Rangers vs. Flames: Throwing Away Their Shots
This team still might make the playoffs. But a team that puts forward that shameful lack of effort surely doesn't deserve to.
- If we had visitors from another planet show up and they inexplicably understood the sport of hockey—or, hell, even if they didn't—and you showed them tape of that game and asked them to guess which one had played and gotten smoked the night before, they'd guess it was the Rangers every day of the week and twice on Sunday. And, yet!
- I tried to think of games this season that were clearly worse than this one. There was the home game against the Los Angeles Kings on December 14. My Game Notes for that one were headlined, "Absolute Utter Trash." I know there were other truly awful games this season, and it's not that I can't manage to think of those if I really tried. But I'm struggling to come up with another one—especially given the context of this game—that really was worse.
- Thirteen. Baker's dozen. That's all the Rangers could muster for shots on goal. Against a team that played the night before and who was starting their no. 2 goalie. Not a single forward had a shot on goal in the second period. Not a single Ranger had a shot on goal in the final 11 or so minutes of the second period. Not great, Bob!
- It's incredible to me that there are people who will watch that hockey game and still say things like, "If Igor Shesterkin doesn't drag this team into the playoffs then he's clearly not worth $11.5 million." Igor was the only reason that game wasn't a blowout.
“$11.5M.” #NYR https://t.co/9SyxLg51ZE pic.twitter.com/eHG34Vaeus
— Snark Messier (@NYRFanatic) March 19, 2025
- He's been plenty good enough to win the last two games he's played. But he can't score goals, too. (At least, not until there's an empty net at the other end.) Expecting back-to-back shutouts because the team can only score one goal per game isn't remotely reasonable. Igor is the only Ranger who showed up to play in this game. This isn't on him. If you find yourself talking about Igor after that disaster, please spend sometime contemplating where things went so wrong in your life.
