New York Rangers: The Impact of Kreider’s 50-Point Season
In his fifth year on the New York Rangers roster, left wing Chris Kreider finally posted his 50th point in a single season in the Rangers 6-3 loss to Anaheim on Sunday.
Kreider hitting the 50-point mark for the first time in his career is a big accomplishment. On top of this, he has broken his career-high point totals for the fourth year in a row.
At just 25, it shows that he has been able to grow in his time with the Rangers and that he has effectively established himself in his place on the roster.
He’s Proved He’s Worth the Money
New York Rangers
This offseason, after narrowly avoiding an arbitration hearing, Kreider and the Rangers agreed to a four-year $18.5 million dollar contract extension. This keeps Kreider on the roster through 2020 and ensures that the Rangers will get some of his prime years of hockey.
His strong performance on the ice this season comes after a somewhat inconsistent season for Kreider early last year. He was playing a much streakier game – where he would have a multi-point performance one game and then would go cold for the next few. However, he was hot late in the season and finished with 46 points.
Today, Kreider is one of the Rangers most consistent forwards. Via his hard work on the ice throughout the regular season, Kreider has proved that he is not just a valuable asset, but that he is also essential to the Rangers offensive core.
Kreider’s Confidence Establishes him as a Veteran
Kreider is playing the most confident game that the Rangers have seen from him. This is in large part due to the fact that over the offseason, Kreider focused on factors that brought his play down last season.
Recognizing that his game was suffering was an extremely important step in Kreider’s development. This allowed him to focus on getting past those issues and helped him become the consistent power-forward that steps on the ice every night.
Reaching the 50-point milestone shows that Kreider can serve a more veteran role on the roster. Kreider came out of the New York Rangers farm system and has played almost five seasons for them. Though he is just 25-years-old, this background means that despite being on the younger side, he can serve a leadership role on the team.
Final Thoughts
On a team that has faced many inconsistencies this season, Kreider has been able to rise above and prove that he can be a constant.
Kreider hitting the 50-point mark means that he is ready to take the next step in his career with the Rangers. He needs to stick to the game that he has been playing, remain a source of goal scoring opportunities and continue to grow into this role and own be a leader on the ice.
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Through hitting this milestone, Kreider has further established that he is irreplaceable and will be vital to the Rangers future success.