Over the last few weeks we’ve been awfully busy here at the Breakdown. With football and the baseball postseason underway, I’m sad to say our Rangers season preview fell by the wayside. But we’re resurrecting the theme of it in this quick recap of last nights home opener. If you read our title then you no doubt get it by now, but I was going to talk about this team needing to give us something to cheer about.

Over the last two seasons, the Blueshirts faithful haven’t had a lot to cheer about as the play on the ice and decision off it have been equally bad at times. It’s been tough to see fan favorite depart while the players here haven’t lived up to their hype or paycheck. While the improvements to the roster this summer made sense, we needed to see this team on the ice to restore the MSG crowd’s roar. They needed to start earning back our trust in Tuesday nights season opener in Boston didn’t exactly help that cause, as the Rangers lost 3-0. Tampa was next on the slate for the home opener, an opponent who usually beats up on the Rangers.

But this team flipped the script Thursday night at the world’s most famous arena, winning 5-1. They played an extremely complete game, controlling all three zones and playing with aggression and speed. It was pretty much the kind of game plan that Mike Sullivan and Chris Drury envisioned them executing when they assembled this group.

The powerplay got off the mark thanks to good movement off the puck and a fired up Mika Zibanejad wiring one home for an early lead. Number 93 was followed by a first lamplighter in blue for Pavel Dorofeyev who looked dangerous all night long. 2-0 became three thanks to the energetic stylings of the bottom six, as Will Cuylle and Eli Tolvanen teamed up for a greasy finish behind Vasi in the Tampa cage. We even got a vintage Adam Fox “shot pass” off the stick of Gabe Perreault to make it a 4-1 game. If you were in the building you had gotten your moneys worth to that point…but this is Madison Square Garden, a place where special things happen!

Do not scratch your eyes, it finally happened!!! For the first time in the franchises 101 season history, a goalie scored a goal, and it was none other Igor Shesterkin. The crowd went nuts, roaring like an OT winner was just scored. Hats were thrown on the ice, MSG ushers joined in on the goal song, hell even strangers hugged and jumped up and down together. For the first time in what a feels like forever, Rangers hockey was…fun again? Good for Igor, he’s been gunning for a goal for years now, so to see him finally do it was awesome. His teammates love him plenty as is, but we can start filling out the MVP ballots if he’s gonna keep scoring.

I’ve been hopeful this year’s team can get this franchise back on the right track. It’s going to take time and there will be some growing pains but I do genuinely believe they’re capable of good things. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but the fan base but at least for one night, the vibes were good and the fanbase had a moment together. A moment right out of the last 15 years of great moments. One we all jump off the couch celebrating or leave the World’s Most Famous Arena feeling elated about. For one night, the 26-27 Rangers gave us something to cheer about, let’s hope it all continues the rest of the way!

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