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"You can't be picky": Mika Zibanejad makes his feelings known about Rangers' win against Canadiens after 5 straight losses

Modified Dec 01, 2024 03:40 GMT

Mika Zibanejad shared his thoughts after the New York Rangers snapped a five-game losing streak by beating the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.

The Rangers halted their longest losing streak since 2021; that season resulted in the termination of former coach David Quinn in favor of Gerard Gallant.

Back to Saturday, Rangers captain Jacob Trouba set the tone early with a fight against Montreal's Josh Anderson, which seemed to give the team a spark. Mika Zibanejad spoke about not being selective when it came to how the team picked up their wins, especially after ending their five-game losing streak.

"He's our captain and our leader, and he steps up and does that," Zibanejad said. "We got off to a good start and played a better brand of hockey in the first two periods. It was a big win for us, and it wasn't pretty at times, or a lot of times.

"But at this stage, we can't be picky. We have to find ways to win; however, you do it at this time, find a way, and we did that."

Trouba's teammates also appreciated his efforts against Anderson and the subsequent boost it gave them.

“He’s our leader,” Kappo Kakko said. “It was something we needed. We’ve been pretty bad lately. … And he’s our captain, He’s our leader. So that’s something that got the guys going. And I think that was a good start.”

Kakko scored the winning goal for the Rangers in the final minute of play. New York also got goals from Artemi Panrin, Vincent Trocheck and Zibanejad.

Artemi Panarin offers thoughts after Mika Zibanejad and Co. end Rangers' losing streak

The Rangers had to stop the bleeding. Even though their win over the Montreal Canadiens wasn't something that would end up on highlight reels, it was still needed for a team having issues with their confidence.

“Not our best performance, but right now, we needed something,” said forward Artemi Panarin. “It doesn’t matter which (way) we win. We’re happy with two points right now, and we’ll try to step forward.”

Meanwhile, the win came as a relief for Zibanejad, who has been the subject of heavy criticism for his subpar play, as his goal late in the second period increased New York's lead to 3-1:

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Mika Zibanejad and Co. will have a chance to make it two straight when they take on rivals New Jersey Devils on Monday.