Amidst all the buzz of the New York Rangers acquiring Patrick Kane is the fact that the team has hit a bit of a rough patch following its second seven-game winning streak of the season. Some defensive and goaltending struggles that were covered up by prolific scoring are now being magnified since the scoring is no longer…well, prolific. Then there’s the patchwork, incomplete lineups the Rangers have had to play with thanks to their pursuit of Kane, and the difficulty in making everything fit together.
It’s all resulted in an ugly 2-5-1 record over the past eight games.