Top five prospects currently in the New York Rangers’ organization
Part of the excitement of a new season is the prospects showing their talent. Here are the top five prospects for the New York Rangers.
The best cure for offseason blues is looking at the new hope of the next season. So, of course, prospects are the best way to get into a new season mindset. For the New York Rangers, they have quite a few that could make the team.
Most of these prospects have been in the organization since last season or earlier. One of these prospects was acquired at this year’s NHL trade deadline.
They has a good mix to get excited about, specifically of forwards and goaltenders. In reality, they’ve had a good number of forward prospects over the past few seasons and they will continue to add some more.
In terms of defensemen, that appears to be the area they are the thinnest in. Only one of the prospects named in this list will be a defenseman.
Keep in mind that this list will most likely change by the start of next season. The Rangers have seven picks in the first three rounds of the draft, including three first rounders. They will also be active on the trade market, looking to swap some veterans out of their lineup for more picks and prospects. This list is just based on what they currently have in their system.
So without further ado, here is our list of the New York Rangers’ top five prospects with the team as of now.
Lias Andersson
The Rangers were extremely excited about Lias Andersson when they traded Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta to get him and Tony DeAngelo. Although he only played seven games for the New York Rangers this season, he was excellent in his debut.
Andersson only tallied one goal and one assist in his limited NHL time. At the highest level, he showed that he can be more than only a goal-scorer. He has play-making abilities that would make him fit in on the roster perfectly. Andersson is very poised with the puck, which is impressive for a 19 year old. He does not panic with the puck on his stick which will bode well for him going forward.
As for his stats, he had seven goals and seven assists in 22 games with Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League. He also had five goals and nine assists in 25 games with the Rangers’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.
Andersson was expected to make the team out of camp last season. That didn’t pan out the way it was supposed to. With that said, Andersson played a lot of hockey since he was drafted 12 months ago. He played games in the SHL, AHL, NHL, World Juniors and World Championships (where he won gold). He’ll be expected to make the full time NHL jump in 2018-19.
Filip Chytil
Filip Chytil, like Andersson, is a highly anticipated player. At the time of the draft, Chytil seemed like a bit of a reach for the Rangers since he wasn’t projected to go until the second round. Turns out that Chytil, the youngest play in last year’s draft, may have been a steal. The Rangers are excited to see how the center/left-winger develops in future.
In nine games with the Rangers, he recorded one goal and two assists. With Hartford, he had 11 goals and 20 assists for 31 points in 46 games. Those numbers were among the top numbers an 18 year-old has ever put up at the AHL level.
He’s been described as a dynamic forward who’s biggest strengths are his speed and skill. It was clear to see that he had a wide range of puck-handling abilities in his short time in the NHL this past season.
The hope is that the 18 year old can become a big name on the Rangers’ roster in a short time. He is expected to be a key cog for them for a long time and under a guy like David Quinn, maybe he can get there. Expect him to be on the opening night roster in October.
Ty Ronning
Ty Ronning has spent every season since 2013-2014 impressing the Vancouver Giants of the WHL. The 20 year old winger isn’t talked about nearly as enough as he should be.
In the 2017-2018 season, Ronning was a goal scoring machine. In 70 games, he recorded 61 goals ad 23 assists for a grand total of 84 points. It is worth noting that at 20-years-old, he is considered an overager. This basically means that he is expected to dominate his competition at times due to his age alone. With that said, though, during the 2017-18 season, our own John Williams examined his career WHL numbers using Rob Vollman of the Hockey Abstract’s equation for determining a player’s future NHL production.
One of his biggest strengths is his skating ability. Kind of in the style of Mats Zuccarello, he is small, standing in at 5-foot-9 and 172 pounds, but unafraid of physical contact. His hockey IQ is very high, and he makes quick decisions with the puck, which explains why he’s been pegged as an “offensive catalyst” for his team.
His scoring instincts make him one of the most productive players on the ice, and the Rangers are defiantly excited for his future.
Ryan Lindgren
The 2017-2018 season was one of Lindgren’s more defensively-sound seasons. His positioning improved greatly and he began to use his 6-foot frame a bit more. Lindgren has never been a guy to blow you away with his offensive production, but he tallied two goals and nine assists in 35 games.
Lindgren was acquired by the Rangers in the Rick Nash trade with the Boston Bruins. The Rangers also acquired Ryan Spooner, Matt Beleskey and a first-round pick in the deal.
Lindgren appears that he’s been concentrating more on his physicality and presence as a defensive defenseman instead of concentrating on the offensive part to his game. He thinks of himself as a “throwback” type of player; one who will use his physicality to wear down his opponents. Lindgren is also not afraid to drop the gloves if need be.
It is also worth noting that Lindgren was an alternate captain in college. That is extremely rare for a sophomore, which speaks to his leadership ability.
Lindgren is another player that needs to get more recognition for his efforts and skill. Hopefully under the new head coach, he gets to see some ice time, especially to start the season, to see if he’s ready.
Igor Shestyorkin
When discussing goaltenders, there are a lot of angles that affect their games more than players in other positions. That isn’t to say they aren’t responsible for their own play, but some of the blame when they aren’t doing as well can be placed on the defense. And vice versa, when they are playing well, it could be because of a solid defensive effort.
The 22 year old Shestyorkin has got to be itching for time in the big leagues, especially considering the season he had. In the KHL, he posted a 1.70 goals against average and a .933 save percentage. In Russia, he posted a 1.46 goals against average and .942 save percentage in the WC.
Shestyorkin and Philadelphia Flyers propsect Carter Hart are commonly refered to as the two best goalies currently not in the NHL.
Next: A look at David Quinn's time at BU
He’s been amazing so far, and that’s exactly what the Rangers need to see with Henrik Lundqvist, getting older. Shestyorkin’s contract with SKA St. Petersburg expires after this upcoming season. It appears that his goal is to come over to North America as soon as the deal ends. With that said, we might not be too far away from seeing the heir of Henrik Lundqvist in person.