BERN, Switzerland (AP) -The New York Rangers beat Swiss club Bern 8-1 Tuesday in an exhibition game.
Dan Girardi and Wade Redden each scored off the power play in the first period, and the Rangers then added six more after the hosts got their goal early in the final period.
The game, the Rangers’ first in Switzerland in 49 years, was scheduled as a warmup before the Rangers face European champion Metallurg Magnitogorsk at the same venue on Wednesday.
It will be the first meeting of NHL and Russian teams in 17 years and carries a $1 million prize under the banner of the inaugural Victoria Cup, organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation.
The Rangers then open the NHL season in Prague, Czech Republic, with a two-game series against the Tampa Bay Lighting this weekend.
Rangers coach Tom Renney said he hoped scoring six goals on power plays would jump-start his team’s offense after posting a 1-5 record in preseason games in the United States.
“We are still a work in progress,” Renney said. “We haven’t scored a lot of goals on even strength as a group.
ints. Not far from now we have to pay attention to improving ourselves to do that successfully.”
Renney said he challenged his players to step up their form in the final period.
Yet at 1:02 of the third, Bern scored on a sidestep move and shot from Travis Roche, a Canadian who spent part of last season with the Phoenix Coyotes.
That sparked the Rangers to show some style.
Chris Drury restored the two-goal margin during a 5-on-3 power play at 3:55 of the third. Brandon Dubinsky soon made it 4-1 with a fine solo effort, skating round the goalie to score into an open net.
Petr Prucha added another and Lauri Korpikoski scored the sixth goal, deflecting a shot from Corey Potter into the net. Potter strengthened his case for a roster spot three minutes later by making it 7-1.
Dubinsky completed the rout.
“It was a big opportunity for us to get our wheels moving and make sure we are ready to go,” Dubinsky said. “We’re pretty happy with that.”
In 1959, playing matches in Geneva and Zurich during a European exhibition tour with the Boston Bruins.
Their return drew a crowd of 16,022 at the Post-Finance Arena, one of two venues for the Swiss-hosted IIHF World Championship next April 24-May 10.
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