It’s clear, this is not David Quinn’s New York Rangers team

Who he likes

It’s easy to see who the ideal Quinn player is. Don’t say Cody McLeod, although a more skilled version of McLeod may be the solution.  The better answer may be found by looking at the kind of players he recruited for Boston University who have been drafted by NHL teams.

The real Quinn prototype is the player chosen fourth overall last summer, Brady Tkachuk.  Here’s what ISS Hockey (International Scouting Service) had to say about him: “Big body and isn’t afraid to use it. Plays all 200 feet of the rink and loves those dirty areas.”

Here’s what hockey experts had to say about some other players Quinn recruited to B.U.

Joel Farabee (2018  #14 overall, Philadelphia) – “He competes so hard, and he goes to the areas most people don’t want to go to, and he scores tons of goals at the front of the net…he adds so many goals because of his willingness to go to the hard areas, and he’s comfortable in those areas because he’s legitimately tough.”

Jake Wise (2018 #69 overall, Chicago)  – “Despite his smaller stature, he continuously imposes himself over opponents due to his relentless nature. He seems built to withstand hard pressure along the boards and he shines by refusing to let any opponent come out of scrums with possession if he can do something about it.”

Cam Crotty (2017 #82 overall, Arizona)  -“He has the strength to ward off forwards battling for position in front of the net and the speed to pace a breakout. ”

David Farrance (2017 #92 overall, Nashville) – “He’s capable of winning puck battles against bigger older players — he’s done it against NCAA competition –and he uses his lower body strength to keep his man near the cage clear of shooting lanes.”

Kasper Kotkansalo (2017 #71 overall, Detroit) – “He’s more of a defender. He’s going to be a guy that’s going to be hard to play against. He is intense, he has really good hockey sense, he has a really good first pass.”

Dante Fabbro  (2016 # 17 overall, Nashville) – “In his own end, he is proactive with both his body and stick, and does everything right to interrupt passing lanes and win back possession.”

How many Rangers would fit those descriptions?   Not that many.  Even the players willing to “go to the hard areas” are physically smaller and have a hard time winning those battles.

One thing is positive, when the Rangers play that in-your-face physical game they can compete as they did against the Islanders.  The problem is that they cannot keep it up, they don’t have the fortitude to do it and that’s how you end up with an effort we saw against Columbus.

So, who stays?

Listening to Quinn’s tirade, it’s easy to think that no one will survive.  Of course, that isn’t practical. You cannot turn over an entire roster in a year, but it will be fascinating to watch the roster moves the team will make.  Adding a few character players can affect the entire team.  Look at the effect that Tom Wilson alone has on the Washington Capitals.

Quinn has been testing this team all season. He has benched and demoted players in an effort to see if they posses the Quinn value of  being “hard on the puck.”  How has that worked and  which Rangers fit that description?  Looking at the forwards, of the kids, Filip Chytil, Brett Howden and Boo Nieves battle and they have been rewarded with ice time.

Of the veterans, Mats Zuccarello, Kevin Hayes, Jesper Fast, Jimmy Vesey have the DNA.  Mika Zibanejad and Ryan Strome have shown it.  Vlad Namestnikov has been a physical force after some Quinn “tough love.”

Interestingly, Chris Kreider seems to be on the bubble.   Despite his penchant for ill-timed unnecessary penalties and his willingness to stay in front of the net, he is not one to get “dirty” in the corners. Considering his size and strength, that’s a disappointment.

From the way he has been deployed, it’s obvious that Quinn doesn’t have much use for Pavel Buchnevich’s game.

On defense, Neal Pionk, Brad Skjei and Marc Staal lead in ice time and clearly have shown something to Quinn in order to earn it.   He’s been giving Tony DeAngelo more ice time recently and except for his occasional lack of discipline, it’s clear that Quinn is a fan.

Brendan Smith must drive Quinn crazy.  He has the size to be a force in the defensive zone, but rarely uses it. Much has been made of Kevin Shattenkirk’s B.U. relationship with Shattenkirk, but Quinn wasn’t the head coach when Shattenkirk played there.  Looking at his game, he’s not a Quinn player by any stretch of the imagination

As much as he may like Adam McQuaid and Fredrik Claesson, the likelihood is that they are gone at the deadline if here is any return for them.

The biggest issue with most of the players that Quinn values is that they are not big enough.  You know you have a problem with your roster when the three players you value most for their battle are Neal Pionk, Mats Zuccarello and Jesper Fast.