Hockey
Panarin rewrote history in the NHL. But will the Rangers get rid of him anyway?
Artemy can become a partner of Ovechkin or Kaprizov.
Artemy Panarin once again reminded that his era in New York is no longer just a bright segment, but a full-fledged part of the club’s history. One successful pass and immediately a franchise record. The Russian forward scored his 600th point for the Rangers and did it faster than anyone before him.
600 points – fastest in Rangers history
Panarin scored his anniversary point in the first period of the NHL regular season match against the Seattle Kraken. Now he has 600 points in the New York club uniform – 202 goals and 398 assists.
The key detail is speed. Panarin needed 476 matches to reach this mark. Previously, the record was held by club legend Mark Messier, who scored 600 points for the Rangers in 531 games. The difference is 55 matches, and it speaks quite eloquently about the place Panarin has already occupied in club history.
Record evening without a happy ending
The record match took place on the night of January 12-13 on the ice of Madison Square Garden. However, the Russian’s historic achievement was not enough to save the game. The Rangers lost to Seattle with a score of 2:4.
Mika Zibanejad and Sam Carrick scored for the hosts. Eeli Tolvanen, Jordan Eberle, Shane Wright scored for the visitors, and Jared McCann put the finishing touches on the match, hitting an empty net.
Panarin finished the game with a utility rating of -2, had one shot on goal and was on the ice for 21 minutes and 17 seconds, of which 3:34 came on the power play. His teammate, defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, did not score any points in this match.
This season, the 34-year-old striker played 46 matches and scored 50 points (16 goals and 34 assists). The utility indicator is “-14”, which largely reflects the instability of the team’s play, and not an individual decline.
Contractual issue and possible relocation
Against the backdrop of the record, Panarin’s future in New York is being increasingly discussed. NHL insider Elliott Friedman noted that the Rangers could find themselves in a difficult situation if they are not willing to extend the contract on the player’s terms.
Among possible options for continuing his career, Friedman mentioned the Florida Panthers, Washington Capitals, Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche. Alexander Ovechkin plays for Washington, and Kirill Kaprizov plays for Minnesota, with whom Panarin shares a common agent.
The current contract of the Russian forward runs until June 30, 2026, and his cap hit is $11.64 million. There is still time until the end of the agreement, but talk about the future, apparently, will only increase.
600 points for the Rangers is not just a nice statistic. This is an indicator of how quickly Panarin became a system-forming player for the club and how consistently he has maintained his level over several seasons. He has already made franchise history by surpassing Messier in the fastest time to reach the milestone. Now the question is different: will this record become part of a long New York chapter or will it be perceived over time as a peak, after which a new story will begin – in another club.
Source: Sportbox
I’m a sports enthusiast and journalist who has worked in the news industry for over 8 years. I currently work as an author at Sportish and my work focuses mainly on sports news.