Tarasenko makes impact quickly in Rangers debut after trade from Blues

NEW YORK -- Vladimir Tarasenko didn't need much time to make an impact in his New York Rangers debut.

The forward scored on his first shot at 2:49 of the first period in
a 6-3 win
against the Seattle Kraken at Madison Square Garden on Friday, one day after he was
acquired in a trade
with the St. Louis Blues.
Tarasenko, who started the game on a line with left wing Artemi Panarin and center Mika Zibanejad, scored on his second shift on a pass from Panarin to give New York a 1-0 lead. His first goal with the Rangers came after he had 262 over 11 seasons with the Blues.
Panarin and Tarasenko have been longtime friends and won gold with Russia at the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship.
"I don't think it matters who passes the puck, but it was nice to connect for a goal," Tarasenko said. "We hope more are coming. We'll get to know each other better and play well every game. … I know they (Panarin and Zibanejad) can make a play, so I just tried to be ready.
"I think sometimes we try too much. We enjoy playing with each other. Like I said, it was a lot of emotions."

Panarin agreed he and his new linemate clicked from the beginning, even with just one skate prior to the game.
"We tried to practice with each other
, a conditional first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. He arrived in New York on Thursday night and participated in the Rangers' morning skate at their practice facility Friday. His family was in attendance for the game, and he was named First Star after he finished with two shots on goal, six shot attempts, two blocked shots and one hit in 13:58 of ice time, which included 1:28 on the power play.
"I don't think I've ever experienced this in my life," Tarasenko said. "It's my first time getting traded in the NHL ... like, I spent 11 years in one city. The guys give us a very warm welcome. Everybody here was very nice to us. It was a crazy day, though."
Chants of "Tarasenko!" began shortly after he scored his first goal for New York.
"I was thinking I was hearing things," Tarasenko said. "It's amazing. … It's different. As a visitor, you don't really hear the crowd sometimes. When you get in the game you just walk on the ice, but as the home team, the support was unreal."
One player on the ice for the goal was Kraken forward Jaden Schwartz, who was Tarasenko's teammate with the Blues for nine seasons, including when they won the Stanley Cup in 2019.
"I think 'Vladi' will bring a lot [for them]," Schwartz said. "You see what he's done in this league for a long time now. He's got a special talent. Sometimes he can just kind of change the momentum in the game, whether it's a shot, or a power move or using his legs to get to the net.
"I think he's got a couple of good buddies on the Rangers, so I think it's probably a pretty good fit for him. I know he's probably really excited and they've got a good team and when they can add a guy like that, it's going to help them a lot."

Zibanejad said he learned of the trade via text message Thursday, which was an off day for New York and three weeks prior to the NHL Trade Deadline (March 3).
"I didn't believe it at first," Zibanejad said. "I don't know how often that happens or what the situation is, but we got the deal done a few weeks ahead, and that's obviously nice. For us to get those extra three weeks or whatever it would have been, to get to know him, that's obviously a huge thing."
NHL.com staff writer Mike G. Morreale contributed to this report