Will The New York Rangers Get The Real Deal Nash Moving Forward?

It’s been a long time coming, about 20 games worth into this season.

The power forward Rick Nash, the player who put up 42 goals a season ago, made his goal-scoring presence known to the fans of the BB&T Center that he was still very much alive.

If you missed it, he recorded his first multi-goal game of the season with his hat trick versus the Florida Panthers Saturday night.

All three goals were scored in different ways: the first from short distance, power move towards the goal crease, and a finesse shot from long-distance near the left faceoff circle.

That’s the player Rangers fans have been yearning for, scratching at the walls to see, and begging for divine intervention to be blessed upon him.

However, isn’t that how his play on the ice this season could be summed up?

It’s everything else that Nash has been doing right that makes him a versatile and dangerous player when his shift comes up in the game.

It seems that the offense-only Nash that is expected to score and score often has taken a back seat to more of a two-way power forward, who is equally responsible on the defensive side of the puck.

Nov 21, 2015; Sunrise, FL, USA; New York Rangers left wing Rick Nash (61) celebrates his third and game winning goal with right wing Mats Zuccarello (36) in overtime as Florida Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo (1) looks on at BB&T Center. The Rangers won 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

The 6’4 native of Brampton, Canada has become a force to be reckon in all situations of the ice: even-strength, power-play, and the penalty kill. He is a man of different hats, and that’s what is making him an asset again for the Rangers.

Sure, his numbers in the playoffs are not what they need to be. And yes, they have hurt the Rangers with his lack of production. So much so, we have placed part of the team’s inability to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup his disappearing act.

However, this season’s Nash could put all that to bed if the Rangers make it to the postseason and return to the big dance in June.

We saw a glimpse in last season’s playoffs, where he registered 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 19 games played. Of course, fans wanted to see that point total a little closer to a point per game average because that it is the high expectations in Rangerstown.

Read More: Can New York Rangers’ Rick Nash Have a Big Year?

We want the best, and expect nothing less from our star players. However, those expectations could be lessen with the development of his two-way play. He was not seen as a liability handling the puck.

His Corsi numbers have increased each season with the Rangers in the playoffs.

2012-2013: 50.1% (Second Round)
2013-2014: 51.3% (Stanley Cup Final)
2014-2015: 52.7% (Eastern Conference Final)

And in those seasons, it was possible he was playing with some type of ailment that hampered his performance.

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This season, Nash seems to be playing differently, in a positive way. He’s been seen hustling for the loose puck, going all out to keep the puck in the offensive zone, racing up and down the ice. But most importantly, he is taking the puck hard to the net.

And though the goal column in his statistics don’t show it, he has been trying on the ice and Saturday night was the end result of his effort to stick with the program.

As most have been saying, the goals will come for Nash, it’s only a matter of time. And fans saw that hard work pay off when he scored the game winning goal in overtime on Saturday night, that brought the Panthers and fans to their knees.

Also, it has to have been a confidence booster for him to see that others have taken the reigns in the scoring department. His linemates of Mats Zuccarello and Derick Brassard have been combining for some brilliant scoring plays.

The burden of being the man on the offensive side is lessening with each passing game, and the responsibilities are being evenly distributed up and down the lineup.

That sharing of the team’s scoring is one of the main reasons why this season’s Nash is playing free and not feeling obligated as much to find the back of the net.

However, that should not take away from the fact that expectations of Nash remain high. He is still an integral part of the offense, and his goal scoring is only going to help the Rangers reach their final destination.

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But, the fact of him taking an equal interest to the defensive side should give confidence to fans.

Rangerstown has seen both sides of Nash, now it’s the consistency that needs to become the norm in his game.