and then you convert it to offense. But he has a great stick here in the first period to break up a threeon-one. Those are big-time plays and I thought that Igor was able to play his game because he knows that he has coverage there. Fox saves one on the goal line as he’s cutting off his man. And then, you know, he’s back here to make a play twice with his stick. He’s got a great stick and that helps he and Gabricov to be able to communicate offensively. He’s getting his sifter through the shot that just gets up off the ice. You can get a deflection on it or a broken play. These two are just seeing eye to a certain degree. But it was the scouting report on the goalie she loves. He was looking over the wrong side of the shoulder. Fox is putting it across the screen. For any defenseman listening, that’s the way you shoot it from the point. Get it across the screen if the goalie’s head is. And that’s You know what? That’s the biggest point, right Hank? He is up and he’s doing three things on the blue line. He’s sliding the blue line so he’s got the footwork. He’s crossing the middle of the ice so he has awareness. and he’s looking at the goalie so he knows where to put it on net. Look at the goalie. Look at the lane because that’s probably the toughest part for any defenseman right now in this league. How do you get pucks through? But if you’re able to walk the blue line like Foxy does or Mar, there’s a few guys that are so good at walking the blue line to create that lane because if you’re not walking the line, it’s going to be hard. You’re going to have players blocking that shot. And as we’ve seen a lot of the goals, you don’t have to have a rocket. Yeah. As a shot. It’s more about getting it through. And I I agree with you. Foxy looked so good. Confident, calm, and playing good D is a lot about positioning. And what I loved, it was a couple oddman rushes. Not only Fox, but it was a lot of the defenseman had great position. And to me, that that says, you know, that they’re they’re calm and they know where to be. You know, there were times last year where they maybe tried to do a little too much at times in their own end, but it looks like with their new system now, they they they calmed down a little bit. We we noticed it throughout the game. There’s not a lot of east west. They’re protecting the house better. You know, I think it’s one now in three games. I might have to go back and double check on tonight. I didn’t see one tonight. So, I think it’s one on three games. They were giving up four, five, and six a game last year. Yeah, that’s the biggest difference with the coverage on the Dzone. I mean, I heard you ask Adam Fox about it. That was a great question. In depth, huh? In depth. This guy’s Steve G. 30-year pro. Steve gave me the question. More zone, less man-to-man. So far, it’s worked. Here’s Fox now in the postgame locker room. How how nice is it to just kind of open up and run away like that? Yeah, it’s good. The first wasn’t wasn’t our best. Um, you needed some saves, but, you know, cleaned up a lot after that. Special teams was was good. PK was great. power play wasn’t, you know, great, but you find a way. You put some pucks on net and and get some goals. And, you know, I think sometimes that’s just how power plays go. You put at the net and and get some, but definitely cleaned up a lot five on five there in the in the second period. You also had to play, you know, one one defenseman down. I mean, how how was that? Yeah, it’s you know, never easy, but um you know, sometimes it simplifies as Dman, you know, you’re not going to do too much cuz you don’t want to get caught out there or anything. So, uh, you know, sometimes mentally it helps to know you’re keeping short shifts, keep it simple, and, uh, you know, try and get up to the forwards and and playing there and less defending, the the easier that is. You you’ve got two two tonight, one the other night. I mean, are you feeling it? Um, I wouldn’t say that. I think sometimes it’s just, you know, the law of averages. I think, uh, you know, last year the puck luck to start wasn’t great. This year, you know, the same shots find a way to go in. So, um, you know, I think obviously on those goals, it was, you know, great play by that that fourth line. I thought they were they were awesome tonight. Um, you know, made a big difference to to turn the tide for us. Um, and then JT just, you know, getting effort on the power play. I think that’s, like I said, we tried to simplify. So, I think it’s more just, you know, puck luck and, uh, you know, the same shots that found a way to go in tonight. What was working on special teams for you guys tonight? Yeah, I think the PK was was really good. that I think we didn’t give up, you know, too many great A’s and if we did, you need you need a save and we usually usually get those. And, you know, power play started off a little slow, but I think once, you know, our unit simplified, we tried to just get shots, recover, and and make a move like that. And, uh, you know, same with that that second unit there. So, um, like I said, sometimes with power plays, it’s it’s puck luck, too. You shoot a puck at the net, and sometimes it goes in, sometimes doesn’t, but at least you’re you’re getting it there and, uh, you know, creating something. Was there a little added motivation to get that one for Mike Sullivan, especially after the way the first one went? For sure. For sure. Um, you know, we let him down definitely that first game and and playing a team and, you know, it’s obviously emotional for him to to, you know, be back at a place he’s been for so long and had so much success. So, um, like I said, we didn’t give him the best start. Um, but I thought we responded really well and, uh, you know, definitely happy to get the win for him. Adam, couple things here. So, the Rangers on the PK four for four, power play two for four. You heard Adam Fox talk about playing with 5D. Uh Carson Susi went out in the second period with what looked to be an upper body injury and did not return. Special teams Henrik Adam talking about that they got two power play goals and a short-handed goal from Mika Zabanagad back at center because of the injury to Vinnie Trochek. The short-handed goal last year the Rangers scored 18 short-handed goals. They got one this year. A beautiful sequence. Break it down for us. Sam Carrick Zabanage. was the only goal in the first period and it made it one after nothing. Yeah. And it was such a big goal because Pittsburgh they they came out hard. They had a really good first 10 minutes. They had a couple power plays so they they really pushed the Rangers back. So to be able to score that short-handed goal kind of settle things down a little bit and it was a beautiful play. Yeah. And look, I think that uh one thing that we can say here, guys, is that they know how to go north fast and and get speed and establish that speed with width because as soon as Eric Carlson jumps inside that circle, it’s the pass from Carrick to Zabanagad that has the highest probability of going into the net. He wasn’t a shooter here because Carlson chose to jump on him, but it’s the recognition and being able to do that. Um, we were talking about this earlier off camera. The percentage and chance a team has to win the hockey game. If they score a short-handed goal and the opponent does not, I thought 90%. We’re just going to talk about the win here, though. Not just getting a point in the game, but just get the win. Just winning the game. 90%. No, Bill. Come on. You’re overshooting it. See, he’s not the biggest guy, but he likes to think big all the time. Henrik, guess. You’re really close. 68% chance to win the hockey game when you score short-handed and your opponent doesn’t. I think that’s pretty neat, right? I don’t know. I thought it’d be higher than that. Okay. Well, 68% I I love the fact that Meek uh, you know, gets rewarded. I I think he’s been and Dave touched on it during the game. He’s been playing really well the first three games. And to me, if the Rangers going to have a really good year, Ma needs to have a great year. He’s a huge part of this team because of what he does all over the ice, but also offensively. There’s no way around it. He needs to be scoring goals and and it’s just great to see him get rewarded early in this game. You know what I thought, Hank, coming into the season is that um let’s just say that five guys had years that might be their career worse last year. That makes them dangerous this year coming back as star players. The star players to me are dangerous coming back after a down year. Do you remember having, you could just call it your worst year. Did you come back and have one of your top years after that? Ah, good question. Well, no, but of course I never played because he was never hurt, too, you know. But of course, you spend the entire summer to prepare and it’s it’s in your head the fact that, you know, you came up short last year. You want to do better. You you have higher expectations of yourself on the group. So, you use that as fuel going into this year. So to get a good start and and start building confidence and understand that to your point there there’s a lot of good players on this team and new coaching a new system. So yeah at the same time you need to have some patience to understand that things going to take a little time before everything is working smoothly. But that being said it’s important to to get wins early, build confidence and and and kind of show everyone that last year that was oneoff. Yeah. All right, guys. So, the Rangers now 2-1. Mike Sullivan, the winningest coach in Pittsburgh history, back in Pittsburgh with a win. honored and emotional with the response he got from the Pittsburgh crowd.

Mike Sullivan made his return to Pittsburgh – this time as head coach of the New York Rangers who he lead to a 6-1 over the Penguins. Adam Fox scored twice in the lopsided victory by the Rangers only a few games after being shutout by the Penguins in the New York home opener.

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Mike Sullivan Returns To Pittsburgh With Rangers Dominant 6-1 Win | New York Rangers