Boy, what a different team the Rangers are when Chris Kreider is going.
Inconsistency has been the theme during this tumultuous start to the season, and Kreider has not been exempt from that designation. But he was the best version of himself on Saturday night in Montreal, when the Blueshirts staged a dramatic comeback win over the Canadiens, erasing a 4-0 second-period deficit en route to a 6-5 victory.
Kreider’s first shift, he laid a huge hit on Tomas Tatar — maybe a little high, but it went unpenalized (and Tatar returned). With the Rangers having lost an ugly 4-1 game in Ottawa the night before, the message for the follow-up was clear from the beginning.
Kreider then flew up and down the ice all night, staying physical, making plays with the puck. He got to the front of the net constantly to take away Carey Price’s lines of vision, and eventually made a highlight-reel pass — blind, backhand, through-the-legs — popped in by Artemi Panarin to make the score 5-4, answering the Habs’ goal early in the third period.
“He was outstanding,” said coach David Quinn, who moved Kreider up to the right side of the top line with Panarin and Ryan Strome. “He was dialed in on the ice, he was dialed in off the ice. He means so much to our team.”
This has not been an easy start to the season for the 28-year-old Kreider, who didn’t have a goal for the first seven games and now has five to go with six assists in the first 21 contests. There is the looming issue of this being the final year of his contract, possibly an attractive rental piece before the February trade deadline with a cap-hit of $4.625 million.
But for now, he is not just with the Rangers, but is an integral part of their leadership group.
With the club having had a handful of very down moments en route to its 10-9-2 record, Kreider has often been the lone veteran voice in the locker room outside of Henrik Lundqvist, especially with veterans Mika Zibanejad having missed the past 12 games with an upper-body injury and with Marc Staal out for the past seven after ankle surgery. But Kreider has sat there for as long as needed, often staring into the distance, trying to come up with reasons why the team efforts have been so inconsistent.
He has been candid, like when he sat in the visiting room in Ottawa and explained how the effort was unacceptable. And also like Saturday, following his whale of a game, when he said that these highs carry the most meaning when followed up with another steady effort — something the Rangers have struggled mightily to do, and something they get a chance to do on Monday night when Mats Zuccarello and the Wild come to the Garden.
“For a while now, it’s been win one and play the right way, and lose one and get away from the things we do well,” Kreider said. “We really need to put this one behind us in a hurry and make sure we’re prepared for that game on Monday.”
Kreider laughed a bit when he said that, because he knows that no one is putting this game behind them in a hurry. When the Rangers were down, 4-0, things could have gotten ugly fast. They had been playing well, but a few soft ones from goalie Alexandar Georgiev could have been deflating. They’ve crumbled in smaller moments already.
Instead, they buckled down and kept fighting. It showed a level of previously unknown resolve, and Kreider was integral in the attitude and the execution. With such a young team, there needs to be leadership by example. It’s hard to think of a better example than the game Kreider played on Saturday.
“I’m really happy for him,” Quinn said. “He gave everything he had, on and off the ice. He was pivotal on the bench. Just a great effort by Chris.”