The New York Rangers began Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals series against the Florida Panthers with a bang both figuratively and literally.
After losing Game 1 to the visiting Panthers on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden, New York took the lead just four minutes into Friday’s action when Vincent Trocheck took a sublime pass from Adam Fox to beat Florida netminder Sergei Bobrovsky.
And that’s when things got violent.
While Fox and Trocheck celebrated the early goal, Florida’s Carter Verhaeghe got revenge on New York’s Alexis Lafrenière for an open-ice hit that helped clear the way for the center pass that led to the goal.
“(Matthew) Tkachuk has Trocheck pinned, Lafrenière jumps into the fray,” ESPN color commentator Ray Ferraro exclaimed amid the chaos. There are three or four wrestling matches! This is a perfect start in New York.”
While Fox and Trocheck celebrated the early goal, Florida’s Carter Verhaeghe got revenge on New York’s Alexis Lafrenière for a hit in open ice.
Alexis Lafreniere of the New York Rangers battles Carter Verhaeghe of the Florida Panthers
When the dust settled, Tkachuk, Verhaeghe and Lafrenière all received harsh penalties, resulting in a one-man advantage for New York that the Rangers failed to convert.
The Panthers finally tied the game 14 minutes later on a power-play goal by Verhaeghe after New York’s Barclay Goodrow was called for interference.
If things seemed a little happier on Friday, it may be because the Rangers were looking for a way to slow down a Panthers attack that scored three times on Wednesday.
“They have a lot of speed on their team,” K’Andre Miller said after Wednesday’s loss, as quoted by ESPN. “I think limiting their speed in the neutral zone, trying to get holdups and trying to give us a little more time to get the puck out of the D zone (are key).
“Obviously, when teams come that hard and push you with that kind of energy, I think it’s about breaking their forecheck by talking, moving the puck and just trying to be a little firmer,” he added. “Our execution can be a little better coming out of the D zone.”
To bolster that defense, and perhaps give the Panthers something to think about on the ice, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette opted to dress 6-foot-8 rookie Matt Rempe on Friday.
The 21-year-old winger was inactive in Game 1, but was in action Friday on Laviolette’s fourth line alongside Jimmy Vesey and Barclay Goodrow.
Former Rangers players turned analysts Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Hendrik Lundqvist pushed for Rempe to return after Wednesday’s loss.
“Maybe they should think about putting Rempe in the lineup,” Messier said on ESPN.