EDMONTON, Alberta – It looks like those preseason concerns about Jonathan Quick may have been overblown.
The veteran goalie is off to a tremendous start in his first season with the Rangers, having allowed just one goal through his first three appearances.
That includes a 3-0 shutout win over the Oilers on Thursday at Rogers Place, giving Quick his 59th career shutout.
It was a slight surprise to see the 37-year-old backup get the start considering Igor Shesterkin has only played about four-and-a-half periods in the last 10 days, but it ended up looking like a wise decision.
He stopped all 29 shots he faced in Edmonton and has now saved 27 of 28 this season for an impressive .982 save percentage.
A new nickname?
How do we feel about the French Toast line?
It’s a working title for a trio that may be here to stay.
Artemi Panarin, Filip Chytil and Alexis Lafrenière have been the Rangers’ driving force of offense to start the new season, with another standout performance Thursday.
They peppered the flailing Oilers to help make it three straight victories for New York with two games to go on this northwestern road trip.
Defensive system: Rangers using two forechecking looks
Those three combined for 13 of the Rangers’ 31 shots on goal, and while Edmonton goalie Stuart Skinner frustrated them for much of the first 40 minutes, they finally broke through late in the second period.
Lafrenière continued his hot start with a one-timer off a feed from Panarin that made it 3-0 at the 18:09 mark. It gave him four goals through the first seven games, including one in each of the last three.
Confidence is oozing from the former No. 1 overall pick, who faced some over-the-top criticism during the preseason but has completely turned the narrative around in the last two weeks. He’s been dynamic with the puck on his stick, most notably on a drive to the net during the second period in which he deked crumbling defenseman Philip Broberg out of his skates.
A second-period flurry
The Lafrenière goal was a gut punch for the host Oilers, who were playing without injured star center Connor McDavid and faced boos from the crowd as they dropped to 1-5-1 on the season. But the Rangers (5-2) were already firmly in control.
Adam Fox got the scoring started with a power-play goal 3:32 into the second period, tying him for the lead among NHL defensemen with six PP points. Panarin assisted on the play, extending his point streak to seven straight games during which he’s posted 10 points (three goals and seven assists).
That was followed by Braden Schneider’s first goal of the season, a wicked wrist shot from the slot that was setup by a savvy pass from Jimmy Vesey to make it 2-0 at the 12:03 mark. It was part of a two-point night for the 22-year-old defenseman, who had family in the stands that made the trek from his hometown of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.
It felt like the Rangers could have scored even more, as both Blake Wheeler and Mika Zibanejad hit posts while Skinner turned away a handful of other quality chances. A fourth goal was taken off the scoreboard in the third period after referees determined upon review that rookie Will Cuylle kicked the puck in.
But it wasn’t need on a night when Quick was quite sharp.
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Postgame takeaways: Lafrenière, Quick stay hot in NY Rangers’ win
