Rangers go all the way from worst to first
KITCHENER — Things were bleak in late November.
The Kitchener Rangers had lost four straight and were floundering in last place in the Ontario Hockey League’s western conference. General manager Mike McKenzie fired coach Jay McKee and took over behind the bench. A sell-off scenario was on the table, if the team couldn’t turn things around.
Now, 52 days later, the Rangers are on top in the west.
The Blueshirts moved into first with a come-from-behind 5-4 win over the Guelph Storm on Sunday afternoon at the Aud to finish a perfect 3-0 weekend.
The victory moved McKenzie to 20-1-2-0 since taking the reins and capped an incredible — but rather improbable — journey that has seen the Rangers pass every single foe in the western conference during the run to the No. 1 seed.
“It has been a wild ride,” said McKenzie. “We have something good going. The guys are confident and having fun. Winning is fun.”
The Rangers certainly don’t lack any drama.
The lads played a sluggish first period Sunday and trailed 3-0 after the opening frame. But, just when it looked like it was Guelph’s game for the taking, the Rangers rallied.
Michael Petizian willed in his 12th in the second stanza before Isaac Langdon made it a onegoal game with 10 seconds left in the period.
Guelph restored its two-goal cushion when Rangers co-captain Riley Damiani coughed up the puck to Kitchener native Eric Uba one minute into the third period. But the Dallas Stars prospect made good by setting up a marker and scoring the game-winning goal as the home side closed out the game with three unanswered tallies.
“I knew we had a good group in the room,” said Damiani, of the early season struggles. “Things weren’t going our way but I knew we were going to bounce back.”
The turnaround is stunning. McKenzie has never been a part of anything like it. “They’re starting to figure out what hard work can do. You see it on the bench. When a guy is not working, he stands out like a sore thumb. It’s at the point where it’s self-correcting. I don’t need to say anything. The guys know and you don’t want to be that one out of the group that isn’t giving their best effort,” he said.
It’s almost like positive peer pressure. And it’s working.
The scary part? There is still room for improvement. Newcomer Serron Noel is still finding his way since coming over from Oshawa at the trade deadline. Special teams are good, but not great. And the youngsters are still developing.
There are still 24 games left to play. And, in the tight west, the standings can change weekly.
But, for now, the Rangers can take pride in going from the basement to the penthouse.
“We just want to keep it going,” said Damiani. “I think we’re peaking at a really good time. We just have to carry this high right through the playoffs and all the way to the Memorial Cup.”