New York Rangers: Five duos the Rangers cannot put together

Marc Staal and Nick Holden

Since being hired by the New York Rangers, Alain Vigneault has leaned on Marc Staal as one of his go-to defenseman to play tough defensive minutes in a shutdown role. Staal averaged 19:11 of ice time per game last season, and an average of 1:58 per game on the penalty kill.

Nick Holden was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche at the 2016 NHL draft. He was immediately placed in a defensive-minded role, similar to Staal. He did find a way to register career high’s in goals (11), assists (23) and points (34). Overall, Holden averaged 20:37 minutes of ice time per game, 1:42 on the penalty kill and an additional 37 seconds of powerplay time per game.

Despite being labeled ‘defensive defenseman’ by their coach and some fans, Staal and Holden were truthfully anything but that. Throughout the season, there were many blunders from these two: turnovers, missed coverage’s, and all-together sloppy play. Despite all that, they somehow stuck together for the majority of the regular season and playoffs.

This duo was exposed in the postseason. The team was constantly hemmed in the defensive zone with them on the ice. Both were on the ice and partially responsible for late, game tying goals in game 2 of the series vs. Montreal and game 2 vs. Ottawa.

There’s a strong argument to be made that neither Staal nor Holden, let alone both, should even make the Rangers, but that’s a whole other debate. It seems unlikely Staal would be jettisoned, but it certainly seems like Holden’s roster spot is in jeopardy. Regardless, these two cannot play together. It’s proven to be a recipe for disaster, and would undoubtedly be the Achilles heal for the 2017-2018 Rangers.