EAST MEADOW, N.Y. — Artemi Panarin is already thinking about Monday night, about being back at Madison Square Garden as a visitor, about playing against his former teammates, about the reaction he’ll get, about what will be on the video they show if one is shown.
“I wish it was going to be next year, but I’ve got to deal with that pretty soon,” Panarin said Thursday.
Panarin returns to the building he called home for 6 1/2 seasons on Monday when his new team, the Los Angeles Kings, plays his old team, the New York Rangers. His New York homecoming comes less than six weeks after the Rangers traded him to the Kings on Feb. 4.
He still has two games to play before he returns to MSG; against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Friday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNW, MSGSN) and against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Saturday. But Panarin is already trying to calm his nerves about the game against the Rangers.
“Probably try being more relaxed, but I’m sure I’m going to be nervous and that is going to affect my game,” Panarin said. “I’ll try to be smarter with that. Obviously, excited to see the fans.”
Panarin arrived in New York nearly seven years ago after signing a seven-year, $81.5 million contract on July 1, 2019.
He delivered on his big deal, leading the Rangers in scoring in each of his six full seasons with them, and he was their top scorer before the trade this season with 57 points (19 goals, 38 assists) in 52 games.
Panarin is the Rangers’ ninth-leading scorer all time with 607 points (205 goals, 402 assists) in 482 games. He had 35 points (12 goals, 23 assists) in 46 playoff games and helped New York reach the Eastern Conference Final in 2022 and 2024.
But Panarin and the Rangers could not agree on a new contract before the season and negotiations went quiet during the season.
He was traded because the Rangers decided they were not going to re-sign him, which was expressed to Panarin by general manager Chris Drury shortly before he released a letter to the fanbase stating the team was going to retool the roster and was prepared to say goodbye to popular players.
Panarin said the lack of contract talks prepared him for what inevitably happened, but he was still sad when Drury told him what the Rangers were going to do.
“You don’t believe that until they tell you,” Panarin said. “I thought I played pretty good too. In the beginning, yeah, I was thinking too much, but after I corrected my season. When you go back to your level you think, ‘Right now, let’s go.’ Then it’s not going to happen. It’s OK.”
