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New York Rangers: Five troubling early season signs

By Jack Milewski

TORONTO, ONTARIO - OCTOBER 7: Patrick Marleau
TORONTO, ONTARIO - OCTOBER 7: Patrick Marleau /
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CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 24: Head coach Alain Vigneault of the New York Rangers looks on during the 2017 NHL Draft at United Center on June 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 24: Head coach Alain Vigneault of the New York Rangers looks on during the 2017 NHL Draft at United Center on June 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Questionable Decisions

It didn’t take long for people to start questioning Vigneault in the 2017-18 season. In fact, it took a total of three games. After some interesting decisions in the Rangers series against the Ottawa Senators last spring, Vigneault has started right where he left off.

The 21st overall draft pick this year, Filip Chytil made the team out of training camp. However, just three games in to the season he was demoted to the AHL. While the 17 year-old showed some expected nerves, his upside was never showcased. Vigneault kept him confined to the bench for much of his brief stint at the NHL level. Last season the Rangers head coach made a habit of choosing aging veterans over young talent with tremendous upside. The trend has continued.

Furthermore, the Rangers most explosive defenseman last season, Brady Skjei, has been limited this season. As a rookie Skjei was nothing short of phenomenal. This season Vigneault has shown an unwillingness to let Skjei develop more as a player by keeping him off the power play. While Kevin Shattenkirk and Ryan McDonagh are rightly above Skjei on the depth chart, Skjei should be an easy choice for considerable time on the second unit, he’s not.

Vigneault hasn’t started the season off on the best foot. If the Rangers struggle, his decision making will come in to question one way or another.

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