This did not work exactly as Keith Kinkaid expected, but the goalkeeper played well enough in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss in Pittsburgh in his first NHL game in 465 days that he could win another rather quickly.
In fact, assuming Igor Shesterkin is not fully recovered from the groin injury he suffered last Thursday in New Jersey, it is possible that Kinkaid will receive the call about Alex Georgiev for the second time in a row when the Blueshirts move to Boston for the first of two -Game set on Thursday.
“I’m waiting for a break,” said Kinkaid before making 23 saves in his first game since November 30, 2019 as a member of Canadiens. “You hate to see how it happened, but I intend to take complete control of this opportunity and prove that I belong to this league.”
Kinkaid, composed and economical, was sharp from start to finish. His hard work at the start allowed the Rangers to gain balance first and then the lead 1-0, when Jack Johnson scored from the left at 9:16 of the first period, when his momentum hit John Marino’s leg.
But the Blueshirts were unable to create momentum outside the goal. Instead, the Penguins responded, tying the match at 18:54 on the first day, when Jake Guentzel hit one on the left side after Ryan Lindgren broke his bat in an escape attempt.
Teddy Blueger took advantage of the two-on-two cover to knock K’Andre Miller into the net on the left before sliding a backhand through Kinkaid for a short-handed goal and a 2-1 lead at 2:40. Kasperi Kapanen increased the lead to 3-1 at 19:40 of the period with an instant shot from the slot in an extended turn where the Penguins had the puck under the hash marks.
The Blueshirts reduced the margin to 3-2 in Ryan Strome’s power-play goal at 3:18 of the third when his attempt to pass to Chris Kreider hit – yes – Marino’s skateboard. And although Rangers’ third period was the best of the night, they failed to score the equalizer.
The 31-year-old Kinkaid, who shares his birthday with George Steinbrenner and Uncle Sam, played 132 games with the Devils over the five-year period from 2014-15 to 2018-19 while compiling an overall record of 64-55-17 with a savings percentage of 0.906 and 2.90 GAA.
But the goalkeeper’s game went to the side after that, going to 15-18-6 / .891 / 3.36 the following year, while declining with the appearance of Mackenzie Blackwood. Kinkaid spent much of the last season at AHL after signing during the summer of 2019 as a free agent with Montreal, for whom he started five times in October and November.
The goalkeeper, who came from Farmingville in Suffolk County, signed a two-year contract as a free agent with Rangers on October 9. The Blueshirts wanted a third veteran in the organization, but they also needed a goalkeeper hired for 2021-22 that they could display on the next Seattle expansion project to meet the league’s requirements.
“It is an incredible opportunity. I’ve been waiting for this opportunity and I feel really ready, ”said Kinkaid, who spent most of the year on the taxi team sandwiched around two winning starts for the AHL Wolf Pack, in which he allowed two goals in 52 shots. “I learned a lot in the last few years and Benny helped me a lot along the way here.”
Kinkaid obviously referred to the Blueshirts goalkeeper coach, Benoit Allaire, who has the universal attention and respect for the goalkeepers he has taught throughout his illustrious career for the past 17 years in the organization.
“I don’t think I went through a lot of adversity in my career before [2019-20], we had made it to the playoffs with the Devils, and I think you really learn more about yourself and, you know, the ups and downs of the league at that top level all the time, ”said Kinkaid. “I think Benny definitely helped me in terms of confidence and technique.”
David Quinn reiterated that he considered going with Kinkaid to start on Sunday, after Georgiev had stayed more or less in Saturday’s 6-3 victory over the Devils. This, however, was a dunk after Kinkaid’s strong 38:50 work of relief against the Penguins, in which he yielded two goals in 18 shots.
“I thought Kinkaid won the opportunity,” said Quinn. “He has a good record against Pittsburgh, his game on Sunday, he is doing very well in training and right now, with Shesty’s situation or even in general, you need three goalkeepers and not just two because you never know one point of view of the injury.
“So I think it’s important to put him in a game, but not just put him in a game, because he won the opportunity. If we didn’t like what we saw, we certainly wouldn’t go back with him. “
No, the question is whether Quinn will return to Kinkaid on Thursday.