New York Rangers: Has Marc Staal improved from last season?

Coming off one of his worst seasons to date, Marc Staal went into camp with something to prove. Coach Alain Vigneault didn’t guarantee Staal would make the New York Rangers roster.

With new additions like defensmen Neil Pionk and Tony DeAngelo, Staal was in unusual territory. The 30 year-old wasn’t use to competing for a roster spot. However, he found himself in the opening day lineup.

Last season, Staal was mostly paired with newly acquired defenseman Nick Holden from the Colorado Avalanche. The two had plenty of experience, and in turn, was often relied upon by Vigneault. Yet, no one ever knew why. In the playoffs, Staal and Holden were on the ice for game-tying and game-winning goals multiple times. Both showed slow foot speed, and were prone to bad turnovers and costly mistakes.

Their trust in late game situations didn’t come from a great regular season either. Staal’s corsi-for was 46.6%, and Holden’s was 47.4%. Those are weak possession numbers from your second defense pairing.

A Fresh Start

Long-time Ranger Dan Girardi was bought out and signed by the Tampa Bay Lightning, making people wonder if Staal was next. Coning off a poor year with a big contract that doesn’t expire until after the 2020-2021 season, Staal came in with a new mindset. He said his offseason plan was less strenuous than years past in an attempt to keep him fresh. He, along with the rest of the team, was looking for a fresh start after last season’s disappointing playoff exit.

One thing you can say about last season was that at least he had a consistent partner. This season has been chaotic for the New York Rangers blue line, and Staal’s had to adjust to multiple different partners. Staal’s been paired with Kevin Shattenkirk, Anthony DeAngelo, Steven Kampfer, and now Brendan Smith. The only thing that has remained consistent is his new role as a third pairing defenseman.

That new role has decreased Staal’s ice time to 17:38 minutes per game, down from 19:11 minutes last season. Less responsibility could mean better results for a player with as much wear-and-tear on their body as Staal. But, his possession numbers have been anything but better.

Through 28 games, Staal’s corsi-for is a career-worst 43.9%. The argument can be made that Staal has looked better based on the eye test because he’s limited the amount of egregious turnovers he’s been responsible for in the past. After all, Staal already has six points in 28 games when he had just 10 points all last season. Staal is definitely skating better, but he’s still not driving possession at all.

Last Season in Blue?

However, this could be due to his usage. Staal hasn’t had a corsi-for over 50% since the 2013-2014 season, so expecting him to be a possession driver is foolish. The Rangers realize he’s more of a stay-at-home defenseman, and have often deployed him in defensive zone situations.

This season, Staal has only been on the ice for just 37.2% of starts in the offensive zone, but a staggering 62.8% in the defensive zone. This is smart considering the Rangers are using puck movers like Kevin Shattenkirk in offensive zone starts. What those numbers could also mean is that Staal gets pinned in his own end too often. While this has been a team-wide issue, Staal hasn’t been a viable solution.

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The Rangers are a younger team in transition, and Staal is again falling too far behind. While he hasn’t looked as bad as he did last season, numbers prove he hasn’t exactly changed. He’s proved to be durable, and does the dirty work, but better third-pairing defensemen will be on the market, and ones that fit the New York Rangers uptempo style of play.

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