New York Rangers: What Brandon Pirri Brings to the Table

In this edition of New York Rangers preseason previews, we look at the team’s latest forward signing, and how his key production in a very abbreviated time on the ice bodes well for his role with the Blueshirts.

If you have been on Twitter within the past year and you follow a lot of New York Rangers blogs and writers (you can follow this one at @BlueLineStation), you have probably heard a lot of people petitioning the team to go after former Florida Panthers and Anaheim Ducks forward Brandon Pirri.

Despite having yet to play more than 65 games in a season, Pirri has still managed to have a 20+ goal season so far in his young career. The 25-year-old will look to finally find consistent playing time in a stacked New York Rangers forward group.

2015-2016 Traditional Stats

Games Played: 61

Goals: 14

Assists: 15

Points: 29

+/-: -4

PPP: 10

TOI: 14:31

FO%: 46.8%

Previous Role: 3rd Line Center

Season in Review

Nobody really knows why the Florida Panthers were so quick to trade Pirri at the trade deadline, but that didn’t stop veteran GM Dave Tallon from dealing the young winger to Anaheim for a 6th round pick. All hockey fans everywhere were really confused about Pirri only bringing back a 6th round pick. Florida Panthers writer George Richards was also very confused by this.

The Panthers front office figured that a lot of potential suitors were scared off by an injury that Pirri was nursing when the trade deadline came coupled with the fact that he was arbitration eligible at the end of the season.

More from Editorials

• Rangers’ Playoff Redemption Recipe: Grit and Fresh Hopes
• Rangers’ Roster Chatter: Who’s Making the Cut and Who’s in the Penalty Box?
• These Rangers must learn Peter Laviolette’s ropes before they can fly
• Filip Chytil Could Take Major Steps in the 2023-24 Season
• Looking forward to the upcoming season for Artemi Panarin

After putting up a stat line that is often referred to as the CY Young line (22 goals and 2 assists) in 49 games in 2014-2015, Pirri had 14 goals and 15 assists on the board in a 61 game, 2015-2016 campaign.  The Toronto, Ontario native suffered an ankle injury on Valentines Day last season, which is why his games played number was so low.

Pirri’s fancy stats indicate exactly what you would think, based on his traditional stats. Given his ice time, Pirri is an elite scorer in terms of Goals/60, which means he doesn’t need a whole lot of ice time to cash in. However, he isn’t the greatest passer and the advanced statistics would tell you that he is very ineffective in doing so.

In terms of puck possession, Pirri is on par with what you would expect from a 3rd line player. The same is true for his defensive play.  At 25 years of age, of course, there is still room for improvement in these areas.

2016-2017 Projected Stats

Age Entering Season: 25

Games Played: 65

Goals: 13

Assists: 11

Points: 24

+/-: +3

PPP: 2

TOI: 12:00

FO%: 47%

Projected Role: 4th Line Center/Winger

Reasoning: Due to how many forwards the New York Rangers have at their disposal, I honestly am not sure where Pirri fits. If I was Alain Vigneault, I would probably slot him on the fourth line with Michael Grabner and Jesper Fast.

I think the 3 of them can make for a sensational fourth line, one that would be fast, quick and lethal offensively. Grabner and Fast are both very defensively responsible, which would make up for Pirri’s defensive shortcomings. Grabner and Fast both don’t exactly have the greatest hands, so they could look to Pirri, who can put the puck in the net.

In the case of injury, or in a situation where the team opts to send either Jimmy Vesey or Pavel Buchnevich down to Hartford to start the season, Pirri could slot into that 3rd line wing slot as well.

I think the thing that I like most about Pirri is that he has such a good shot that he could hang on any line. I think at times AV will have him even play top six minutes because, if Jesper Fast is going to get top-six minutes, there’s a possibility everyone might at some point.

While all of this is fine and dandy, I could also see Alain Vigneault putting Pirri in the dog house if he makes the same defensive mistakes he has made at different points in his career. With so many players who will compete for those valuable 4th line slots, Pirri needs to work on the defensive side of his game.

Next: New York Rangers Player Previews: Mats Zuccarello

All in all, if you are scoring goals in limited ice time, you are gonna keep finding yourself in the lineup. The New York Rangers increased their bottom six scoring tremendously with the low-risk signing of Pirri. Look for him to make an impact this year.