Checking In On The Post-Deadline New York Rangers

It’s been 10 games since Jeff Gorton finished his deadline duty to rebuild this Rangers franchise. The new-look squad full of youngsters getting their feet wet on the back end has posted a respectable 5-3-2 record – although wins aren’t exactly the best thing for a team in the lottery. Alexandar Georgiev will get his 5th start in 9 contests tonight & the 22 year-old undrafted rookie has looked unfazed behind a makeshift defensive unit. It’s a small sample size but a .922 save percentage is outstanding. Georgiev may not be the expected goalie of the future that Shestyorkin is pegged to be, but it’s certainly a positive to have options for the inevitable post-Hank era.

When speaking of the youngsters getting a shot on the blueline, Neal Pionk has undoubtedly shown the most promise. The righty struggled a bit when he was first called up in early February but has certainly settled in as part of the Blueshirts most stable pairing. Pionk is eating up 23 minutes a game since the deadline skating with Marc Staal. After Deangelo’s ankle injury, Pionk is now on the top unit of both special teams & has piled up 10 assists in 10 games. He skates, shoots, hits & blocks shots. Not too many defenders finish a year with 125 hits/125 blocks/150 shots but that’s the pace this kid has played at since being plucked from Hartford. For a team desperate for right-side help, Pionk has most likely cemented himself in the Rangers rotation next season.

The speedy John Gilmour has been exciting at times, but for a team looking to strengthen the defensive side of their game his one-dimensional skillset doesn’t help much. It was evident in the OT loss vs the Blues where Gilmour overcommitted in a bad spot & left the entire middle of the ice open for Schenn’s game-winner. Same goes for Tony Deangelo. Both can drive offense & get pucks to the net, but not enough to offset how lost they look anywhere else on the ice. I’d take the bigger, stay-at-home option in Rob O’Gara over both of them if you ask me who my 2018-19 6th defenseman is right now among current NHL-ready Blueshirts. He looked a bit overwhelmed early but that makes sense for a Long Island kid making his debut for a New York team. I think he’s settled in pretty well though & prefer less volatility in my bottom pair.

Shattenkirk has resumed skating after being shut down for a couple days after a minor setback recovering from meniscus surgery – but I’m perfectly fine with him not seeing another game until next season. My biggest concern is Brady Skjei. Don’t get me wrong, I still think he’s got a McDonagh-like ceiling – but the sophomore slump is real. Skjei hasn’t had much help as far as partners are concerned. Started with AHL-caliber Brendan Smith (who broke his hand Sunday in a fight at practice with Vinni Lettieri), then played a majority of the season with a hobbled & defensively deficient Shattenkirk before getting Deangelo & Sproul. Regardless, the progression fans were expecting after a great rookie year hasn’t happened. Despite a significant increase in minutes, his numbers across the board are down. MINUS 22 (!!!) over the last 2 months & went over a month without a single point before that. I’m willing to write this overall disaster of a season off, but there’s no question the Rangers cannot afford Skjei to be anything less than a top-pair talent (barring any major moves) if this is going to be the quick turnaround they’re hoping for.

One other defensive note: Ryan Lindgren, the 20 year-old prospect that came this way in the Rick Nash trade, is rumored to be bailing from the U of Minnesota & signing with NY. This is a bit of a surprise as most thought he’d finish out at least another NCAA season, but after Gophers coach Don Lucia stepped down it seems Lindgren is making the leap. He doesn’t project to be a superstar but his physicality, leadership & defensive acumen could make him a dark horse in camp next year. And don’t let that description fool you – the kid can skate. He’s just got room to grow offensively.

Up front, it’s been a resurrection for several familiar faces. No one’s been hotter than the Zibanejad/Kreider tandem. They’ve combined for 23 points in 10 post-deadline games while doing a ton of damage on the power play. Kevin Hayes has found his scoring touch with 10 goals & 7 assists in 19 tilts. Hayes has now set career highs in goals, shots, face-offs & TOI. Perhaps next year is where we see a complete 82 games. Zuccarello has also made an obvious effort to fire the puck more, burying 5 in his last 7. Zucc has stepped up defensively too, joining Zibanejad to replace Nash & Grabner on the second PK unit without skipping a beat. Fast has a helper in 6 straight while Buchnevich is up to 42 points in just 65 games. Despite shipping out several leading scorers, the Blueshirts are putting up almost 3.5 a night. Impressive.

I’m interested to know what the Rangers brass thinks of Jimmy Vesey at this stage of his career. He obviously doesn’t have the NHL experience, but he’s the same age as Zibanejad & only a few months younger than Namestnikov. Still very young, but not a baby. There’s no reason to move on as he’s still under team control and can be re-signed for next to nothing – but it looks like he’s more of a bottom-sixer than the top-six player they thought they nabbed in the Vesey Sweepstakes of 2016. Do they still see the upside? I’m not sure I do.

Speaking of Namestnikov, this is exactly what I was afraid of. Yeah it’s just a handful of games but he’s got a lone goal since his Blueshirts debut. He’s on the top PP unit yet watching everyone else around him pile up points. Stammer & Kuch aren’t walking out of that locker room any time soon. Lastly, Spooner has been as advertised. A highly-skilled player who is relatively invisible if his name’s not found on the scoresheet. Fortunately for NY, “Spooner” has shown up 13 times in 11 games donning a Rangers sweater.

So all in all, it’s been more of the same despite a much less expensive cast. The overall underlying issue is the lack of ability to prevent relentless pressure from the opposition. I don’t think anyone expected their problems to get any better after shipping out the players they did – but individual evaluations don’t matter if the collective result has them as the worst defensive 5×5 team in the league. Most shot attempts against, most shots against, most goals against, 2nd most scoring chances against, 2nd most high-danger scoring chances against…it’s ugly. You don’t get away with that type of play unless you’re completely stacked with elite offensive talent (see Caps, Leafs, etc.).

It’s no sure thing but this is the perfect time for a new voice & system to lead the way. Quite frankly, I’d be surprised if Vigneault was all-in to stick around once this season comes to an end. He hasn’t missed the playoffs as a coach in a decade. He ran a first-place team in all but one season with the Canucks prior to his stint in New York. All his experience is with win-now teams yet he’s still chasing his first Cup. This is obviously not a win-now situation and it’s highly possible that, if the Rangers brass is on the fence about him, AV knocks them off the other side to make himself available for a better situation. We won’t have any actual games, but fans would accept moving on from Vigneault as a consolation post-season prize.