Blue Line Station
Fansided

New York Rangers: Five pivotal questions

By Steve Paulus

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 24: Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) tries to control the loose puck after a first period save by New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist (30) on February 24, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 24: Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) tries to control the loose puck after a first period save by New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist (30) on February 24, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 2
Next
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 24: Washington Capitals goaltender Pheonix Copley (1) makes a third period safe on a shot by New York Rangers left wing Jimmy Vesey (26) on February 24, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 24: Washington Capitals goaltender Pheonix Copley (1) makes a third period safe on a shot by New York Rangers left wing Jimmy Vesey (26) on February 24, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

The New York Rangers take on the Washington Capitals for the second time in a week.  Their last meeting resulted in a dramatic comeback and an overtime loss.

It was a different New York Ranger team that took on the Capitals in Washington last Sunday.  The trade deadline was a day away and while three of their top players were benched as a precaution, the team was wracked by uncertainty, but coming off a dominant win over the Devils.

There are few questions about the team that takes the ice today.  It is not a playoff team and is a team that is determining its future.  The questions revolve about personnel,  but not about playing style and character.  The good news is that after 64 games, Coach David Quinn has made those criteria clear.

As we go in to a matinee at the Garden, they pivotal questions are directly related to the future of the New York Rangers.

Five pivotal questions

  1. Will Filip Chytil play? – The 19-year old Czech has hit a wall.  Dissatisfied with his effort in the last Washington game, he has been hit with Quinn’s version of tough love. Benched for two games,  how long will it take for him to figure it out and get back into a game?  So much of the team’s future revolves around players like Chytil.  Quinn was brought in precisely to figure this out and so far it has worked.  Let’s hope it does with Chytil.
  2. How good can Brendan Lemieux be? –  The hidden factor in the Kevin Hayes trade, he has been a revelation.  He shoots the puck whenever he can, he is physical around the net and he is the second coming of Sean Avery when it comes to agitating.  He is singlehandedly changing the character of the Rangers.  How far can he go as his minutes increase and he gets more comfortable and in better game shape?
  3. Will Georgiev start? – Over the last 18 games of the season, how much play will Alexandar Georgiev get?   The Rangers face some interesting choices next season if Igor Shestyorkin comes over the from the KHL and is deemed NHL-ready.   Splitting the workload with Henrik Lundqvist will not be a slight at The King, but an opportunity to see if the young Bulgarian is ready to be the next Cam Talbot.
  4. Is Libor Hajek ready? – So much has been written about this young player as the future of the Rangers blue line.  He has already been labelled a “disappointment” based on his AHL statistics.   In his debut versus Montreal he showed poise, intelligence and solid hockey ability.  He just turned 21 years old and if Friday was any indication, Ranger fans have a lot to look forward to.
  5. Is Jimmy Vesey a top line forward? – Since Vesey took over for Mats Zuccarello on the Rangers’ top line, he has been very good.  While not the passing wizard that Zuccarello is, Vesey can use his big body to crash the net and he has shown that he has good hands.  He’s been a good substitute, but on a good team he is not the answer.  On this Ranger team he is.
Home/Editorials