New York Rangers 2017-18 report card: Neal Pionk
Neal Pionk is another young defenseman who joined the New York Rangers in the latter half of the 2017-18 season. We break down his performance to see how he fared in his first season on NHL ice.
Pionk entered the lineup and proved that he could handle minutes against NHL competition. While he may be smaller physically, he has a great set of skills. What he lacks in size he makes up for with a high quality style of play.
First and foremost, he has good ability. He is an extremely good skater, which impacts his play in all three zones. Pair this with his great vision and you can see signs of qualities seen in many successful two way defensemen in the league.
Pionk has shown that he understands his role in each zone and how to make himself most valuable.
He knows that his speed makes him an asset on the forcheck and a threat in transition. In addition, he has shown that he has good sense in the offensive zone and can move the puck efficiently.
However, he needs the guidance to help refine all of this knowledge and turn it into consistent, reliable play in every zone.
His play in the 2017-18 season earned him an invitation to the IIHF Worlds in Denmark. Team USA played their first game against Team Canada yesterday, and Pionk went +2 in the 5-4 shootout victory.
Overall, based on the potential that Pionk demonstrated in his game this season, he has a good chance to make next year’s opening day roster and to become a solid defenseman for the New York Rangers.
Related Story: Neal Pionk has earned a permanent roster spot
Some stats and some things to consider
Pionk put up some very solid numbers this season, and others that were slightly concerning, yet deserve explanation.
In 28 games this season, Pionk recorded his first and only NHL goal along with seven assists for a total eight points.
More impressive, however, are the underlying statistics here. Five of Pionk’s seven assists were primary assists. In addition, he took 54 shots on goal (1.9 per game played) and recorded 1.34 points per game.
Pionk’s biggest impact came in this regard as his goals-for percentage in all scenarios hovers just around 50 percent at 46.67 (in all situations).
One of the Rangers’ biggest areas of weakness was their scoring in 5v5 scenarios, but Pionk’s goals for percentage is higher in this category (48.65).
Slightly more concerning are some of the defensive statistics.
Pionk’s overall Corsi and his 5-on-5 Corsi were both ugly. He recorded 40.61 percent and 41.61 percent, respectively.
Worse still were his numbers in high danger situations — he drops to just 38.56 percent in these scenarios.
Furthermore, Pionk’s high danger scoring chances were pretty skewed. There were many more chances against (364) than for (235) — a percentage of 39.23.
But luckily these problems will improve with a change in the Rangers’ leadership and with an established system and approach on the defensive end of the ice.
With all of the cards stacked against the Rangers this season, especially when it came to their defense, it is good to see that young defensemen like Pionk actually managed to keep their head above water.
Next: New York Rangers Report Card: Ryan Spooner
The highs and not-so-highs (definitely do not want to classify them as lows) shows that Pionk has promise, as well as having some room to grow.
Based on what we’ve seen so far, there is no doubt it’s all uphill from here.