[ad_1]
Frank Vatrano went from a bottom-six role on the Panthers to skating on the Rangers’ 1B line next to Artemi Panarin, a premier NHL talent, in a matter of 24 hours.
It was no doubt a whirlwind experience, but the 28-year-old Vatrano was thrown right into the fire of a high-octane rivalry game between the Rangers and the Islanders in front of a rowdy crowd of 18,006 at the Garden on St. Patrick’s Day.
The Islanders ultimately stole a 2-1 win Thursday night behind Kyle Palmieri’s goal at 17:16 of the third to spoil Vatrano’s Rangers debut.
But Vatrano, like the rest of the team, commended the Rangers’ effort. The versatile forward, however, was naturally still wrapping his head around getting traded, just a day earlier, from the club he had called home for five seasons.
“To come to a franchise like New York, a team that’s pushing for a Stanley Cup and has been a great team all year, I’m just coming here to help out and provide depth for this team,” Vatrano said in his first press conference as a Ranger. “Whether that’s scoring goals or being an energy force every single night. That’s a consistent part of my game that I have to bring every single night.”
Most players who are traded leading up to the deadline go from non-contending teams to contending teams, or vice versa. Vatrano left a playoff race in Florida, only to jump right into another in New York. And there are a lot of familiar faces on the Rangers for the East Longmeadow, Mass., native.
Vatrano noted that he and defenseman Jacob Trouba played a couple of seasons together with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program. He also played with Adam Fox and Chris Kreider at the World Championships, while Dryden Hunt overlapped with Vatrano on the Panthers for parts of three seasons.
Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said Vatrano can play on both wings, but opted to put him on the right side of Ryan Strome and Panarin. Vatrano said it meant a lot to have the Rangers trust him in the top six right off the bat.
“Unbelievable,” he said of playing next to Panarin. “I’ve always watched him before he even came in the league. Playing against him, he’s a special, special talent. It’s easy playing with him, just get open. He’ll find you with the puck.”
With such a quick turnaround, Vatrano said he focused on his effort to get himself into the game. In 14:47, Vatrano posted one shot on goal and one block. He nearly notched an assist in the first period when he passed up a shot in order to feed Panarin, who was robbed by Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin.
“Florida was my home, I was there for almost five years,” Vatrano said. “But to get a call and find out it’s the Rangers, I’m absolutely thrilled to be here. It’s a dream come true to play at Madison Square Garden and for the Rangers.
“Ownership, staff, coaches, all the way down to the players, have been very welcoming.”
Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin turned aside 26 of the 28 shots he faced in the loss, which was just his eighth defeat of the season.
After skating in 18 of the last 19 games for the Rangers, Julien Gauthier was scratched in favor of Vatrano. Defenseman Libor Hajek also was scratched.
[ad_2]