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New York Rangers: Current Team VS. Former Players

By Dan Miceli

Feb 27, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Keith Yandle (93) and defenseman Ryan McDonagh (27) celebrate the win over the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. The Rangers defeat the Stars 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Keith Yandle (93) and defenseman Ryan McDonagh (27) celebrate the win over the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. The Rangers defeat the Stars 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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The New York Rangers have been a competitive team for over a decade now, only missing the playoffs once since 2003-2004. Although the core remains mostly intact, several players have been shipped off and succeeded in their new homes. I built a team of former Rangers who still play in the NHL, and thought about matching them up against the current NYR roster.

Before I reveal my lineup of former Rangers players, I’ll admit that building this team was more difficult than I thought. A lot of this difficulty came because of Glen Sather’s love of signing veteran players. Lots of the players who have recently played for the Rangers have either retired with the team, or ended their careers shortly after.

So without further ado, here is my team of former Rangers who are currently playing in the NHL.

(LW, C, RW)

Carl Hagelin, Derick Brassard, Marian Gaborik

Anthony Duclair, Brandon Dubinsky, Jaromir Jagr

Benoit Pouliot, Eric Staal, Lee Stempniak

Viktor Stalberg, Brian Boyle, P.A. Parenteau

(LD, RD)

Keith Yandle, Anton Stralman

Michael Del Zotto, John Moore

Matt Hunwick, Dylan McIlrath

(G)

Cam Talbot, Chad Johnson

So what would happen if this team played against the Rangers current roster? The team made up of former Rangers would get destroyed. There are some skilled players on this team, but they wouldn’t be able to handle the speed and depth of the ’16-17 Rangers team.

If this game were to be played, (obviously at MSG) I would predict a score of 5-2 favoring the current Rangers team. Their transition game and special teams play would eat up the weaker defense.

The right side of the former players roster is average at best. Anton Stralman is the only defenseman on the right side that can be counted on to be consistent and add offense. Aging Jagr and Gaborik aren’t enough to carry the right wing, and the additions of Parenteau and Stempniak don’t help to bring up the average.

The left side of the team shows a bit more promise, yet still doesn’t have the depth to keep up with the Rangers. The center of the ice is where the former Rangers team is strongest.

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Players who would most likely be first or second liners on any team center all 4 lines. A notable omission, Artem Anisimov, could step in for any of the centers mentioned. If I were to change this lineup in any way, I would move one of the centers to the wing and include Anisimov.

The biggest issue I see with this team is their lack of speed. With a few older players on the roster, they don’t have the top end speed to keep up with the Rangers in transition.

When we look at the beginning of the ’16-17 season, we see how deadly the Rangers can be in transition. They were flying all over the ice and running teams into the ground. The pace of play has slowed down a bit, but they are still most dangerous on the rush.

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For this reason, I would wager heavily that the Rangers would beat their former teammates.

P.S. – A first pairing of Yandle and Stralman is something fans can only dream of. We can only imagine how different this current Rangers team would be with those two at the blue line.

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