THEIR ‘A’ GAME
Captain-less Rangers roll over Buffalo
The first time Jesper Fast donned an ‘A’ on the front of his sweater denoting his status as an alternate captain was on Feb. 9, two days after Ryan McDonagh’s final game as a Ranger. With both McDonagh and Marc Staal nursing injuries, the Rangers needed a third letterman, and as one of six players remaining from the Rangers’ 2014-15 Presidents’ Trophy campaign and a player whose praises are often sung by teammates, Fast was a worthy choice.
The currently captain-less Rangers are now rotating the third ‘A’ behind full-timers Marc Staal and Mats Zuccarello, with Chris Kreider wearing it Saturday for the third straight game. Alain Vigneault said Kreider will have it for five games before someone else takes a turn. Fast wore it for 18 games before handing it off to Kreider.
“Of course it’s a big honor,” Fast told the Daily News before earning an assist in the Rangers’ 5-1 win against Buffalo. “I wasn’t expecting it or anything, but I was very happy when they told me I have a chance to wear the ‘A’ and be kind of a leader here. It was pretty quick from being one of the younger guys to one of the older here. Just try to help the younger guys, try to play the right way and lead by example. It’s a lot of fun to be able to have the ‘A’.”
Becoming part of a leadership group in the NHL was something Fast never even imagine. Heck, an NHL career seemed like a long shot when the right wing was 18 years old before a breakout 2009-10 season on the HV-71 junior team. The Rangers then took him in the sixth round of the 2010 NHL draft.
Fast, though not the flashiest player, is perhaps as good of a leadby-example guy the Rangers have. Mistakes are few and far between and he is as reliable in all areas of the ice, consistently making small plays that aren’t reflected on the score sheet.
His efforts are immensely appreciated in the locker room as reflected by him winning the Players’ Player award each of the last two seasons.
“The way he plays, in my mind he does pretty much everything right,” Henrik Lundqvist said of Fast. “He works hards, makes good reads, he can score goals. He always has a team-first mentality and I think guys see that. As a teammate, I appreciate that a lot.”
The 26-year-old Fast, who kept the ‘A’ upon Staal’s return from injury on Feb. 22 once Rick Nash became a healthy scratch before being traded, has mostly played a bottom-six role while moving up when necessary. He admits that his style fits more into a checkingline role, though for seven games now he played on the top line with Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, each of whom had a goal and assist Saturday.
He has a career-best eight-game point streak, the longest by a Ranger this season. After his first-ever three-point night on Thursday, his assist Saturday gave him a careerhigh 31 points for the season.
Fast is unassuming and not a rah-rah guy, but he knows some players must speak up more with leaders shipped out last month. If he feels he can help someone he won’t hesitate to give advice, but Fast is trying to be the same guy he always is, the guy lauded by his peers.
“I’m not the guy who talks the most or the loudest here in the locker room,” Fast says. “But I’m trying to be a good guy, trying to be the best guy, team player and player on the ice I can be.”
Keith Kinkaid made 35 saves and the New Jersey Devils took another major step toward making the playoffs for the first time since 2012 with a 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night in Newark.
Nico Hischier and Kyle Palmieri scored for New Jersey, which has elevated its playoff chances with wins in five of seven games — including outstanding efforts in beating the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins and the Eastern Conference-leading Lightning on consecutive nights.
The Devils had to work for this one. They took a 2-0 lead into the third period and saw the margin halved when Ondrej Palat scored on a power play early.
Kinkaid saved the lead — and the win — with a diving save on a closein attempt by Ryan McDonagh with just over two minutes to play and the net wide open. —AP