With NY Rangers in need of a jolt, Artemi Panarin likely to play Saturday

With the New York Rangers in need of something to feel good about, Artemi Panarin may be the ideal remedy.

The star forward practiced with the team again Friday in Boston and is likely to rejoin the lineup for Saturday’s 1 p.m. game against the Bruins.

“His infectious energy, I think, gives a little bit of a jolt to the group — just his smile and the curls flowing out there,” Ryan Strome said. “He’s just high-stepping on the ice and looks like he hasn’t missed a beat.”

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The Blueshirts could sure use a jolt.

They’ve lost three in a row, with the most recent defeat a disappointing shutout by the Bruins on Thursday. That dropped them to 10-12-3, nine points behind Boston for the fourth and final playoff spot in the East Division.

Their inconsistency has been troubling, with the team showing little push back after falling into an early deficit Thursday. The Rangers allowed a shorthanded goal late in the first period and then wilted in the second, managing only three shots on goal in the period.

“This isn’t something that has crept up on us,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “We’ve talked about it all year long. It’s something that we’ve got to continue to manage and do a better job of. It’s part of being a pro athlete. It’s part of being a successful team, and it’s part of being a successful player. How do you handle adversity? We’ve shown signs of doing a good job of it, but not enough.”

Quinn stopped short of confirming that Panarin will return Saturday after a nine-game leave of absence, but said “he’s certainly in the mix and conversation to play.”

Assuming he does, the coach said it would mean, “Everybody’s going to play with a little bit more confidence.”

“It would be good for any team under any circumstances to get Panarin back,” he added. “Anytime you add a player of that caliber, everybody should be excited and it certainly should make things a little bit better for us.”

New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin returned from his leave of absence for practice at TD Garden in Boston on Wednesday, March 10, 2021.

 (Photo: Kyle Dorony/NY Rangers)

The plan, Quinn said, is to play Panarin with Strome, who has been his regular center during his two-year tenure in New York.

There was some thought that the 29-year-old might instead play with Mika Zibanejad, who has managed only nine points and one even-strength goal through 25 games this season. Panarin played with him in the Feb. 20 win over the Washington Capitals — his final game before taking the leave of absence.

But for now, Quinn’s preference is to put him in a familiar role on Strome’s left, noting that they were “rotating” right-wingers on that line during practice.

“His mind’s as sharp and as good as anyone in this league, so hopefully we can get out there and make some plays, and hopefully he can provide a spark for a group,” Strome said. “It feels like we got the band back together.”

The Rangers have yet to make Panarin available for questions following uncorroborated allegations of assaulting an 18-year-old woman in 2011 from a former KHL coach, but he did “vehemently and unequivocally” deny the dubious accusations in an initial statement.

“He’s in a good spot,” Quinn said. “He’s been around for the last few days and he’s in a real good spot mentally. He’s excited to get back to play. We just want to make sure we put him in a position to succeed.”

Keith Kinkaid will get another start

While Panarin is likely to play Saturday, goalie Igor Shesterkin has been ruled out.

The 25-year-old is still dealing with a groin strain and will miss his fifth consecutive game.

“It’s a nagging situation,” Quinn said. “We don’t think it’s anything long term. It’s turning into a little bit longer than we thought, but he could wake up (Saturday) and be in a good position and play sooner than later. It really is day-to-day.”

Quinn announced that veteran Keith Kinkaid will get his second start of the season.

Few predicted the 31-year-old carving out such an important role, but it’s been necessitated by Alexandar Georgiev’s struggles.

The 25-year-old was pulled early for the second consecutive game Thursday and has now allowed seven goals on the last 20 shots he’s faced, dropping his save percentage to .887.

That crisis of confidence made turning to Kinkaid a no-brainer decision. The Long Island native has been solid in three appearances, posting a 2.21 goals against average while stopping 52 of the 57 shots he’s faced for a .912 SV%.

New York Rangers goaltender Keith Kinkaid (71) covers the puck next to Boston Bruins center Sean Kuraly (52) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, March 11, 2021, in Boston. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

 (Photo: The Associated Press) What will the lines look like?

With Panarin slated to play with Strome, the top line is expected to feature Zibanejad, Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich.

That’s what the Rangers’ top-six forwards looked like last season, with the only difference now being that Jesper Fast is playing in Carolina.

While Panarin was out, Kreider had mostly played left wing next to Strome, with that duo combining for 23 points in their nine games together. Meanwhile, rookie Alexis Lafrenière played with Zibanejad and Buchnevich.

But Quinn reunited Kreider, Zibanejad and Buchnevich on Thursday as a result of Strome’s unit “having a hard time” with Boston’s No. 1 line of David Pastrnak, Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand.

“They give everything trouble,” Quinn said. “It’s not just us. We’ve got to just do a little bit better job managing pucks when they’re out there and being a little bit more physical on them and playing through them to slow them down a little bit. But they’re tough to slow down. Those guys are the best line hockey for a reason.”

New York Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren (55) grabs Boston Bruins center Brad Marchand (63) along the boards during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, March 11, 2021, in Boston.

 (Photo: Elise Amendola/AP)

The only remaining top-six question is who will play right wing next to Panarin and Strome?

The logical choice would be Kaapo Kakko, except that he finished Thursday’s game on what Quinn called the “the kid line” with Lafrenière and Filip Chytil.

Quinn didn’t fully commit to keeping them together, but did say, “That’s something we’re certainly going to experiment with moving forward.”

If that’s the plan, then the next right-winger on the depth chart is rookie Julien Gauthier. (At least until top forward prospect Vitali Kravtsov is cleared to join the team, which is expected to happen within 10-to-14 days.)

Quinn recently said the 23-year-old has been “taking a step each passing game” after being a healthy scratch for five consecutive games in January. But could he really get a chance to play on the same line with Panarin?

We’ll find out soon enough.

Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.