New York Rangers: Fact or fiction after two weeks of the season

As the sample size of the New York Rangers grows, conclusions are being drawn.

While two weeks of the NHL season does not seem like a ton of time to draw any final conclusions, it is something. Instead of just preseason conjecture, there is actual New York Rangers hockey to evaluate and formulate theories. The team has gotten off to a slow 1-3-0 start but is beginning to take shape.

The team’s lineup still has yet to be set in stone or find any real chemistry. Even the Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich line that was so good last year did not play well early on and subsequently was broken up. If nothing else, the coaching staff’s willingness to experiment should be encouraging for the rest of the season.

In the interest of being realistic, the Rangers are not a good hockey team and understanding them should be done in that lens. However, there are positives to take away from a team that has only one win.

Here are a few developing storylines through four games and how true they are.

Fact or Fiction: Tony DeAngelo is the odd man out?

The Rangers currently have eight defensemen on the active roster, meaning two of them have to sit every single night. This clown car of a unit is littered with average to below average defensemen, all of which have a different glaring flaw in their respective games. Whether it be Brady Skjei’s tentativeness in the defensive zone or Marc Staal’s slow skating, it ain’t pretty.

Now, when it comes to Tony DeAngelo, the defenseman had a strong training camp and exhibition season. However, when the real games started he did not look as confident on the puck. The glaring flaw of DeAngelo’s game is still the fact that although he is a defenseman, he still has no idea how to play in his own half of the ice.

This would be tolerable if he were a tweener capable of playing forward, but that has yet to happen. New York needs to get something out of DeAngelo being that the organization gave up so much to acquire him. Yet, the defenseman has only played two games and not given a chance to stick in the lineup.

This may not be a reflection on DeAngelo being that he has two points in two appearances and the fact that head coach David Quinn has consistently juggled the lineup in hopes of getting the team going. Let’s give this one another few weeks before we start to get worried.

Final verdict: Fiction

Fact or fiction: Jesper Fast is a top six player

While the Rangers as a collective have struggled early on, Jesper Fast has played well. While the Swiss-army knife forward was considered a bottom six player for most of his career, Fast has jumped off to a quick start this season. The Swede has four points in five games while playing alongside Zibanejad and Kreider.

While some may be upset at the dismantling of the KZB line, there is no denying that Fast is effective alongside those forwards. Given how badly some of the team’s forwards have played, having one player clicking well is something to work with. If one player is clicking, especially someone like Fast who will go to the dirty areas and work hard, it can be infectious.

Fast has played in the top six intermittently throughout his career, typically when someone else was injured. However, until the forward starts to struggle he has earned a spot playing on a skill line.

Final verdict: Fact

Fact or fiction: Brett Howden is better than advertised

Every single year, a player unexpectedly makes the roster out of training camp. This year for the Rangers, former second-round pick Brett Howden made the jump in a year the organization expected him to be playing heavy minutes in the AHL. Instead, the center has played a strong two-way game and been outright lethal in the faceoff circle.

While the Rangers expected the forward to eventually contribute at the NHL level, the perception was that it would be a year or two before he was ready. Players making the jump to the show right from the OHL is a difficult task, especially for someone in his role. At first, Howden was centering the fourth line, but he’s played so well he forced himself higher up the lineup.

The goal that Howden scored against the San Jose Sharks was silly. Shooting backward between his legs and beating goaltender Aaron Dell was the best Ranger goal in years. Similar to Fast, if Howden keeps playing as well as he is, he deserves to play in the top six.

Final verdict: Fact

Fact or fiction: Mika Zibanejad is struggling

It is hard to say this but stick with me. Although Zibanejad only has two points through five games, he is not playing poorly. The center is creating chances and taking shots, the bad luck that is ravaging the entire team and holding it back has nabbed Zibanejad particularly hard. The forward is currently shooting only five percent, less than half of his career average of 11.3 percent.

This discrepancy means that Zibanejad is due to break out any game now. The forward leads the Rangers in shots with 20 but just cannot find the back of the net. Especially because Zibanejad is the team’s trigger man on the power play, he will have more opportunities than other.

Even though he isn’t scoring, he’s getting shots and driving possession. The forward was on the ice for 52.2 percent of the scoring chances in the game. Meaning that when the Swede is on the ice, the Rangers have more than half of the shots on goal at even strength. This is 8.7 percent greater than the team average and the best of every Ranger that has played all five games.

Final verdict: Fiction

Going forward, be sure to keep these storylines in mind and see how they play out with a larger sample size.