This game was a reminder for the Rangers.
A reminder that the next best team could always be waiting around the corner with an ability to smack them back down to earth, no matter how authoritative they may look at that moment in time.
The Panthers, the defending Stanley Cup champions and club that knocked them out of the playoffs last season in the conference final, were that team Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, where the visitors handed the Blueshirts their first regulation loss of the season, 3-1.
Just like Florida ripped through the Rangers — after they were flying high with only two postseason losses — in that third-round playoff series, the Panthers tore through them again in their first meeting of the 2024-25 campaign, after the Rangers largely demolished each of their previous five opponents.
There wasn’t much bumping or bruising in this one, but the Panthers didn’t need their physicality. They beat on the Rangers with their play around the net, disruption of the neutral zone and taking advantage of all the pucks the home team sent to the middle of the ice.
The fact that Sergei Bobrovsky rediscovered his brilliance, after the Florida goalie gave up at least three goals in five of his last six starts, only created more problems for a Rangers team that hasn’t had any issues scoring goals so far this season.
Bobrovsky finished with 24 saves on 25 shots, while Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin made 26 stops on 29 shots.
Plus, for their first game against the team that ended their last season, the Rangers didn’t particularly have any juice or emotion.
The Panthers did to the Rangers what the Rangers have been doing to all of their opponents lately: caved them in early.
It took all of 44 seconds for the Panthers to open the scoring when Anton Lundell was left alone and capitalized on a feed from Sam Reinnhart as the Blueshirts overloaded the right side.
Florida repeatedly pounded the Rangers into their zone.
The neutral zone belonged to the Panthers. Rangers turnovers only made it worse, forcing Shesterkin to stay alert.
A weak clearing attempt around the boards was kept in by the Panthers before Carter Verhaeghe whipped one in to make it a 2-0 game less than three minutes in.
The Rangers cut the Panthers’ lead in half entering the first intermission. After hustling to keep the puck in, Alexis Lafreniere crashed the net, accepted a pointed feed from Adam Fox and backhanded it past Bobrovsky for the 2-1 score.
Sam Bennett’s tip of ex-Ranger Niko Mikkola’s shot less than seven minutes into the second period, however, proved to be a deflating goal.
Not even four power-play opportunities could get the Rangers into an offensive groove. Not even a six-on-four stretch with Shesterkin on the bench did it, either.
The Rangers’ man advantage totaled five shots on goal, but none could get by a sharp Bobrovsky.