Much will be said about who got to stay with the New York Rangers and who was dismissed to Hartford. This is where we all try to make sense of it, before the first regular season puck is dropped in Phoenix on October 3rd.
Team Vigneault made some interesting choices when it came to the 15 forwards that got to stay with the big club. Most notably, J.T. Miller’s play in the final three preseason games, including the two goals in the final two tilts, were enough to earn him one of the final two roster spots at forward. His size and speed were on display, and the fight he showed every shift was enough to convince Alain Vigneault to keep him.
A big surprise was the decision to keep Aaron Asham over Darroll Powe. Asham, even though he seemed to be one of the most involved Rangers during the preseason, is not even close to as versatile as Powe is. Powe can play at center or wing, and is a penalty kill specialist. And if preseason is any indication, the Blueshirts will need the help on special teams yet again. I suppose that it may be a salary cap issue created by the late signing of essential cog Derek Stepan to a two-year bridge contract worth $6.15 million. However, Asham makes just about the same amount of money. Of course, Asham adds a bit of toughness to a lineup that no longer showcases a great deal of grit.
Remaining with the club is our favorite dark horse, Jesper Fast. The speedy winger earned a roster spot by being one of the more creative forwards on the Rangers’ roster, and will look very nicely placed, either on the third or fourth line.
Also heading down to Hartford is Chris Kreider. Kreider seemed to spend most of the preseason having difficulty with puck possession, right up until the final game in Las Vegas. With that said, I doubt that he will remain down there long. I feel that this is more of a wakeup call from AV. It’s as if he’s telling Kreider to improve his consistency or remain buried on the Wolf Pack. Kreider has the potential to become something very special, if he can prove to the coaching staff that he can live up to it during the regular season, and not just be a flash in the pan post-season player.
The cuts on defense offered little surprise. The hulking Justin Falk earned his stripes and will be the Rangers’ seventh defenseman. If the Rangers blue line catches the injury bug, as it has in seasons past, Falk has a chance to prove his worth. He, and his gigantic reach, could prove to be very useful.
No surprise to this writer, Stu Bickel was sent down. Of course, he has to clear waivers first. Maybe former coach John Tortorella can convince Canucks GM Mike Gillis into claiming Bickel off waivers in order to rekindle that bromance. One can only hope, since the Bickel experiment Torts performed over the last two seasons ended in Bickel seemingly being on ice for nearly every bad thing that happened last season, and his mentor being dismissed.
Lastly, let’s address all of you Rangers’ fans standing on the ledge ready to write the Blueshirts off for this season (you all know who you are). Although the Rangers ended with only one preseason victory, keep this in mind. When most teams had basically their full NHL roster on the ice, the Rangers still had mostly youngsters, as AV and company evaluated what kind of talent existed in the Rangers’ system. Also, keep in mind that 3 of their top six forwards weren’t in any preseason games, as Ryan Callahan and Carl Hagelin are still on injured reserve, and the aforementioned Stepan was entrenched in a contract battle up until last week. The Rangers will most likely start the season with Hagelin, and Callahan, on LTIR, evening out their roster. Look for Asham and, and possibly Fast, to be sent to Hartford, as their wounded forwards return.
Until then, Keep Calm, and Let’s Go Rangers.
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