Artemiy Panarin finished the first episode

Russian forwards of the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning Artemi Panarin and Nikita Kucherov continue to prove that they are in fantastic shape. Panarin’s double in the match with the New Jersey Devils provided him with a club and domestic record for the longest scoring streak since the start of the NHL regular season. It has already stretched to 15 matches. And Kucherov’s two goals plus an assist in the meeting with the Edmonton Oilers allowed him to get close to the leaders of the scorer and sniper races.

On this Saturday night, all representatives of the New York Rangers who happened to have a microphone considered it their duty to say something good about Artemy Panarin. Forward Jimmy Vesey called him the player who “makes a difference.” Coach Peter Laviolette pointed out that whenever the trio of Panarin, Vincent Trocheck and Alexi Lafreniere entered the court, the opponent felt threatened. And this, he meant, is a common situation now.

It was a great opportunity to talk about the merits of Artemy Panarin and how they help his partners improve their efficiency. A difficult match has just ended, in which the visiting Rangers were inferior in the score, in which New Jersey, it seemed, even at some point achieved a turning point, but which ultimately resulted in a win for the New York club – 5: 3. He slightly strengthened the team’s already strong position at the top of the Metropolitan Division table (in 15 matches there were only three misfires, the closest pursuer, the Washington Capitals, was five points behind). Panarin made a huge contribution to it, scoring two goals. He was the first to hit the corner in the power play from almost zero angle, and opened the scoring. The second – after a lightning-fast shot immediately after a won face-off in the style of Alexander Ovechkin – he equalized in the final period, eliminating the lead New Jersey had recently gained and injecting his team with a solid dose of adrenaline and courage.

Both episodes seemed to emphasize the upgrade experienced by Artemy Panarin in the current season. Before him, he was perceived more as a playmaker, who could, on occasion, put an end to an attack. This fall, Panarin has consistently demonstrated elite sniper skills and already has ten goals to his name.

And even more significant than the scale of his contribution to team success is the fact that thanks to the double, Artemy Panarin extended the series of matches in which he scored at least a point to 15 and surpassed two records at once by one game – domestic and club. Among Russian hockey players who played in the NHL, the longest scoring streak starting at the start of the regular season belonged to Dmitry Kvartalnov, who achieved it as a player for the Boston Bruins in 1992. Rangers’ achievement was even older. Established by Rod Gilbert, it has stood since 1972.

Moreover, Kvartalnov and Gilbert scored 22 and 23 points during their series. Panarin already has 26 of them in a dozen matches. Formally, on Sunday he was not yet in the top five in the scoring race. But in reality, he can be considered its shadow leader. The fact is that Quinn Hughes, JT Miller and Elias Pettersson from the Vancouver Canucks, who are at the top of the rating with 28 points, played three more games.

About as hot as Artemy Panarin, another super forward from Russia, Nikita Kucherov, who had a great home match against Edmonton. Tampa prevailed over the opponent with a score of 6:4, and Kucherov added an assist to his two goals.

And just after such a performance, he is located close to the top in both the bombardment and sniper classifications. Kucherov, like David Pastrnak from Boston, already has 27 points, and the number of goals he scored has increased to 13. In the sniper hierarchy, the Russian shares second place with Sam Rinehart from the Florida Panthers, Brock Boeser from Vancouver and Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs. And the leader, Kyle Connor from the Winnipeg Jets, was only a goal ahead of them.

Alexey Dospehov