Going into this year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, no one knew what to expect of New York Rangers forward Mika Zibanejad.
Despite having 72 points (26 goals and 46 assists) this season, Zibanejad, 31, was inconsistent this year. Sometimes, he would pass up scoring opportunities or go stretches without putting the puck in the net.
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It appears that there was no reason for folks to worry about Zibanejad. Zibanejad is tied for second in the league in scoring with 10 points on three goals and seven assists.
There are a few reasons why Zibanejad is off to a great start in this year’s playoffs. For starters, he is playing with a lot of confidence.
A great example of this was his performance in his team’s 4-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1 of the second round on Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden. He scored his team’s first two goals of the game, added an assist, and also played well on the other side of the puck.
Zibanejad’s teammates can see that his confidence is at an all-time high right now. In speaking with reporters after the game, Rangers defenseman Braden Schneider explained how Zibanejad’s game is on another level right now.
“Everyone knows Mika is such a responsible player up and down the ice,” defenseman Braden Schneider said. “In the playoffs, for the start of this, he’s taken it to another level. He’s all over our D-zone, he’s talking, he’s breaking pucks out. And then he’s getting up and making things happen in the offensive zone as well. He’s a leader for us, and he sets the tone for us.”
Another reason why Zibanejad is playing so well right now is that he is putting himself in the right positions on the ice to create scoring chances. This was exactly the case in his two goals against the Hurricanes.
On both goals, he went to the slot and was there to fire the puck into an empty net as Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen was on the opposite side of the crease. In the playoffs, players need to be willing to go to the dirty areas to score goals, and that is exactly what Zibanejad did on Sunday.
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As mentioned above, he is also playing very well on the other side of the puck. He is forcing turnovers, is being put out on the ice to close out games for his hockey clubs, and is doing a great job of paying attention to all of the little details of the game.
After the game, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette told reporters that this is nothing new when it comes to Zibanejad.
“He’s somebody that we just count on for both sides of the puck,” coach Peter Laviolette said. “Tonight was more just a reflection of the regular season.”
Simply put, Zibanejad is clicking on all cylinders for the Rangers right now. If the Rangers are going to continue marching toward their first Cup in 30 years, he will need to continue being a force the rest of the way.
