Rangers’ Andersson saw this budding NHL rookie star coming
Canucks rookie Elias Pettersson has splashed onto the NHL scene this year, but his countryman on the Rangers is hardly surprised.
Lias Andersson played with Pettersson on Swedish national teams growing up, once stuck on the fourth line before working their way up to top-line duties on the 2018 World Juniors squad that finished runners-up to Rangers rookie Brett Howden and Canada.
“I always thought he had it, for sure,” Andersson said Monday before facing off against Pettersson and the Canucks at the Garden. “The first year on the national team, we weren’t even picked, me and him on the under-16 national team. … I think it was four years ago we didn’t make the team and now we’re here. That’s a great story and I always thought he had something special.”
Pettersson was picked No. 5 overall in the 2017 draft, two spots ahead of Andersson. He entered Monday with 10 goals and seven assists in 12 games.
The two Swedes went out for dinner Sunday night to celebrate Pettersson’s 20th birthday on Monday.
“We both are happy where we are,” Pettersson said. “We both are living our dream life.”
Andersson came into Monday without a point in three games since being called up from AHL Hartford.
The Rangers have fallen victims lately to letting late leads slip away. They had won five of their last six before Monday, but three of those games had involved allowing a tying goal in the final two-plus minutes of regulation.
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“I don’t know if ‘concerning’ is the right word, but it’s something we’re going to have to address,” head coach David Quinn said. “It might be a little bit of a byproduct of the way our season started. We were [3-7-1] and not a lot of confidence. But we’ve put ourselves in a position lately where we’ve had leads. It’s just understanding situational hockey, how to protect a lead. You don’t want to play safe, you want to play smart. I think we’re still learning that.”
Quinn stuck with the same defensemen Monday, meaning Brendan Smith was a healthy scratch for the second straight game, with Freddy Claesson taking his spot.
Defenseman Adam McQuaid (lower body) remains on injured reserve but is “getting closer,” Quinn said.
The Rangers’ Feb. 8 game against the Hurricanes at the Garden has been changed to an 8 p.m. start. Beforehand, the 1994 Stanley Cup championship team will be celebrated in its 25th anniversary.