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New York Rangers: The importance of a right defenseman

By David Bruce |
Apr 15, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk (22) skates with the puck as Toronto Maple Leafs center Mitch Marner (16) chases in game two of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 15, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk (22) skates with the puck as Toronto Maple Leafs center Mitch Marner (16) chases in game two of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Rangers need to acquire defensemen, but one kind may prove more important. With the offseason arriving, it’s time to explore filling the Rangers biggest need of all.

The New York Rangers have a defense problem; this isn’t a mystery at this point. In the plan book for the off-season is likely a large scale overhaul on the back end. It is time for the Rangers defense to catch up to the rest of the league, in order to compete in the playoffs and succeed.

The Rangers weakest point was in their right side defensemen, comprising some of the slowest skaters in the league in that position. To further that issue, star defenseman Ryan McDonagh’s performance was also dragged down by his weak link partners, except when paired with rookie Brady Skjei.

Skjei and McDonagh being a successful pair proves one big detail about current defensemen: the partnership truly does make a difference. McDonagh being markedly worse statistically when paired with the likes of Dan Girardi and Kevin Klein proves this point. It is unwise to waste many of McDonagh’s best years, especially while on such a cost effective contract.

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Now, with Girardi’s buyout in the works and a potential Klein retirement, it is time to replace them with players that suit the current league’s play style. So, what kind of players does that call for?

Right handedness

Perhaps the single most important necessity is that of a right-handed shooting defenseman on the opposite side of McDonagh and Skjei. Two defensemen of the same handedness can occasionally cause troubles; passes from left to right handcuff one another, and a right handed offensive defensemen on his off side of the power play can change the dynamic of the PP setup.

A player like Kevin Shattenkirk or Tyson Barrie could change the way that the team plays entirely. An increase of power play production is almost guaranteed; the Rangers can change their strategy to work the cycle and create passing plays with a smart, creative right handed player quarterbacking it.

The Rangers also lack right-handed forwards. Derek Stepan, Mika Zibanejad and Jesper Fast are the only righties. With a right-handed defenseman on board slotting into one of those pairings and PP setups, he can be a “rover” of sorts, taking pressure off of Zibanejad and Stepan.

A lot of these responsibilities are ones that previous right handed defensemen like Dan Girardi and Kevin Klein simply couldn’t handle. Adam Clendening proved this strategy could work effectively, but Vigneault’s lack of trust in him did not allow this. Perhaps a better quality defenseman that plays that style can change this.

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The Rangers have been looking for this kind of player since the loss of Anton Stralman. With Stralman and his dynamic, the Rangers made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Hopefully, fixing this weakness is the final step to the Rangers getting back to that place.

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