Vladimir Tarasenko wasted no time in making himself at home in Madison Square Garden on Friday night.
Less than three minutes into his Rangers debut, the newest Blueshirts star broke out with teammate and close friend Artemi Panarin after a Kraken turnover, and tapped in a feed from Panarin in front of the net to give New York an early 1-0 lead, and give Tarasenko a dream start to his Rangers tenure.
It didn’t take long before the MSG crowd was chanting Tarasenko’s name in a 6-3 victory.
“Really? I was thinking I was mishearing,” Tarasenko said of the chants from the home crowd. “It’s amazing. I’ve had a very warm welcome. So far, it’s very good. I’m very excited.”
As for that first goal, it couldn’t have been drawn up much better for Tarasenko, as it was assisted by one of his best friends, who he had spoken with before being traded to New York. Now, as teammates and linemates, they are already clicking.
“I know they can make a pass, so I just tried to be open,” Tarasenko said. “It was a lot of emotions.”
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