After the opening-night 3-0 loss against the Boston Bruins, Rangers captain J.T. Miller avoided overreacting, and it immediately proved to be the right decision. Since then, the Broadway Blueshirts have won four games in a row, including statement wins at Madison Square Garden, where fans had been treated to disappointing outings last season.

Moreover, the Rangers have also defeated the New York Islanders for the first time since the 2024-25 NHL season, snapping a four-game losing streak against their crosstown rivals. Coming off the 5-2 win at Madison Square Garden, in which Sullivan used the team’s vacant spot to hand an NHL debut, the head coach made a strong statement about the current state of affairs for the Blueshirts.

“I’m proud of the guys,” Sullivan commented, via the New York Post. “You look at the stretch of games, we just went through a tough stretch. Five games in eight nights against some pretty good teams. These guys, they’re competing hard.”

What Sullivan sees on his team

What a difference a year makes. And, of course, the plethora of roster moves that have shaken the team to its core and completely reshaped the lineup in Manhattan. So far, the Blueshirts have met and even exceeded expectations. No one looks at the NHL standings at this point in the season, but anyone who does will find New York alone at the top after five games.

What changed? Basically everything, but Sullivan thinks he knows some of the good habits that are helping the Blueshirts perform consistently on a nightly basis. That’s all fans had been asking for for a very long time.

“They’re just coming out with great energy,” head coach Mike Sullivan said. “I think they’re buying in. They’re having fun. They’re competing hard, and they’re having success. It’s fun to watch them. I think their first periods, they’ve brought great energy, the right intentions.

“I think our third periods have been terrific, just as far as our checking game. We’re not sitting back trying to defend leads. We’re playing hard, playing on our toes, but we’re doing it responsibly. I think that’s a great sign for us the way we’re competing in the third periods as well.“

Winds of change for the Rangers

It took New York until March to string together four wins last season. This time around, the Rangers have won four in a row in just five appearances. Clearly, something is working in Manhattan, and Sullivan hopes it stays that way for a very long time. In the meantime, the rest of the league should take cover.

Key takeaways

• Mike Sullivan praised the New York Rangers’ resilience after winning four straight games.
• The Rangers defeated the New York Islanders for the first time since 2024-25.
• New York sits alone at the top of the NHL standings after five games.

As a result, the stage was set for them to make a roster move, sending Robertson down to the AHL and bringing a minor-league player to the NHL lineup. It was all to fill the void left by Joseph Veleno’s IR stint early in the 2026-27 season. With more or less drama, Sullivan and company have cleared their first hurdle of the campaign.

“Cole Beaudoin has been recalled from the Hartford Wolf Pack. Matthew Robertson has been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack,” the New York Rangers announced on their public relations account on X, @NYR_PR.

“It’ll be Cole Beaudoin coming up to play 4C tonight and make his NHL debut for the Rangers,” Mollie Walker of the New York Post reported on X.

More about Beaudoin

Selected with the 24th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft by the Utah Mammoth, the 20-year-old centerman from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, has yet to make his pro debut in the league. He will now get his first taste of NHL action in a game as vitriol-filled and electric as a battle of New York between the Rangers and Islanders.

As Veleno has been placed on IR with a lower-body injury, Beaudoin will take over as the fourth-line center for Sullivan’s squad. It remains to be seen who will be coming out of the lineup.

When did Beaudoin join the Rangers?

Beaudoin arrived in Manhattan as part of the return package in the Vincent Trocheck trade to Utah. Beaudoin was traded along with Sean Durzi and a 2027 third-round pick.

While speculation surrounded Sullivan before New York announced its centerman call-up to play the Isles, Beaudoin was the obvious candidate. Through his first two games of the AHL season with the Hartford Wolf Pack, Beaudoin was the team’s leading scorer with a goal and four assists (five points).

Thanks to that red-hot start, Beaudoin was also tied for second in points among all skaters in the AHL. Now, his true journey begins, and there is no better place to start than Madison Square Garden in a matchup with the Islanders.

Key takeaways

• The New York Rangers assigned defensemen Matthew Robertson to the AHL.
• Center Cole Beaudoin was recalled from Hartford to make his NHL debut.
• Beaudoin came to New York as part of the Vincent Trocheck trade.

One name that many Rangers fans wondered about was Jaroslav Chmelar, the 23-year-old forward from Czechia. With the Blueshirts suddenly in need of a center call-up, many thought Chmelar could be the odd man out, as he’s waiver-exempt and thus could’ve been sent down to the AHL without risking another NHL franchise claiming him. Asked about his decision to keep Chmelar and instead risk waiver-eligible Robertson, Sullivan gave a firm answer.

“The question is: Do we just put guys in the lineup and send guys down just because they’re waivers exempt? Or do we put the guys in the lineup that we think are going to give us the best chance to win? We chose to make a decision based on the latter,” Sullivan admitted, via Mollie Walker of the New York Post on X. “We think the guys that are in the lineup are deserving to be in the lineup through their performance and their play. [Chmelar] is one of those guys.”

Chmelar’s start to the season

Although he’s yet to record his first point of the season, it looks like Sullivan has liked Chmelar’s performance so far through the first three games of the 2026-27 NHL campaign. He might be in for an even bigger role after Joe Veleno’s injury.

The Rangers have now placed Veleno on Injured Reserve (IR), and until a centerman is called up from the AHL affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack, Chmelar might even fill in for the injured Veleno at 4C. Clearly, Sullivan trusts the 23-year-old pending RFA, so one shouldn’t put it past the head coach to move Chmelar to the middle of the ice.

“Jaro [Chmelar] has certainly made a compelling argument to keep him in the lineup just based on his play,” Sullivan said, per Mollie Walker.

Rangers face salary-cap crunch

As reasonable as Sullivan’s explanation for the Rangers’ decision is, and as great as it might play out, there’s also logic in asking why the Blueshirts even reached the point where they had to auction a young player as the first wave of adversity hit them. Fans in Manhattan believe they know the reason for that.

Less than five games into the season, New York was already hemmed in by the salary cap, and it didn’t take long before the spotlight shifted to the cap-heavy contracts signed or brought in over the summer. Namely, Joonas Korpisalo.

Joonas Korpisalo’s contract

The Rangers raised eyebrows when they traded for the former Boston Bruins netminder, who is carrying a $3 million cap hit in 2026-27. To make matters worse, Dylan Garand has returned to New York as Korpisalo will miss time with an injury.

Essentially, the Broadway Blueshirts had to place Robertson on waivers because of the salary-cap crunch Korpisalo’s deal has put them in, and the veteran goalie hasn’t even played a game at Madison Square Garden this season. Since his arrival, Korpisalo has caused several roster moves before he even put on his pads, blocker, glove, and mask.

A lot can change, and Korpisalo may end up playing a big role in the season. So far, however, he can be added to the long list of costly decisions made by Chris Drury and company. Why did the Blueshirts trade for a $3 million second-string netminder when Garand was right there? Who knows? But Robertson ended up on waivers because of it. Fortunately for the Blueshirts, he cleared. They may not be as lucky in the future, though.

Key takeaways

• Matthew Robertson cleared waivers after Joe Veleno suffered an injury.
• Czech forward Jaroslav Chmelar remained on the NHL roster despite being waiver-exempt.
• Joonas Korpisalo carries a $3 million cap hit while currently sidelined with an injury.

The rumor mill around Robertson grew out of control as the Rangers hit the ice for practice after the win over the Mammoth at Madison Square Garden. A simple roll call shined a light on the fact that Robertson, who has yet to make his season debut in the NHL, wasn’t on the ice with the rest of the squad. Indeed, his absence was no coincidence and instead foreshadowed an imminent move.

“It’s possible Robertson could be heading to waivers to make room for a center call up,” Vincent Mercogliano of The Athletic reported on X. “The Rangers don’t currently have the cap space to recall anyone. Waiting for word from the team.“

It didn’t take long after Mercogliano’s initial report for the Rangers to confirm a move involving Robertson is just around the corner. “Per team, Robertson isn’t practicing for ‘roster management reasons‘,” Mercogliano stated on his X account.

Robertson hits waivers

Not long after, the imminent move was confirmed. “Matthew Robertson is on waivers,” Peter Baugh of The Athletic reported. “He played 72 games last year as a serviceable third-pair defenseman. This move gives the Rangers cap room to call up a center if they want with Joseph Veleno hurt.“

According to Baugh, giving up on Robertson, who played an important depth role last season, is a strong indicator of how highly rated rookie Alberts Smits is by Mike Sullivan and company. Otherwise, the Blueshirts may not have given up a player they knew could fill in on the third defense pairing.

NY Rangers had options, but not much time

Before placing Robertson on waivers, the Rangers had roughly $450,000 available in cap space, according to Puck Pedia. With the minimum salary for the 2026-27 NHL season set at $850,000, no player in the organization could be called up without the Blueshirts going over the cap. Thus, the team had to make room, and somebody had to go.

The odds of Robertson making it unclaimed through waivers and to the AHL are very low. Instead, New York could have tried to get something in return for Robertson via trade, but it’s clear what little leverage it once had was well gone as it faces a cap crunch and needs to add a centerman in no time before the Rangers take on the New York Islanders on Oct. 6.

Sullivan hasn’t made a decision yet

If the Blueshirts wanted to trade Robertson just to get something in return, they would’ve had to put their pride aside and take what little they might have gotten for him. It was a plan destined for failure right from the start. Instead, New York has bitten the bullet and placed the 25-year-old former second-round pick in 2019 on waivers.

“Sullivan said Veleno will not play tomorrow vs. the Isles. As for the roster and recalling another center, he said they’re still working through it,” as reported by Mercogliano.

NY Rangers find themselves in tough spot

With Veleno injured, the Rangers need a center to fill in. Who will be called up remains to be seen, but it’s clear Robertson is the one who will pay the price. Considering he’s been a healthy scratch and a pending Group 6 UFA when the season ends, it makes sense that New York landed on Robertson as the odd man out.

Being jammed up against the salary cap this early and dealing with injuries is less than ideal, but the Rangers may manage to get away from this without footing a huge bill.

Key takeaways

• Joe Veleno went down with an injury during the 4–2 win over Utah.
• New York Rangers face a cap crunch with roughly $450,000 in available space.
• Matthew Robertson missed practice for roster management and has been placed on waivers.

Larkin is out of the Red Wings lineup to face the Rangers due to a lingering upper-body injury. The setback sustained during off-ice training over the summer prevented Larkin from being a full participant in training camp and sidelined him throughout the NHL preseason, too.

Though Larkin has been participating in team practices leading up to the season debut, head coach Todd McLellan confirmed the former captain would miss the Rangers game and will be out for at least the first two outings of the season, both home games at Little Caesars Arena.

Although he wasn’t on the lineup, Larkin was introduced as a part of the team’s roster for the 2026-27 NHL season. It wasn’t exactly a blessing, though, but more of a trap set up by Detroit as Red Wings fans booed Larkin at the top of their lungs.

When could Larkin be active again?

Whether he will be active on Oct. 6, when the Ottawa Senators walk into town, remains to be seen. Considering McLellan recently lashed out at Larkin amid the trade drama, there might be reason to believe the center may not even be in Detroit by then.

That game is less than a week from the season debut, but it feels like the calm has finally gone, and the storm will hit Motor City at any moment now. After a whole lot of nothing during the offseason, the market around Larkin may have come alive at last.

Larkin’s 2025-26 NHL season

Larkin is coming off a 74-game campaign in the 2025-26 NHL season during which he registered his lowest point production in the last five years but his highest goals total in that same stretch. Larkin recorded 67 points (34 goals and 33 assists).

Though he and Detroit failed to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 10th straight season and now own the longest active playoff drought in the NHL, Larkin tasted gold with Team USA at the 2026 Olympics.

According to Larkin’s statements, the historic feat in Milan, Italy, didn’t play a role in his trade request from the Red Wings. However, it would be quite a coincidence considering that he, Connor Hellebuyck, Brady Tkachuk, and, perhaps, Quinn Hughes, have all either asked for a trade, been traded, or been considering a change of scenery after the 2026 Olympics, their first championship in their pro careers.

Key takeaways

• Dylan Larkin is sidelined with a lingering upper-body injury from summer training.
• Head coach Todd McLellan confirmed Larkin will miss at least two games.
• Larkin recorded 67 points during the 2025-26 NHL regular season.

Addressing the media after making history to start the NHL campaign, Shesterkin was reminded of the fact that fellow Russian goaltender Ilya Sorokin of the New York Islanders had scored a goal before. Just like he said before, Shesterkin kept his stance on that goal being awarded to the netminder, proving it wasn’t simply out of envy because he hadn’t scored a goal before.

Now that he has, Shesterkin is still, jokingly, convinced Sorokin’s goal shouldn’t be taken seriously. And Shesterkin should know, because he knows what scoring a goal in the NHL feels like. The Rangers’ star is only one of 18 goalies in league history to experience that feeling. Sorokin is another, but in a different category.

“This one counts!” man-of-the-hour Shesterkin told reporters during his postgame media availability, as reported by Peter Baugh of The Athletic.

Why wouldn’t Sorokin’s goal count?

Contrary to Shesterkin, who pounced on a loose puck in the crease and sent it all the way down the ice and into the Lightning’s empty net, Sorokin’s lone NHL tally was quite different. Sorokin didn’t score a goalie goal; rather, he was credited with a goal.

Playing the Nashville Predators on March 1, 2025, the Preds pulled their goalie down two goals late in the game. Steven Stamkos misplaced a pass toward the blue line inside the offensive zone that ended up in the back of his own net. Because Sorokin was the last Islanders player to touch the puck after making a blocker save, he was credited with the goal.

Just like Shesterkin insists it shouldn’t count, Sorokin had also mocked the Rangers’ goalie after his first NHL goal. Clearly, the friendship between the two runs deep, and they always have the other in mind when accomplishing great feats in their careers.

Iron sharpens iron, and that competitive spirit running through the Russian goalies’ friendship has definitely yielded results.

NHL goalie goals history

Across NHL history, there have been only 21 goalie goals scored by 18 different goaltenders. Ron Hextall, with two, and Martin Brodeur, with three, are the only netminders to score more than once.

Of the 21 goals, 13 were scored intentionally by the goalies shooting at the empty net, while the rest, including Sorokin’s, were credited to them because they were the last player on the scoring team to touch the puck.

Key takeaways

• Igor Shesterkin scored a goal during the Rangers’ 5-1 home-opening win over Tampa Bay.
• Ilya Sorokin previously earned a goal credit after Steven Stamkos scored an own goal.
• NHL history features 21 goalie goals scored by 18 different netminders overall.

“The New York Rangers are putting Joonas Korpisalo on IR. He’s week-to-week with a lower-body injury,” Mollie Walker of the New York Post reported on X.

Korpisalo, whom the Rangers sent Boston Bruins prospect Kalle Vaisanen and a fourth-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft for, didn’t log a single second of action in New York’s tough loss against Boston on opening night. Thus, it remains uncertain what the root of his lower-body injury was. What is clear, however, is that it’s not a nothing issue, as Korpisalo will be placed on Injured Reserve and is trending to miss at least a week.

Needless to say, watching Korpisalo get injured before he even got a nod between the pipes was discouraging, and the fans in the Big Apple showed their frustration. Still, looking at the bright side of things, it means Garand, who was expected to start the season with AHL affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack, will get a chance to showcase himself in New York right away. In the end, Garand will be back with the Rangers before he even made his season debut in the minors.

Garand set to fill in as backup

Garand probably won’t start during the home opener at Madison Square Garden against the Tampa Bay Lightning, but perhaps he’ll be manning the crease when the Blueshirts take on the Detroit Red Wings in a heated Friday night game in Motor City, where two desperate Original Six, 101-year-old organizations will meet.

So far, Garand has only played three games in the NHL, so the Blueshirts are eager to see what he can do in a bigger sample size. The fact that his call-up was unexpected and caught him by surprise may be a useful indicator of how he adapts to the ever-changing NHL environment.

Garand’s stats in the NHL

Through his first three starts, Garand has put up a 1.62 goals-against average (GAA) and a .948 save percentage (SV%), stopping 91 of the 96 shots he’s faced so far. It’s encouraging, but fans in New York have short memories, and all that matters is how Garand plays this season, when he could actually compete for the backup role.

Moreover, playing on the few nights Igor Shesterkin can get a rest, the pressure is on Garand not to mess up and to give his team the best chance at winning.

Key takeaways

• Joonas Korpisalo was placed on Injured Reserve with a week-to-week lower-body injury.
• The New York Rangers will recall Dylan Garand to serve as the backup netminder.
• Garand holds a 1.62 goals-against average through his first three NHL starts.

In every NHL locker room, different personalities coexist. That also means there are different ways players and coaches react to losses. Even captains and managers may approach losses differently. While J.T. Miller avoided overreacting after the loss to the Bruins, Sullivan didn’t necessarily overreact, but he did call out errors and put the Rangers on the spot.

“We turned pucks over in the wrong areas of the rink,” Sullivan said after the game, via Mollie Walker of the New York Post. “I thought we were trying to play a little bit too much east-west, instead of simplifying, and playing straight ahead.

“We were standing on pucks instead of moving our feet. When you stand on pucks, the world closes in on you out there. We try to encourage the guys to move our feet. I think that’s a discipline that we’ve got to develop.”

Rangers’ giveaways lead to goals

It was a common trend all night long. The Rangers managed to survive until late in the third period, but eventually, repeatedly shooting themselves in the foot led to disaster. In fact, both of the goals the Bruins scored past Igor Shesterkin (the third goal was on an empty net) came off turnovers by the Rangers in the neutral zone.

Fraser Minten broke the deadlock with 3:46 left in regulation. That play started with a turnover in the neutral zone. Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov lifted a puck out of the D-zone and into center ice, but it was intercepted, leading to a fast break for Minten, who shot from a distance to beat Shesterkin on the blocker side.

Less than a minute later, Mika Zibanejad turned over the puck at the end of his shift in the neutral zone again. J.J. Peterka embarrassed Braden Schneider with a nifty move, and he beat Shesterkin five-hole. That was all she wrote for the Rangers. Not only did their reckless puck management cost them, but it was their top forward and top-pair defenseman who were responsible for the errors.

The decisive factor

Otherwise, the game had been evenly matched in every aspect. New York finished the night with 24 shots against Boston’s 23. Both sides committed only one minor penalty and went scoreless on their lone power-play attempts. Faceoff wins were split evenly, 50-50, both had four takeaways each, and New York had just a handful fewer blocked shots than Boston.

The main difference aside from the scoreboard? The Rangers gave away the puck 20 times, while the Bruins had only 10 giveaways. That, in turn, explains the 3-0 difference in the final score.

Key takeaways

• Mike Sullivan criticized the NY Rangers for turning over the puck after a 3-0 loss.
• Fraser Minten broke the deadlock with 3:46 left in regulation.
• The Rangers committed 20 giveaways compared to just 10 by the Bruins.

Even though head coach Mike Sullivan defended the Rangers’ lines to face the Bruins, his plan didn’t work. The Rangers couldn’t get anything going all night long, and goalie Jeremy Swayman—who won the gold medal at the 2026 Olympics alongside J.T. Miller and Mike Sullivan—managed to stop all 24 shots the Blueshirts put on net.

It was a disappointing performance for the Blueshirts to start the year on. However, Miller is looking at the silver lining, and he believes the team will only go up from here.

“It’s Game 1. If we had won the game I would be saying the same thing,” Miller stated, via NHL.com. “We’re going to get better as we go here. We did some good things tonight as a team that we can build off of, but we just gave up a little too much easy offense for the other team. And if you give them enough, they’re going to capitalize at some point.”

NY Rangers suffer another shutout loss in opener

Indeed, starting with a shutout loss means there may not be much lower to go, but New York should learn from last season’s lesson. Just because the Rangers can’t dig themselves any lower doesn’t mean they will necessarily climb upward. In fact, New York also lost 3-0 in its 2025-26 NHL season opener, and everybody in Manhattan has a fresh memory of how that story played out for the Blueshirts.

Last season, it took the Rangers four games to score a single goal on home ice. It wouldn’t be until mid-November that they actually won a game at Madison Square Garden.

NY Rangers must turn the tide

Needless to say, neither Miller nor Sullivan nor any Ranger will want to relive those traumas, not after everything they’ve been through in the last 12 months. Still, it will take much more than words to turn the team’s situation around.

Fans in The Big Apple have already grown sick and tired of that gimmick. In fact, it’s a big reason why many resist Miller’s captaincy, as he is often more notable postgame than on the ice.

The opener to the 2026-27 NHL season, in more ways than one, is identical to that of 2025-26. The Rangers were blanked and fans braced for another long season while Miller took some of the weight off the loss with a statement that does little to quiet the noise around town. This time around, however, New York is under more pressure to deliver, and thus the consequences might be harsher for everyone involved.

Key takeaways

• J.T. Miller urged calm, stating the team will get better as they go.
• The NY Rangers opened their season with a 3-0 loss to the Boston Bruins.
• Goalie Jeremy Swayman stopped all 24 shots to secure the shutout victory.

Although it was likely forgotten by several fans during the dog days of summer, McAvoy’s suspension has been a long time coming and Boston knew it would be without its best blueliner to start the 2026-27 NHL season.

After being scheduled for an in-person hearing at the NHL’s offices in New York City, McAvoy received a six-game suspension for slashing Buffalo Sabres forward Zach Benson during last season’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. As a result of McAvoy’s third-career suspension, the blueliner will miss the first six games of the 2026-27 NHL season, including opening night at TD Garden against the Rangers.

Why was McAvoy suspended?

Down 4-1 in an elimination Game 6 against the Sabres in the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, McAvoy lost his cool. After chasing a puck down the ice side by side with Benson, the forward made McAvoy trip up and fall near the boards. The Bruins’ blueliner immediately retaliated with a vicious slash over his head that hit Benson in the arm but could’ve been even worse.

McAvoy was assessed a major penalty for slashing along with a game misconduct. That wasn’t the end of it, as McAvoy was scheduled for an in-person hearing, which revealed the suspension would be at least five games. In the end, McAvoy received the minimum suspension length for players with in-person hearings (six games).

Because the Bruins were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in Game 6 against the Sabres, McAvoy has to serve his suspension to start the regular season.

When will McAvoy return?

McAvoy is healthy and available to play as soon as the suspension is served, so the Bruins should have him back on the ice by Oct. 14, when they face off against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center at San Jose.

Who is replacing McAvoy?

With McAvoy suspended and away from the ice to start the regular campaign, Will Borgen (the former New York Rangers’ blueliner) will play on the top defensive pairing alongside Hampus Lindholm.

Key takeaways

• Charlie McAvoy received a six-game suspension for slashing Sabres forward Zach Benson.
• The defenseman will return Oct. 14 when Boston faces the San Jose Sharks.
• Will Borgen will play top-pairing defense alongside Hampus Lindholm during the absence.

In case Sullivan forgot, he was reminded right away—before the Broadway Blueshirts even took to the ice. As the Rangers‘ forward lines and defensive pairings were reported for opening night against the Boston Bruins, it didn’t take long for fans to share their opinions and debate whether the lineup was correctly assembled.

Sullivan should consider himself lucky the Rangers got away with their risky waivers decision on Dylan Garand; otherwise, the buzz would be even louder. Ahead of the away game against the Bruins, Sullivan made an honest statement, standing by his players and easing some of the pressure off them by reassuring them they will not be on a short leash, at least not to start the season.

“Part of the reason we left [the lineup] that way is because we liked what we saw. So we didn’t feel the need to try to change for the sake of change,” Sullivan admitted before the Rangers’ season opener, via Mollie Walker of the New York Post. “At the end of the day, we don’t think at this point there was a need to try to explore other options. We want to se what we have, and then we’ll evaluate accordingly.“

Fans aren’t convinced about the lineup

Virtually every fan in New York was excited to learn that fifth overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, Alberts Smits, will make his pro debut when the Rangers take on the Bruins at TD Garden. However, that was about as far as unanimous opinions went among the fanbase.

Sticking with Smits, not many liked the decision to pair him with Braden Schneider, who is in a contract year and coming off trade rumors over the offseason, on the third D-man pairing. “Poor Smits,” a fan replied to Walker’s report on the team’s lines for the season debut. “I don’t like Smits with Schneider,” another fan wrote.

Sullivan addresses potential lineup changes

Clearly, fans have their doubts about Sullivan’s lineup decision to start the season, but they must first watch the team play before making up their minds. If things turn south, Sullivan made it clear he is open to adjusting, but will also give the lines and pairings time to build chemistry. Otherwise, New York would be shooting itself in the foot.

“There’s always a fine line between allowing groups to build some chemistry, allow them to play through some of the early challenges, and whether or not you think you need to affect some change. I think every circumstance is unique,” Sullivan stated.

“I think it’s more about a coach’s intuition and a coaching staff’s intuition. We’ll evaluate after every game, we’ll evaluate after every day, and we’ll try to make the best decisions for the team.”

NY Rangers’ opening-night lineup

Key takeaways

• Mike Sullivan stood by his lineup for the Rangers’ opener against Boston.
• Alberts Smits will make his pro debut on New York’s third D-pairing.
• Sullivan expressed openness to adjusting lines if the team needs future changes.