The Rangers beat the Blues 3-1 on the strength of a penalty kill that went 6-for-6, pushing their season success rate to 90.4 percent and moving them from third to first in the NHL. But coach Mike Sullivan wasn’t fully satisfied, saying he’s troubled by how often his team keeps putting itself shorthanded in the first place.
New York took three penalties in the first period, two more in the second, and another in the third — though that last one, on Alberts Smits, was for delay of game rather than a stick infraction. Five of the six penalties were for stick fouls: Scott Morrow and J.T. Miller were called for high-sticking, Noah Laba for slashing, and Jaroslav Chmelar and Mika Zibanejad for hooking.
“I thought the kill was good,” Sullivan said. “I think it’s a little concerning that the type of stick infractions that we’re taking game in and game out. That’s a conversation we’ve had in between periods. I gotta think about next steps on that one, but we’ve gotta do a better job of our responsibility with our sticks.”
Goaltender Dylan Garand made 32 saves and came within less than a minute of his second shutout of the season, repeatedly denying a St. Louis power play that ranked 10th in the league entering the night.
The Rangers’ penalty kill has become the clearest strength of their early season, especially while their power play is still finding its footing. They’ve allowed just five goals all season while shorthanded. Still, all five stick-infraction penalties against St. Louis came while the game was tied or New York held only a one-goal lead, giving the Blues repeated chances to change the game’s momentum.
“It’s a lot to ask to have the penalty kill have to kill that many opportunities against a real good power play,” Sullivan said, “but I thought those guys that were on it did a terrific job.”
Rempe addresses trade chatter
Forward Matt Rempe said it was “definitely been different” to hear his name attached to trade speculation for the first time in his career. Last week, Sportsnet’s Frank Seravalli reported that Oilers coach Mike Babcock is “believed to admire” the 6-foot-9 Rempe and could view him as a potential fit for a team seeking size.
Rempe made the Rangers’ roster out of training camp but fell out of the fourth-line rotation, playing in just his third game of the season on Tuesday, when he skated 8:29. He said he plans to stay off social media to avoid the noise.
“I don’t pay attention to that stuff,” Rempe said Monday. “That type of stuff’s all out of my control. I’m just focused on here and trying to get better and get in the lineup and make the most of those opportunities.”
Other notes
Defenseman Sean Durzi missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury and remains day to day; Morrow again filled in for him, logging 13:07. Adam Fox scored a goal and added an assist on Eeli Tolvanen’s empty-net tally, bringing his total to 19 points through 16 games — third among all NHL defensemen.
