In the two games he’s played since rejoining the team after his leave of absence, Artemi Panarin has clearly demonstrated just how much of a dynamic difference maker he is for the Rangers. On Monday, the Russian winger scored a goal and had two assists and it was nearly enough to lift his team to a win despite the absence of three key players who missed the game because of COVID-19 protocol.
Afterward, speaking to the media for the first time since he left the team on Feb. 22, following the publication of an article in Russia in which a former KHL coach of his accused him of hitting a woman in a hotel bar in Latvia in 2011, Panarin declined to address the story, or his decision to leave the team for two-and-a-half weeks after it came out.