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NEW YORK – Looking at his disappointing point total this season, Kaapo Kakko offered this blunt assessment.
“Sometimes I feel like I’ve had too much going on,” the Rangers forward said last week. “I need to shoot more.”
Validation came in Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Stars at Madison Square Garden.
Kakko fired a top-notch wrist shot into a tight window over the right shoulder of Dallas goalie Scott Wedgewood for his seventh goal of the season, four of which came in the last nine games.
“I had a good opportunity right before that,” Kakko said. “(Jonny Brodzinski) passed it to me behind the net and I couldn’t see the puck, so I didn’t shoot when I got it. Then I had the chance again and I thought it was a good lane. I tried to shoot.”
It was the decisive score in the Blueshirts’ victory over the Central Division’s top team, tying the 23-year-old’s career-high point streak through five games.
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With that production there has been an obvious increase in confidence. Kakko has been making the rounds recently and was particularly notable on Tuesday, whether protecting pucks in the offensive zone or dropping back hard on defense.
“This is the best he’s ever looked,” head coach Peter Laviolette said before the game. “To me, he’s moving his feet, he’s creating, he’s playing with a certain attitude and a certain edge. The line (with Jonny Brodzinski and Will Cuylle) has been good, but I think he’s a big part of driving that line. From “So he’s back from his (left leg) injury, but he seems to be getting stronger and stronger in his game.”
Continuing to build on this streak will be critical in the Rangers’ effort to lengthen their lineup, especially after losing veteran right-hander Blake Wheeler for at least the remainder of the regular season.
The next step for Laviolette is to find more ways to utilize Kakko, who was limited to a modest 12:21 on ice on Tuesday and hasn’t eclipsed 14:11 in a month.
“He had another strong game,” the coach said. “I have to find a way to expose him more. That’s on me, because he’s playing well right now… The shot on the short side: most of the night we used the glove, when we needed to block. He went for the short side of that and the blocker and scored a really nice goal. I think confidence plays into that. I see it. He looks confident on the ice. He’s demanding the puck, and when he has it, it’s tough. “You have to take it away from him. . He’s trying to find the areas to score goals and be effective.”
Avoid emotional disappointment
Kakko isn’t the only one on top lately.
The Rangers (37-16-3) have won a season-high eight straight games, their longest streak since 2015-16, and avoided falling into a trap after Sunday’s epic 6-overtime victory. 5 against the Islanders in the NHL Stadium Series.
“It would have been easy for us, after that emotional win, to maybe be a little disappointed with our energy here,” defenseman Adam Fox said. “But I thought we were going well from the beginning.”
They rode that momentum into the showdown with the Stars and came out flying.
They dished out 15 hits in the first period alone, including some by rookie bigs Adam Edström and Matt Rempe that riled up the MSG crowd. They were limited to 7:47 and 5:08 TOI, respectively, but made their presence felt when they were on the ice.
“Their minutes are not a reflection of them not playing well,” said Laviolette, who noted that a total of eight penalties between the two teams disrupted the line rotation. “They showed. I’m happy with the way they played. They definitely bought a physical presence from the beginning. They receive it in the front, leave it behind and come, and go. to hit bodies.”
The Rangers also created dangerous scoring opportunities in that lively first half.
As usual, the Artemi Panarin-Vincent Trocheck-Alexis Lafrenière line was at the center of some of them (on pace to outscore the Stars by a 9-2 margin, per Natural Stat Trick) and helped create the goal. that provided an early 1-0 lead.
It was scored by Fox, who has been shining with seven points (one goal and six assists) in his last three games, but it wouldn’t have happened without Lafrenière fighting up front to knock Wedgewood out of position and Panarin sneaking into the back of the net. for first assistance.
That score stood until Kakko doubled the lead at the 8:23 mark in the second period, which was quickly followed by a power-play goal from Miro Heiskanen to cut the Stars deficit to 2-1.
But that would be the extent of Dallas’ scoring.
“We’ve been winning in different ways,” Fox said. “This is the time when you see that points are so crucial. You start to get a picture of the playoffs, you see winning eight games in a row and the teams are still there with you. “You can’t take your foot off the gas, and I think we recognize that.”
Igor Shesterkin finishes strong
The Rangers allowed 42 shots, but limited their opponent to nine high-danger scoring opportunities in five-on-five play. And when they needed a big save from Igor Shesterkin, they got it.
“Our best player in net was Shesty tonight,” Laviolette said. “He did everything he had to do to make sure we got the win.”
The 28-year-old goalkeeper was under siege for long periods on Sunday against the Isles and had some shaky moments, particularly in the first half. He joked that the only two people who didn’t enjoy the memorable clash were him and opposing goalkeeper Ilya Sorokin, and the two combined to allow 11 goals.
“I usually give up fewer goals in training than I did in this game,” Shesterkin said with a smile.
But he was on point Tuesday, finishing with 41 saves. That included a wind glove save on Wyatt Johnston late in the second period and a few in the third as the Stars tried to tie it up.
The most impressive came with 4:18 left, when Tyler Seguin broke free in front of the Rangers net and fired two point-blank shots from inside the box. Shesterkin knocked down the first one with his skate, then dove onto the ice and extended his stick to stop the rebound attempt.
The local public showed their appreciation by serenading him with chants of “I-gor! I-gor!” after the disc was covered.
“I just tried to play until the end,” Shesterkin said. “If it had gone high it would have been a goal, but tonight I was lucky.”
There was more than luck involved in No. 31’s fourth straight win, which improved his overall record to 23-12-1.
Trocheck closed out the evening with an empty-net goal, his 19th goal of the season, capping another encouraging night for the Rangers’ most important player.
“Everyone is on the same page right now,” Shesterkin said. “Just support each other, play for each other and try to do your best.”
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more about his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.