Ranking the top 5 Rangers wins

The New York Rangers have completed 43 games, just over halfway through the season. Let’s take a look at their best wins, and what made them so special.

The criteria for these rankings are a blend of overall game dominance, showing resilience, memorable plays and season defining wins.

Currently sitting at first place in the Metropolitan Division, it’s not easy to pick the best games so far in a season filled with brilliant saves, spectacular goals and dramatic comebacks.

It was extremely fun to take a look at every game so far, and to choose which ones were the best. Let’s get into it. We’ll start with the honorable mentions.

Three Honorable Mentions

October 29:  Rangers 4  Blue Jackets 0

This is a game that definitely gets lost in the deck and is forgotten about by fans. That is completely understandable. Looking back now, it seems quite irrelevant. However, at the time this was a big win. While we saw the Rangers put together many wins at the start in October, they were undoubtedly struggling to look like the better team and play a full 60 minutes.

This was their first dominant win. Through all three periods they outmatched Columbus. The final shot total was in their favor at 37-31. The score was 2-0 after one period thanks to Ryan Strome’s first goal of the season, as well as a goal from Alexis Lafrenière. The second period was scoreless, and Chris Kreider tallied two power play goals in the third.

The final score was 4-0. Igor Shesterkin posted his first shutout of the season. Adam Fox and Artemi Panarin each notched three assists.

The quality of opponent, lack of memorable moments, and lopsided scoreline keep this game out of the top five.

November 11:  Rangers 5 Sabres 4

We all know why this game is being mentioned. This game makes the list due to its memorable finish. It was one that we will all remember for a long time. A back and forth game between the Rangers and Sabres that featured very shaky goaltending ended with Ryan Lindgren scoring just before the final buzzer sounded.

The goaltending flaws were most apparent in the second period. In just 1:22, four total goals were scored – two for each side. It was chaotic to say the least. The Rangers then replaced Alexander Georgiev with Igor Shesterkin for the third with the score tied 4-4. The third period was a stalemate until Lindgren potted the game winning goal at the literal last second.

Sam Rosen made a great call, might I add.

What keeps this game out of the top five is that outside of the buzzer beater, it was close to a disaster. The goaltending left a bad taste in your mouth, and it shouldn’t have taken what it did to beat Buffalo. Nonetheless, a fun and memorable win for the Rangers.

January 22:   Rangers 7  Coyotes 3

This game is fresh in our memories as it was played this week. This game was an emotional roller coaster for Ranger fans. It had the makings of the worst loss of the season, but Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba had other plans.

This game said a lot about the leaders of the team, and that they can turn it on at any given moment. It was encouraging to see them ignite and instantly turn it into a blowout.

Down 3-1 midway through the second period, Kreider and Trouba hooked up for a short handed goal. That got the crowd, and the team going. They then scored three more goals before the period’s end.

Kreider ended with a hat trick, as well as an assist. Trouba and Mika Zibanejad tallied three points each. Panarin and Fox each had two of their own. The dreadful start to the game keeps this out of the top five. However, this is a game we will definitely look back on at the season’s end as a defining win.