NEW YORK_Lias Andersson, the long-awaited 19-year-old center the Rangers drafted seventh overall last year, made a memorable NHL debut Monday night, scoring a goal with his family watching from the Garden stands in a 4-2 loss to the Washington Capitals.
Filip Chytil, Andersson's fellow first-round pick last summer (21st overall), recorded his first NHL point with an assist on a third-period goal by Mats Zuccarello.
"I'm excited,'' Andersson had said coolly _ almost nonchalantly _ after the Rangers' morning skate at the Garden. "It's something I've been dreaming of for a long time, so I'm excited.''
Andersson looked really excited when he banged in a pass from behind the net from linemate Jimmy Vesey at 13:16 of the second period. That got the Rangers on the board after they fell behind 4-0 in the first, when goaltender Alexandar Georgiev was pulled in favor of backup Ondrej Pavelec.
Chytil got in on the action when he partially fanned on a sharp angle shot but got enough of the puck to send it across the crease. Zuccarello stopped it with a skate and swept it in at 4:26 of the third.
The Rangers' rebuild took another significant step with the insertion in the lineup of Andersson and Chytil, who were recalled Sunday from AHL Hartford. Chytil, 18, made the club out of training camp and played two games before being reassigned to Hartford. He said he is a much better player now than he was then.
"It was a long season and I tried to, every practice, be better,'' Chytil said. "And I worked hard, so I think I improved in everything.''
The 6-foot, 204-pound Andersson played 24 games in Hartford, compiling five goals, nine assists and a plus-1 rating. He started the season in his native Sweden and came to North America after captaining Sweden to the silver medal in the World Junior Championships. His father, Niklas, and his uncle Mikael both played for five NHL teams, and each was with the Islanders.
Chytil, a 6-2, 202-pounder from the Czech Republic, played 45 games for Hartford, scoring 11 goals, with 20 assists.
