ST. PAUL, Minn. \u2014 For a majority of this season, it felt like not a single bounce went the Rangers\u2019 way.<\/p>\n
Since the Olympic break, however, puck luck has been on their side.<\/p>\n
Good teams make their own luck, and the way the Blueshirts have been playing lately \u2014 most recently in a 4-2 win over the Wild Saturday night \u2014 indicates as much. <\/p>\n
The Rangers may have had some roster turnover since the start of the season, but they are competing like a much different team than the one that took the ice through the first four months of the season.<\/p>\n
They are in sync and pushing forward as a five-man unit.<\/p>\n
They are defending the dangerous areas of the ice much more productively.<\/p>\n
Vincent Trocheck celebrates after scoring a goal in the second period of the Rangers\u2019 4-2 road win over the Wild on March 14, 2026. NHLI via Getty Images<\/p>\n
The general dynamic and chemistry are leaps and bounds from what they were just last month.<\/p>\n
It has them riding their first four-game winning streak of the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a lot of the first half of the year, we couldn\u2019t see the puck go in the net, right?\u201d said captain J.T. Miller, who returned to the lineup after a five-game absence due to an upper-body injury. \u201cI think, right now, we\u2019re executing on a lot of the plays. Obviously, we got some guys stepping up and playing really well also. Just high execution. Finally getting those pucks to go in that net that we were missing in the first half of the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a good feeling around here right now. You know, it\u2019s been a hard year. But feels good to win some games and try to string some together here.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rangers pieced together a strong first half of the game, but an abundance of penalties made life difficult after that.<\/p>\n
A diving Igor Shesterkin makes one of his 45 saves during the Rangers\u2019 win over the Wild. Nick Wosika-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
Still, the penalty kill fended off six of the Wild\u2019s seven power plays, including a four-minute high-sticking penalty that carried over from the end of the second period into the third.<\/p>\n
Limited to just one shot on goal in the third period, the Rangers hung on as Minnesota ultimately dumped a staggering 48 shots on Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin throughout the night.<\/p>\n
Adam Edstrom (left) and Michael McCarron collide during the Rangers\u2019 win over the Wild. Nick Wosika-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
When Joel Eriksson Ek swiped Shesterkin in the crease, however, the Rangers on the ice went absolutely berserk in defense of their star goaltender.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot anyone in the league is allowed to touch him,\u201d said Vladislav Gavrikov, who led the Rangers with his first career three-point game (one goal, two assists).<\/p>\n
Added head coach Mike Sullivan: \u201cI thought it was appropriate. Igor is in the blue paint. They buzz through the blue paint, it\u2019s interference. I thought our guys did a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Miller slotted onto the right wing of the second line next to Will Cuylle and Vincent Trocheck, which bumped Adam Edstrom to the middle of the fourth unit. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The last time Edstrom played center dates to when he was still playing in Sweden.<\/p>\n
Prior to Saturday night, Edstrom had taken only seven faceoffs over his parts of three seasons in New York.<\/p>\n
Jonny Brodzinski, Juuso Parssinen and Vincent Iorio served as healthy scratches Saturday night.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRead the expert take on the Blueshirts\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for Inside the Rangers, a weekly Sports+ exclusive.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Parssinen got a run of five contests in his first recall since suffering a hand injury earlier this season in Hartford, but he wasn\u2019t able to make much of an impact as he was limited to zero points and three shots on goal.<\/p>\n