Rangers set record among active teams for longest season-opening scoreless streak at home
The New York Rangers have set an NHL record, but it’s not the kind of record that you want to set. It’s also not even a record that you would think to set.
By not scoring through the first two periods of Tuesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers, the Rangers have established a record among active teams for the longest stretch to start a season without scoring a goal on home ice.
History at Madison Square Garden.
Rangers have surpassed the 2001-02 Panthers (155:17) for the longest season-opening streak without a goal on home ice among teams that still exist.
The now-defunct Pittsburgh Pirates are the only team with a longer streak (187:19 in 1928).
The Rangers proceeded to not score in the third period of the game as well, losing 2-0 to the Oilers, with Stuart Skinner getting the shutout.
The Rangers have started off their home schedule with a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins during last Tuesday’s season opener, followed by a 1-0 loss to the Washington Capitals on Sunday, with Arturs Silovs and Charlie Lindgren getting the shutout for their respective teams.
The record was previously held by the 2001-02 Florida Panthers, who went 155:17 of ice time at home before scoring their first goal, which came with less than five minutes left in the second period of their third home game of the season.
However, the Rangers don’t hold the record for the longest scoreless streak in NHL history just yet, as the Pittsburgh Pirates (not to be confused with the MLB team) went 187:19 of ice time at home without a goal in the 1928-29 season. The Pirates as a franchise operated from 1915 to 1931, but were only known as the Pirates from 1925 to 1930.
Despite the fact that the Rangers don’t have the longest scoreless streak in NHL history just yet, they are now the first team in NHL history to start their season without a goal through their first three home games. The Pirates still managed to score in their third game, as their first two games also went to overtime to give them more than 180 minutes in their first three games. The Rangers will have to go scoreless for the first 7:20 of next Monday’s game against the Minnesota Wild to set the new NHL record.
The Rangers will look to escape their woes at home when they start a two game road trip through Canada with a Thursday night matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday at 7 p.m. EST. New York is currently 2-3-0 through their first five games of the season.