New York Rangers News and Notes from Return-to-Play; Panarin nominated for an award

Feb 14, 2020; Columbus, Ohio, USA; New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin (10) follows the puck in play against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first period at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

New York Rangers head coach David Quinn has made it absolutely clear what he wants the resumption of play to be called. “This isn’t training camp,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “We are picking up where we left off and I want that to be crystal clear to everybody here. This is not a training camp. We’re trying to win a Stanley Cup. We really liked our team when this whole thing ended and we want to give people time to find their way.”

“I don’t think our mindset is any different than what it was when we ended the season,” Quinn said. “I think our guys really believed we were going to make the playoffs. I think guys believed in each other, they believed in themselves, they believed in the way we were playing. There was a lot of togetherness.”

NHL sets times for New York Rangers playoff games

While the NHL recently set the dates for the games, the league has now announced what time the games will take place.

Saturday, August 1, 12:00 PM

Monday, August 2. 12:00 PM

Tuesday, August 3, 8:00 PM

The times for the other two games, if needed, will be announced at a later time.

The New York Rangers will play the New York Islanders in an Exhibition game

Exhibition games will be played from July 28-30, with the Stanley Cup Qualifiers beginning on Aug. 1. There are several notable regional matchups on the schedule, including an exhibition game between the Rangers and the Islanders for Wednesday, July 29 at 8 p.m. This game, like the qualifiers that will be played later, will take play in Toronto.

Artemi Panarin nominated for an award

Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers has been voted as one three finalists for the 2019-20 Ted Lindsay Award. The other two nominees are  Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers and Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche.

The award goes “to the most outstanding player in the NHL,” as voted by fellow members of the NHLPA. Draisaitl, MacKinnon, and Panarin are all looking to capture their first Ted Lindsay Award.

Panarin led all NHLers in even-strength points (71), tied for second in assists (63), tied for third in points (95 points) and placed third in points per game (1.38).

Lindsay and Doug Harvey of the Montreal Canadiens led a small group in an effort to organize the first National Hockey League Players’ Association. In secret, all of the players at the time were contacted and asked for their support to form an “association”, not a “union”, which was considered going too far.

For his role in establishing the original Players’ Association, the Lester B. Pearson Award was later renamed to the Ted Lindsay Award in his honor.