5 months ago
Rangers Should Turn to Youth Amid Offensive Struggles
The New York Rangers finally scored their first goal at Madison Square Garden this season on Monday night. But they lost the game 3-1 to the Minnesota Wild, their fourth consecutive loss on home ice. After scoring four goals in their win over the Montreal Canadiens (in Montreal) on Saturday, fans were hoping their offense was starting to wake up, but that was not the case last night.
With their top players struggling and the rest of the lineup not built to make up for it, now is the time for the Rangers to turn to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, Hartford Wolf Pack, to find a spark to help create some offense and start winning these close games.
## Rangers’ Top Players Struggling to Score
The Rangers’ top six are talented on paper, but the on-ice results have not been there, and an injury to Vincent Trocheck, suffered against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 9, has not helped. The top two centers on this team now are J.T. Miller and Mika Zibanejad, and they only have two goals each.
Artemi Panarin had no goals through the first six games this season, but he has scored in back-to-back contests, which is reason for optimism. Alexis Lafreniere and Will Cuylle are also expected to have big seasons, but they only have one goal each. After Trocheck’s injury, Connor Sheary moved into the top six, but he has been invisible, and at this point in his career, he is best in a bottom-six role.
New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenière (Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images)
This is why the Rangers should be looking to the AHL for an answer. They have players in Hartford who could step into a top-six role now, and they would look better than what we’ve seen so far, because outside of the top six, the lineup is not built to make up for the lack of goal scoring.
## Rangers’ Poor Roster Construction
Right now, the bottom six is more focused on being defensively responsible than scoring goals. The third line has seen a mix of players, including Noah Laba, Johnny Brodzinski, Juuso Parssinen, and Taylor Raddysh, who have two goals combined. The fourth line of Adam Edstrom, Sam Carrick, and Matt Rempe has been the Rangers’ most consistent trio to start the season, but none of them are goal scorers, so while they have been getting chances, they have not hit the back of the net.
**Related:Rangers Should Promote Gabe Perreault to the NHL**
Outside of Adam Fox, there has also been little to no offense coming from the backend. Carson Soucy and Matt Robertson are the only other blueliners to have scored a goal this season. Vladislav Gavrikov was brought in for his superb defensive game, and he has been great on the defensive side of the puck so far. Will Borgen is another defensive defenseman who should not be relied on for offense. Because the Rangers don’t have another offensive-minded player on the backend, Braden Schneider has seen time on the second power-play unit, which is a role he never played before this season.
## Who Should the Rangers Call Up?
Among forwards, the three big names are Gabe Perreault, Brett Berard, and Brennan Othmann. Perreault is projected to be a top-six forward, and right now, the Rangers have a hole in their top six. He could easily replace Sheary in that role and would immediately be a more impactful player.
Berard and Othmann could also fill that hole in the top six, but they would be better fits in the bottom six. TBerard would bring his speed and tenacity, while Othmann would bring his shooting mentality.
New York Rangers left wing Brennan Othmann (Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images)
On defense, Scott Morrow is known for his offensive game and puck-moving ability from the blue line. He has already spent time with the team this season, but did not play, and right now, he is the kind of player the Rangers need. They don’t have any good puck-moving defensemen outside of Fox, so he would be a breath of fresh air.
Morrow wouldn’t have to play top-four minutes, but he would be more useful on the power-play than a player like Schneider. The Rangers need another puck-moving defenseman now, so he needs to be called up and inserted into the lineup to see what he can provide.
Overall, the Rangers have played well to start the season. Their 3-4-1 record is not indicative of their performance, but the lack of offense has been a key reason why they have not won more games. It’s early in the season, so the Rangers have time to fix this issue, and they can do that now by inserting more young players into the lineup who can bring more offense than what they’ve been getting.
Rangers Should Turn to Youth Amid Offensive Struggles The New York Rangers finally scored their first goal at Madison Square Garden this season on Monday night. But they lost the game 3-1 to the Mi...
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