Postgame Notes: Rangers at Sabres 02.15.19

Team Notes

• 20/20 VISION -Pavel Buchnevich recorded his 20th point of the season in tonight's game. Seven different Rangers have tallied 20 or more points thus far in 2018-19 (Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Kevin Hayes, Mats Zuccarello, Jimmy Vesey, Neal Pionk, and Buchnevich).
• TWO GOOD -The Blueshirts have allowed two goals or fewer in two of the last three games and in six of the last 14 contests. New York has posted a 17-2-0 record when allowing two or fewer goals in a game this season.
• FIRST IN SCORE -New York recorded the first goal of the game for the fourth time in the last six contests and for the 28th time in 57 contests in 2018-19.
• SHOOTING GALLERY -The Rangers recorded 29 shots on goal in tonight's game, and 15 of 18 skaters registered at least one shot on goal in the game.
• HOT AT THE DOT -The Blueshirts won 33 of 60 faceoffs in tonight's game (55.0%).
• BEATING BUFFALO -New York posted a 2-1-0 record in its three-game season series against Buffalo in 2018-19. The Rangers have won 15 of their last 19 games against the Sabres, dating back to Apr. 19, 2013 (15-4-0 record over the span). New York has also won six of its last seven games against Buffalo, dating back to Feb. 2, 2017 (6-1-0 record).

Three Stars on Broadway

• Vladislav Namestnikovtied a single-game career-high with three points (two goals, one assist) and posted a plus-three rating. He was selected as the game's First Star. Namestnikov posted a three-point game for the sixth time in his NHL career, including the second time this season (also on Dec. 18 vs. Anaheim). Namestnikov's team has posted an 86-23-4 record in the 113 games which he has tallied a point in his NHL career.
• Pavel Buchnevichtallied two points (one goal, one assist) and posted a plus-two rating in tonight's game. He was selected as the game's Second Star. Buchnevich*has recorded a goal/point in each of the last two games (two goals, one assist). In addition, he has notched five points (two goals, three assists) in the last five games and eight points (four goals, four assists) in his last 11 games. Buchnevich has tallied 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in 40 games this season, and 17 of his 21 points have either been a goal or the primary assist on a goal.
• Alexandar Georgiev*made 31 saves, stopped 29 of 30 shots he faced at even strength, and stopped all 13 shots he faced in the third period to earn his ninth win of the 2018-19 season. He has earned a win in each of his last three appearances (1.95 GAA and a .950 SV% over the span). Georgiev made his 20th appearance of the 2018-19 season tonight. Since Mike Richter appeared in at least 20 games in back-to-back seasons in 1989-90 and 1990-91 (he had rookie status for both seasons), Georgiev is one of only four Rangers goalies who have appeared in at least 20 games in a season as a rookie (Dan Cloutier - 1998-99; Dan Blackburn - 2001-02; Henrik Lundqvist - 2005-06). Georgiev ranks second among NHL rookie goaltenders in appearances and ranks fourth among NHL rookie goaltenders in wins this season.

Blueshirt Breakdown

• Kevin Hayesrecorded two assists and posted a plus-two rating. He has notched seven points (three goals, four assists) in the last eight games. He has also tallied 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists) in his last 20 games and 37 points (11 goals, 26 assists) in his last 37 games. Hayes ranks second on the Rangers in assists (27) and ranks third on the team in points (40) this season. Hayes has registered 40 or more points in each of the last three seasons and in four of five seasons in his NHL career. The Rangers have posted a 108-34-21 record in games which he has recorded a point in his career.
• Boo Nievestallied the first goal of the game, recorded two shots on goal, and posted a plus-one rating.
• Jesper Fastregistered a goal, was credited with two hits, and posted a plus-two rating. He is tied for fourth on the Rangers in even strength goals (eight) and ranks sixth on the team in even strength points (18) this season.
• Jimmy Veseyrecorded the game-winning goal, registered two shots on goal, and posted a plus-two rating. He has tallied a goal/point in two of the last three games (two goals), and both goals have been game-winning goals. Vesey ranks third on the Rangers in even strength goals (12) and is tied for third on the team in goals (13) this season. In addition, 24 of Vesey's 27 points in 2018-19 have either been a goal or the primary assist on a goal, and he is one point away from tying his career-high (28 - 2017-18). Vesey recorded three goals/points in three games against the Sabres this season. In addition, he has tallied a goal/point in three of the last four games against Buffalo (five goals, one assist in the four contests). Since he joined the Rangers prior to the start of the 2016-17 season, Vesey leads the team in game-winning goals (13).
• Tony DeAngelotallied an assist, established a single-game career-high with a plus-four rating, was assessed a fighting major, and registered three shots on goal. He has recorded an assist/point in each of the last two games (two assists) and in four of the last six games (four assists). DeAngelo has also registered seven points (two goals, five assists) in his last 12 games and is tied for second among Rangers defensemen in points in 2018-19 (16). The Rangers have posted a 22-11-5 record in games which he has played this season, including an 8-3-2 record in games which he has registered a point. DeAngelo has posted a plus-one rating or better in seven of his last 13 games (plus-10 rating over the span).
• Kevin Shattenkirktallied an assist and tied a single-game career-high with a plus-four rating. He ranks second among Rangers defensemen in assists (14) and is tied for second among Rangers defensemen in points (16) this season.
• Brendan Smithrecorded an assist and posted a plus-one rating.
• Ryan Strometallied an assist, won eight of 13 faceoffs (61.5%), and posted a plus-three rating. He extended his assist/point streak to three games.
• Mats Zuccarellorecorded an assist in tonight's game. He has registered a point in 12 of the last 13 games which he has played, and he has tallied 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) over the span. Zuccarello has also tallied five assists/points over the last three games.
• Connor Brickleyled the Rangers with three hits, registered two shots on goal, and posted a plus-one rating while making his Rangers debut in tonight's contest. Brickley is the 1,059th player (and 974th skater) who has appeared in a regular season game with the Rangers in franchise history.