New York Rangers coach Peter Laviolette shared his thoughts following the 4-0 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on Saturday. Igor Shesterkin stopped all 21 shots for his fifth shutout of the season.
Vincent Trocheck scored twice, while Alexis Lafreniere and Artemi Panarin had a goal and an assist each. The win helped the Rangers keep the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with 72 points.
Rangers coach Peter Laviolette praised his team’s defensive effort. He said that they started a bit shaky but improved as the game went on. By the end of the first period, he felt they were playing well and that it was their third straight game defending hard, which helped them succeed.
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"Yeah, I thought it was. I thought we got better, honestly, almost every minute of the game.
"We started a little bit jumpy, but by the end of the first, I thought we were playing pretty well, and then the second and third were, I thought, outstanding. So that's, for me, three periods, three games in a row where I thought we defended well, defended hard, and it gives us a chance to be successful," Laviolette said.
Lafreniere put the Rangers ahead early, scoring 1:43 into the game. Panarin made it 2-0 in the second period with a wrist shot from the left circle. His point streak is now eight games, with six goals and as many assists. Trocheck added to the lead in the third period, scoring off a cross-ice pass from Panarin. He then scored again while shorthanded with Tarasov pulled for an extra attacker.
The Blue Jackets have struggled to score lately, getting shut out in three of their last five games. They also lost 4-0 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday. Tarasov finished with 17 saves but had little support from his team.
The NYR have now won two straight games after a four-game losing streak.
New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe's performance against Blue Jackets
New York forward Matt Rempe didn't get into a fight against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Despite playing 10:27 minutes of time on ice, Rempe avoided penalty and recorded two shots on goal.
Rempe was unhappy with the officiating in the Rangers' 3-2 overtime win against Minnesota. He was penalized for interference, though Devin Shore skated into him. However, the referee later admitted the mistake.
Earlier, in a 2-1 loss to Winnipeg, he received a goalie interference penalty after Morgan Barron pushed him into Connor Hellebuyck.
"I’m not changing my game," Rempe said (via Mollie Walker).
Matt Rempe has scored two goals and provided three assists this season.
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