BOSTON — Artemi Panarin did not see the humor in it, not even a little.
Two sources confirmed Brad Marchand was yelling insults at Panarin from one bench to the other with 11.8 seconds remaining in the match between the Rangers and Bruins on Friday while invoking Vladimir Putin’s name and suggesting that no Russian likes the Blueshirts winger. Panarin responded by heaving his glove at the Boston winger.
Panarin was not available for comment, but Marchand tried to slough it off by suggesting the two were comparing notes about their respective Thanksgiving meals. Right, and the Mets’ Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil were arguing whether they had seen a rat or raccoon in the tunnel from the dugout to the clubhouse.
“No comment,” Ryan Strome, who had been in the vicinity, said following the Rangers’ 5-2 victory, their seventh win in the last eight games. “It will all come out one day.”
It is believed the Rangers contacted the league over Marchand’s behavior, but it is unlikely that there is a case there. Imagine if the league had intervened every time Sean Avery opened his mouth?
The byplay earned Panarin and Marchand 10-minute misconducts.
Again, Strome was asked if Marchand had crossed the line? Again, he deferred.
“I just don’t want to comment. I don’t think it’s my place,” Strome said. “I guess we’ll see what happens.”
Dryden Hunt, elevated to the line with Panarin and Strome the last two games with Kaapo Kakko joining the Chris Kreider-Mika Zibanejad unit, brings some of the elements provided to the duo by Jesper Fast.
“For sure, I think you can obviously draw the comparison to that,” Strome said. “Tenacious, relentless on the puck, things like that. We’ve got a lot of great players and we can obviously interchange.”
Hunt helped set up Strome’s 1-1 goal at 19:54 of the first period taking the puck behind the net before moving it to Panarin, who then fed Strome. Hunt then scored the 2-2 goal at 12:33 of the second period by converting a rebound from the right porch.
Julien Gauthier had two primary assists, first sending a cross-ice zinger a foot or so off the ice that Panarin converted from in front for 3-2 at 11:35 of the third period, then sending a two-on-one feed to set up Alexis Lafreniere for the 4-2 goal at 16:22.
“I work on my game every day, if you want to stay in this league you have to get better every day,” Gauthier said, whose uniform might have been destroyed by moths last year, so often was it in the closet for games in which he was a healthy scratch. “The opportunity for me, I’ve been playing more, so I feel more confident with the puck on the ice.
“Everything is falling into [place] for me, so just keep it going.”
Chris Kreider nearly scored on a wraparound lacrosse move at 7:28 of the third period after he wound behind the net with no opposition. But video review revealed that the shot banked off Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman’s right shoulder and off the crossbar without crossing the line.
The Rangers have won five straight when tied after 40 minutes and are 5-0-2 on the year under those conditions. … The Blueshirts will face the Islanders at the Garden on Sunday.
