Just four months after being eliminated in the Eastern Conference final by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the New York Rangers exercised some of their demons on Tuesday. Behind a pair of goals from star center Mika Zibanejad, the Rangers topped the Lightning 3-1 in Tuesday's season opener.
With his second goal, Zibanejad became the sixth player in Rangers history to record at least 10 career points in season-opening games. Zibanejad joined the likes of Walt Tkaczuk (13), Andy Bathgate (13), Rod Gilbert (13), Mark Messier (12), and Jean Ratelle (10).
Zibanejad's second goal ended up being the game-winning tally as it put New York ahead 2-1 at the 5:11 mark of the third period. The 29-year old scored a power-play goal as he ripped a one-timer off a cross-ice pass from teammate Chris Kreider after Lightning forward Alex Killorn had lost his stick.
After a scoreless first period, Zibanejad received a long pass from teammate Jacob Trouba and deposited a beautiful, top shelf shorthanded goal past Andrei Vasilevskiy to open the scoring just 3:25 into the second period with a short-handed goal.
About six minutes later, the Lightning were able to cash in on penalties to both Rangers defenseman K'Andre Miller and forward Barclay Goodrow. Following a face-off win by Brayden Point, Lightning star Steven Stamkos was able to rip a shot past Igor Shesterkin up high.
The Rangers added an insurance goal with 9:00 to go courtesy of Goodrow tipping in a point shot from defenseman Ryan Lindgren.
Zibanejad continues to shine
Mika Zibanejad has had some productive years in New York, but nothing like what he accomplished during the 2021-22 season. Zibanejad recorded a career-high 81 points (29 goals and 52 assists) and really established himself as the true quarterback of the Rangers' top power-play unit. The star center got the 2022-23 campaign started off in a big way with two goals in 23:13 of ice time, which was the second-most among Rangers. Zibanejad had several big shot opportunities on the Rangers' power-play unit, and eventually broke through in the final period with the game-winning tally. It's only one game, but seeing another big year from Zibanejad won't be a surprise to anybody.
Unfortunate debut for Kravtsov
Vitali Kravtsov had spent the majority of his short professional career playing in the KHL since being selected with the No. 9 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. The Russian winger was expected to see time on the Rangers' second line, but his season debut was short-lived on Tuesday. Kravtsov got tangled up with Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman in the first period and made his way into the locker room. The 22-year old was diagnosed with an upper-body injury and was ruled out for the remainder of the game. Kravtsov only skated three shifts for a grand total of 1:23 of ice time. In Kravtsov's absence, Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant was forced to elevate 2020 No. 1 pick Alexis Lafreniere up to the second line to take his place. It'll be worth watching how long Kravtsov is out of the lineup as the Rangers are already shorthanded at forward with winger Sammy Blais still recovering from a torn ACL.
Point looks like his old self
While the Lightning came up on the losing end, there was one big positive for the franchise. Veteran forward Brayden Point registered an assist for the Lightning and appears to be healthy for the first time in quite a while. During Game 7 of the Lightning's opening round playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Point suffered a torn right quad muscle and clearly wasn't himself during the remainder of the postseason. Point did play in the opening two games of the Stanley Cup Final against the Colorado Avalanche, but just wasn't effective and ended up sitting out the final four games of the series. For the first time since the injury, the Lightning star center played with his usual burst and was a force whenever he touched the puck. For an aging Tampa Bay roster, it's a welcome sight to see Point playing at 100 percent once again.