00:00Okay, let's talk some Rangers hockey as a team.
00:02They have started the season 2-1 after a dominant 6-1 victory over the Penguins.
00:07It was a statement night for new head coach Mike Sullivan in his return to Pittsburgh.
00:12And now the Rangers, they turned their attention to a Sunday clash with the Capitals.
00:17Joining me to break it all down is the host of Puck Talks and a writer for Forever Blue Shirts,
00:23the one and only Matthew Mugno.
00:24Matthew, what's going on, man? How you doing?
00:27You're the one and only, Dexter. I love it.
00:29You've been keeping New York sports on my YouTube algorithm all year.
00:33So love that and love to be on again.
00:35No, I appreciate it, man. Good to see you here.
00:38Glad you were well and everything is good.
00:40And the Rangers, they're doing well. They're off to a 2-1 start.
00:43So from your perspective, as someone who's very plugged in with the team,
00:47what have been the most encouraging signs early on with the Blue Shirts
00:51and where do you still see room for improvement with them?
00:55Well, there's three players that were X-Factors this year.
00:57Now, it's a small sample size, but three games played.
01:01Adam Fox, three goals already.
01:03It took him 48 games to reach that mark.
01:05He's a high IQ defenseman.
01:07They value his two-way play more so on the defensive side and his smarts.
01:12But the fact that he's producing on the offense, like, they need that as well.
01:15And we saw the team goes far when he's producing.
01:18He was, I believe, the ninth best single postseason performance for a defenseman in 2022.
01:28And they went to the Eastern Conference Final that year.
01:30Igor Shestrigan, 83 saves on 85 shots against to start the season.
01:36He's an X-Factor.
01:37He got paid that massive contract, $11.5 million per year for the next eight years.
01:43He needed a strong start this year.
01:45The penalty kill is 5-for-5 this season.
01:48The power play last night against Pittsburgh, 2-for-4.
01:51I know we'll get to that.
01:53And depth has been, at least since last night, 24 hours ago, now a strength for the team.
01:59So there's a lot to be excited about.
02:03There are some more positives than I think some fans anticipated coming into this year.
02:07Also, 17 unique point scorers and eight unique goal scorers.
02:12And you know what the thing is here, Matt?
02:15It's tough to ask, even though I asked you the question.
02:17It's tough early in the season, right?
02:19Because it's just such a small sample size.
02:20We've only seen three games.
02:22We'll see four later today.
02:23But it's just such a small sample size.
02:25So you want to be encouraged about some things.
02:27But you know all teams are trying to get better as they get deeper into the season.
02:31Now, just to kick it back to last night, Mike Sullivan, his return to Pittsburgh on Saturday.
02:36That was an emotional one, for sure.
02:38How important do you think was it for him and this Rangers team to come away with that statement 6-1 victory against his former club?
02:47Well, I think you played this team to start the season.
02:51At home, centennial jerseys, centennial season beginning.
02:56And for all of the changes in the offseason, a new head coach, you essentially swap coaches.
03:02Dave Quinn, an assistant now with New York, Mike Sullivan, the head coach in Pittsburgh for nearly a decade, won two Stanley Cups there.
03:10And Dan Muse on the opposite bench.
03:13And you lose on opening night on a lackluster offensive effort.
03:17They weren't able to score a goal.
03:19It was important to bounce back and to show that they were capable of bouncing back a few nights later against a team that will likely finish in the bottom of the standings.
03:28That sounds crazy for most hockey fans and for most sports fans who are used to Sidney Crosby and Jenny Malkin as those top players in the NHL, top athletes in North American sports.
03:41And the group, along with the trio with Chris Letang, is the longest-tenured trio in American sports history.
03:49Now, with that, they aren't the same team that they were.
03:52But I think for Mike Sullivan on the emotional factor, you saw he got teary-eyed there.
03:57Won two Stanley Cups.
03:58He coached two, no doubt, Hall of Fame players in his tenure there.
04:03I think it was very important to show that they were able to identify how they lost in the opening contest this season and turn that around and turn that into a massive victory last night.
04:18It was a big one, and we'll see how they can build on that victory.
04:21Before we get to that, we have to talk about Vincent Trocek because he's out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
04:26How big of a loss is this for the Rangers in terms of face-offs, also two-way play, and then can't even count out his leadership down the middle?
04:34How big of a loss is it to not have Vincent Trocek in the lineup right now where he's day-to-day?
04:40Well, on the glassy ice sheet, he's played three straight seasons for the New York Rangers.
04:45That's 271 straight games, including two playoff appearances.
04:50One of those, a run to the Eastern Conference Final where he was a major factor for the team.
04:55And last season, he finished third in the NHL in face-off win percentage, 59.3% at the face-off dot.
05:02So he is critical to this team.
05:06He may be one of the, if not the most important factor, I would say, for the program as his winger is Artemi Panarin.
05:15His other winger, Alexi Lafreniere, we know that there's been some pressure on the youngster to get going in his career,
05:20and he's with one of the best players in the NHL on his other wing.
05:25Now, overall, I think the team is more committed to back-checking and getting into the defensive end.
05:31So I do think, as a team unit, it's not like they're relying on Trocek just in that position as a pivot.
05:40But the center position is historically thin for the New York Rangers organization.
05:45Noah Laba has been a surprise, plugged in at the 3C role.
05:50But other than that, this isn't a team that's built to lose many more centers.
05:54We saw that was part of the reason why Filippito was traded.
05:57He was, unfortunately, injury-prone, very young.
06:01And they moved him for JT Miller, who was the team's 1C.
06:05Mika Zibanejad played in that position yesterday and scored a shorthanded goal.
06:09So I also think another part of this conversation is, where does Mika Zibanejad fit into the forward group?
06:17He was a right-wing at a training camp because he wasn't very successful at center last season.
06:23Now he's the 2C.
06:25Let's see where he rolls with the center position.
06:29So I think Trocek's injury actually brings more questions than answers.
06:35What was good was there was no fire last night in Pittsburgh.
06:38Without Trocek, they were able to display strong back check, that the team does have depth when they're able to score and click together.
06:46And Noah Laba with two assists last night, so he got on the score sheet.
06:49He looks like a workhorse youngster for this team.
06:52Yeah, and you know what?
06:53It's all good when you have depth.
06:54It's all tested when guys like Trocek goes down.
06:57And now you want to see how other guys step up.
06:59We'll see how Mika steps up into the role as a 2C and how that works for him.
07:03It wasn't so good for him, as you mentioned, in the center spot last year.
07:07Now looking ahead to Sunday's matchup with the Capitals, this should be a test for the Rangers here.
07:12And through the first three games we saw them play, two games against Pittsburgh and the Sabres,
07:17you know, teams that you don't expect to be at the top of the standings.
07:19But what are the biggest keys, Matt, for the Rangers to pick up their third win in fourth games with a victory over the Capitals?
07:25Well, it's the first set of 12 back-to-backs this season because of the Olympic break.
07:32So there's a lot of teams that are now forced to cramp in scheduling before February.
07:37We saw a little bit of that with the Four Nations face-off last year.
07:40We're seeing an extended version of that this year.
07:42It is exciting, albeit that NHL players will be returning to the best global sporting event in the world.
07:49So I think for tonight's matchup, the good thing is that some of that homework was last night.
07:57They had such a lead coming into the third period that they didn't have to kill themselves to win the contest.
08:03I think that's where last night's game was a massive moral victory for the team.
08:08But this is the first big test.
08:12Alex Ovechkin, Ryan Leonard, Connor McMichael, Pierre-Luc Dubois.
08:17This team is firepower.
08:18And although we mentioned Malkin, who had an assist in that first game, he's historically a Ranger killer, 73 points in 78 career games.
08:27Sidney Crosby, obviously the all-world number one, arguably now going up against Connor McDavid and Nathan McKinnon in his older age.
08:37Ovechkin's still clicking.
08:38He broke the goals record set by Wayne Gretzky last season.
08:41He's showing no signs of slowing down, and he showed that against the Islanders last night.
08:46So I think this collective top six and even their depth, they're big, they're brawny, and they can score.
08:53How do the Rangers play against that physicality, especially since tonight they're playing with a next man up mentality?
09:01Also, Jonathan Quick will likely get his first start.
09:03I believe 4 o'clock is the press conference that's being held with Mike Sullivan, so we'll see.
09:09It will likely be Jonathan Quick after Igor started three games.
09:13Can't imagine they'll play him back-to-back.
09:16And he's a keeper that won 11-7-2 last year, all things considered with how that season turned out.
09:24So how did they handle a bigger Caps lineup, physical, a goal-scoring lineup, and with limited rest?
09:29All right, so keep an eye out for those things in the matchup tonight, 7 o'clock.
09:34The puck drops at Mattisware Garden, Rangers and Capitals there.
09:38That is Matthew Mugno.
09:40Check him out hosting Puck Talks, also writer for Forever Blue Shirts.
09:45Matt, always a pleasure to talk some Rangers hockey with you.
09:48We'll do it again soon.
09:51Yes, sir.
09:51Yeah, 10th year on the podcast.
09:54Steve and I created it when we were 15 years old.
09:57So it's great to be back here, and I can't wait to come back on.
10:01Last time we talked, I think, was in March, and hopefully there's a little more positive
10:05things going on in New York sports next time we chat.
10:08Yeah, last time we talked, I don't think it was as positive.
10:10Also, let me say congratulations to you on 10 years of hosting the podcast.
10:14That is a beautiful thing.
10:16Yes, we will see you again and talk some more Rangers hockey soon.
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