NEW YORK — There are no quick fixes to the mess the Rangers have created this season. But there was a Quick to put in net, and that was good enough Thursday.
Jonathan Quick continues to be everything the organization could have imagined when it signed him to a one-year deal ahead of the 2023-24 season, then gave him an extension for this year. Off the ice the 38-year-old is a trusted veteran, someone who Brett Berard says always makes sure younger players are included. On the ice he’s still capable of showing why at his peak he was one of the best goalies in the league. That’s exactly what he did against the Boston Bruins, stopping 32 of the 33 shots he saw in a 2-1 win, the 399th of Quick’s career.
“He’s a special guy and someone I’m super grateful to be around early in my career,” Berard said. “He’s a legend in this game.”
The Rangers needed a win in any way, shape or form Thursday. They entered having lost 15 of their past 19 games during one of the most tumultuous stretches in the organization’s recent history. Quick made sure his team walked away with one, keeping the Bruins at bay throughout the night.
Quick kept the Bruins off the board in a relatively strong defensive first period for the Rangers. The second was much more of an adventure. Midway through, he halted a Mark Kastelic backhand in front of the net, then stayed in front of Justin Brazeau’s rebound attempt. He capped off the sequence by gloving a John Beecher attempt that looked destined to beat him.
“It was bang-bang,” Quick said. “Turns into just a reaction save.”
Within a matter of seconds, Quick had robbed a full line of Bruins players.
“He’s so calm and collected,” Reilly Smith said. “He makes three huge saves in a row and he goes about it like nothing just happened.”
The Bruins temporarily solved Quick shortly after his flurry of saves. With 12:05 left in the second period, the always-dangerous David Pastrnak zipped a pass through traffic and right onto the stick of Elias Lindholm, who got free from Smith. Lindholm beat Quick glove side.
The goalie didn’t let one goal turn into two. Pastrnak put a shot on net late in the second period and the rebound went right to Charlie McAvoy, who fired it on net. Somehow Quick got his pad on the puck to keep the Rangers up a goal. That save stood out most to Rangers coach Peter Laviolette.
“In that period he made a lot of good saves, but then he made two or three really great saves that we needed at that point,” Laviolette said.
Added Smith: “Anyone with a pulse feeds off that. He does a great job being able to change momentum, and we wouldn’t have won tonight without him.”
Zibanejad gets needed goal, line thrives
Midway through the first period, Mika Zibanejad put a puck on net and Jeremy Swayman allowed a rebound. The puck kicked to Smith, who backhanded it past the goalie. It trickled to the line, where Zibanejad sent it over for a goal.
“He plays hard, and to see him bang one home like that is great,” Braden Schneider said. “It’s well deserved. He was going to the net hard.”
Mika Zibanejad celebrates his 700th career point. (Luke Hales / Getty Images)
Perhaps no one on the Rangers needed a goal as much as Zibanejad. It was his first point of any kind since a goal Dec. 11 against Buffalo and his first even-strength goal since Nov. 19 in Vancouver. The goal also was his 700th career point.
“It’s always good to see Mika score,” Smith said. “He does everything for us, and he’s definitely very deserving of putting the puck in the net. Hopefully it’s just a start and they start coming in waves for him.”
Thursday was a strong night in what has been a disappointing season for Zibanejad, who has seven goals and 22 points in 37 games while giving up more defensively than in past seasons. He and his linemates (Smith and Chris Kreider) were matched up primarily against Boston’s top trio of Brad Marchand, Lindholm and Pastrnak, but contained the Bruins’ top players.
Zibanejad’s line scored and was on the ice for a goal against, but New York controlled both the scoring chances and expected goal share with the group on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.
“They were probably our most noticeable line, both defensively and offensively,” Laviolette said. “Their line was on for pretty much the whole night.”
Berard brings energy
Filip Chytil grabbed a puck in the defensive zone and moved it up ice to Berard, creating a two-on-one. The rookie looked at Will Cuylle, who was with him on the rush, but decided to keep it to himself.
“We told him to shoot or else,” Laviolette said with a smile.
It was good for the Rangers that Berard did. He beat Swayman with a snap shot for his first goal at Madison Square Garden. His previous two came on the road in Carolina and St. Louis. Filled with adrenaline, he unleashed one of the more memorable goal celebrations the Rangers have had this year. He dropped to a knee and sidearm punched the crowd while screaming.
What. A. Shot. pic.twitter.com/ewACjXn1tz
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 3, 2025
“I kind of lost control of my body there,” he said.
“He’s a fiery guy. He plays that way,” Laviolette said. “He had big hits and was skating hard. He works relentlessly out there. Nice to see a guy like that get rewarded.”
(Top photo: Wendell Cruz / Imagn Images)
