Rangers rookies Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller got their first NHL try, and it was sour.
Igor Shesterkin, who is technically a rookie despite the 12-game regular season cameo he had last season, would probably say the same as his first start to the opening night, as he allowed four goals in the Rangers’ defeat. against the Islanders at Madison Square Garden Thursday.
But head coach David Quinn said he wants his young players to learn from those losses, it is possible he will arrive much earlier than he thought.
“It’s a great learning lesson for a young player to play against a team like that,” Quinn said in a Zoom call after the 4-0 defeat. “[The Islanders] represent what a professional is at this level. It’s not so much going out and making a big play, it’s playing smart hockey and sometimes you come out of a turn and nothing happens, that’s a good turn.
“Unfortunately for us right now, after one night, that’s not how we want to approach it, but I think it was a great lesson for those young guys.”
Miller, who made his NHL debut in the second defensive pairing with Jacob Trouba, recorded a shot in just under 14 minutes of ice. He started billing early in the second period which left Shesterkin out of the dry as the Isles captain Anders Lee turned into a two-on-one run for a 2-0 lead.
“Viously, obviously, the National Hockey League is a tough league to win,” Miller said. “So I think this first game is a good example of that, that every game will be a battle. You have to play the full 60 minutes and, hopefully, get to the other side. “
Lafreniere had a similar demonstration to Miller, with a shot on goal in about 15 and a half minutes of ice time, mostly on the third line with Filip Chytil and Julin Gauthier. In a game where rookie mistakes were being made throughout the lineup, Lafreniere was no exception when he played the puck while making a change and got the Rangers calling too many men to the ice penalty towards the end of the game. first period.
The 2020 first team committed their second penalty of the night when they were called up to hook at 2:13 p.m. in the second period, which led to a Jordan Eberle goal about 50 seconds later.
“Sure, a lot of nerves,” Lafreniere said. “After a couple of turns, [I] I felt better. Trying to work as hard as I can, obviously difficult first game. But we will do better and work on our game and try to recover on Saturday. “
The Rangers were 0 for 3 in the power play, but their eight penalties allowed the Islanders to score two power play goals.