New York Rangers: Top Players of 2016-17

The New York Rangers may have seen another early exit in the playoffs this season, but the success they saw was driven by important players on the roster.

Some of the biggest moments for the New York Rangers came from players who were either not on the roster last year or had a lot to prove coming into this season.

Here are the individuals who stepped up to make our top players of the 2016-17 season.

Kevin Hayes

Kevin Hayes played his breakout season for the New York Rangers this year. He had a career-high 17 goals and 32 assists for 49 points.

These numbers not only show growth in the play of the 24-year-old, who centered his line with J.T. Miller and Michael Grabner this season, but also show that he can play consistent hockey on a day-to-day basis.

Hayes had previously struggled in his relationship with Rangers’ head coach Alain Vigneault, but this season it seemed that they had overcome this. Because Hayes improved every aspect of his game — his skating, stick handling, passing and shooting — Vigneault put him out in important moments.

However, his biggest downfall came in the playoffs. Hayes was nearly invisible and all-around looked like a different player. He did not move his feet as much in transition or into the offensive zone, players had a tendency to knock the puck off his stick, his passes were not as purposeful as those he played through the regular season, and overall this affected his offensive production right when the Rangers needed him most.

Despite this, this season was important for Hayes because he proved that he should be seen as a valuable asset to the Rangers this season, and assuming this play continues into next season, that perhaps he is worth a longer-term contract.

Chris Kreider

After four years with the Rangers, Chris Kreider finally hit the 50-point mark with the Rangers. He led his teams in goals (28) and had 25 assists for a total 53 points through the regular season.

His size and speed have always been two of his most important characteristics in his role on the Rangers roster. The 25-year-old faced some challenges with consistent production last year. Almost half of his points came in the second half of the 2015-16 season.

Kreider’s main focus in the offseason and coming back in October 2016 was reverting to his power-forward role on the roster. He did just this, and his play this season was vital to the Rangers success.

He played on the top line for the Rangers the entirety of the 2016-17 season though the players around him changed, sometimes from game-to-game, but Kreider was able to remain consistent.

Throughout the playoffs, Kreider had a hard time putting up points. He is at his best when he can use his speed to enter the zone or when he can showcase his physicality in front of the net and work pucks around behind. Part of his struggle to get pucks in the net during the postseason a result of his physicality not being focused in the right places.

Kreider’s playoff performance in the postseason does not diminish what he accomplished during the regular season. He is and will be a vital part of the Rangers’ continued success.

Ryan McDonagh

Ryan McDonagh is the Rangers most reliable defenseman from year-to-year. He is consistent in the defensive end but also plays well from the blueline. This season, he was one point from reaching a career-high points total (he finished with 42), but had a career-high 36 assists and scored six goals.

Perhaps McDonagh’s best quality is his patience. The Rangers’ captain always is great at maintaining his positioning and can get in front of pucks. He is good with his stick and can break up passing plays to force the puck into transition. He moves his feet to get the puck up ice and isn’t afraid to step up on the rush. In fact, he scored on numerous occasions this season from deep in the zone.

McDonagh’s consistency has anchored the Rangers defense. He has remained strong and consistent despite uncertainty coming from almost every other defenseman on the roster.

McDonagh leads his team in the way that he plays. His strong statistics on both ends made him a threat every time he steps out on the ice. His consistency from year-to-year makes him one of the Rangers’ top players every year.

J.T. Miller

After playing his breakout season for the Rangers last year, J.T. Miller proved his worth as one of the team’s top point scorers in 2016-17.

Following his career-high 46 points (22 goals, 21 assists) last season for the Rangers, Miller topped this, breaking the 50-point mark in his second full season for the team. Miller tied his career high 22 goals and had a career-high 34 assists for 56 points.

This was by far Miller’s most consistent play throughout a full regular season. He was physical in all three zones, constantly won battles in the neutral zone and along the boards, set up good scoring chances and made smart shots on net.

Miller had a strong first round in the playoffs, working his strong physical play but only managed one point in Game Six. In round two, he managed two more. Not much for one of the Rangers top point scorers throughout the regular season.

Miller’s low production in the postseason is disappointing but it does not diminish the importance of his strong performance in the regular season. The fact that Miller has been consistent, playing two full 82 game seasons in the last two years, and because he followed a breakout season with an even stronger season shows that Miller has room to grow.

His regular season shows that he has the potential to sit atop the stat sheet for years to come.

Brady Skjei

Brady Skjei had a solid 2016-17 for the New York Rangers after appearing in just seven games for the Rangers last year.

For a player who is still so young, Skjei brings an element of size and physicality to the third defensive pair while remaining sound positionally. In addition to this, Skjei also proved that he can play solid hockey from the blueline.

Skjei is similar to McDonagh in many ways. His positioning is solid, he does a good job predicting plays and can get in front of pucks as well as cut off passing lanes. He is also willing to step up on the rush and moves his feet well in transition, which makes him dangerous on the offensive end.

In the playoffs, Skjei and his linemate Brendan Smith both contributed offensively, Skjei with 5 points (four goals, one assist) and Smith with four assists. The pair also led the team in plus/minus (Smith at plus-eight and Skjei at plus-six)

Finding this defensive line pairing was one of the highlights of the 2016-17 Rangers, and they should be a focus in offseason development.

The bottom line is that Skjei has shown that he has potential to become a part of the Rangers’ defensive foundation. He has skill and can step up to serve a variety of roles on the ice, and his development should remain a focus.

Mats Zuccarello

Mats Zuccarello led the Rangers in points this season totaling 59. A majority of this total came from his career-high 44 assists this season and in addition, he scored 15 goals.

Zuccarello was a force in the playoffs as well. He totaled seven points (four goals, three assists) in the Rangers 12 games.

Zuccarello’s strengths do not always translate into goals scored, but they can definitely be seen in the assist column. He is one of the most vital playmakers. His ability to set up plays coming out of the defensive zone and make accurate passes alongside his patience and ability to keep possession of the puck make him extremely dangerous.

Perhaps most important is the character that he plays with. There are a lot of reasons to love Zuccarello, but the thing that makes him so vital on the Rangers roster is that he comes out to play big games every single night.

This year was no exception. His consistency comes from the heart that he plays with. This is a theme with him and is something that is irreplaceable.

Honorable Mentions: Jesper Fast and Mika Zibanejad

I wanted to give these two players a shout out because they are a unique breed.

Jesper Fast and Mika Zibanejad both are forwards that play a strong defensive game. This is kind of play is key to a team’s success, but generally, these players tend not to see as high statistics as their strictly offensive counterparts.

Both Fast and Zibanejad were out for a period of time with injuries — Zibanejad with a broken leg, Fast with a shoulder injury —  but their presence was felt in every game they played.

They play a fast, physical game and are extremely important when it comes to the Rangers forecheck.They constantly win batters along the boards and have enough skill to work the puck up ice.

And both saw an uptick in production during the postseason as well and looked strong as ever. Zibanejad led the Rangers in the playoffs with nine points (two goals, seven assists) and Fast was not far behind notching three goals and three assists for six points.

As a top six player,  it was important to see Zibanejad come up big in the playoffs. Fast, I would argue, was more of a pleasant surprise.

To see two players that work so hard from game-to-game come up with big points in some of the most important games of the season was exciting.