New York Rangers fans certainly aren’t starved of hockey at the moment with both the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the IIHF World Championships proving to be riveting spectacles for the neutral.
It is without doubt the latter tournament that holds the most interest for everyone connected with the New York Rangers though, however, given that it has presented the franchise with a tantalising look at its future.
Yes, the whole hockey world has been left captivated by the shows being put on by the sport’s two biggest prospects in Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko.
In what has been the highlight of the IIHF World Championships so far, the two young phenoms pitted their wits against each other in a mouthwatering showdown on Monday.
Although it was Hughes and Team USA who came out on top, thanks in part to Rangers defenseman Brady Skjei‘s goal and player of the game performance, Kakko sent out a clear message that he is ready to take the NHL by storm.
He was held without a point for the first time in three games but was on the ice for both of Finland’s goals, as well as showing off a maturity that goes beyond his tender years.
Gifted with a sturdy frame and an excellent hockey mind, Kakko is perfectly built for the big stage and the big moments right now and, although Hughes was outmuscled by his Finnish counterpart on Monday, there is no doubt that the 18-year-old has all the tools in his armory to one day morph into an elite NHL center and potentially break into the upper echelons of the game’s very best one day.
Both players will be off the board by the time the third pick is made at the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver on Friday, 21 June, with the overwhelming consensus being that Hughes will be taken with the No.1 overall pick by the New Jersey Devils.
However, given the way the Devils are now drooling over Kakko on their social media accounts, you can’t be 100 percent certain that the Finnish sensation will end up in the Big Apple.
One thing is for certain, though, the Rangers are going to return from Vancouver with a generational talent whoever they select and to be in a win-win position such as this really is a luxury.
If the script survives a rewrite and the Blueshirts do indeed end up with Kakko in their lap, then this fanbase will have every right to rejoice and want to party in the streets surrounding Madison Square Garden.
They’d have every right to feel extremely optimistic about the short-term future of this rebuild too given the fact that Kakko has proven during the World Championships that he isn’t interested in wasting time, he’s ready to showcase his talents on the biggest stage from the very get-go and become the shiny new face of this franchise.
Boasting unbelievable hockey smarts, a frame built to handle the rigors of the NHL and a never-ending treasure chest of skill and talent, the 18-year-old has the potential and the ability to be able to come in and put together a rookie season deserving of the Calder Memorial Trophy like Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Elias Pettersson before him.
However, if the New Jersey Devils really aren’t blushing and they really have fallen head over heels for Kakko and decide to use their No.1 pick on the right-wing, then the Rangers will still be taking the champagne off ice and toasting the hockey gods for such a gift.
And a lavish gift at that because Hughes’ ceiling is scary and the center could become one of the best prospects to come out of the draft in years.
Although not as physically mature as Kakko yet, Hughes is a skilled playmaker who will be able to both create and score goals by the bucketload.
He’ll beef up the older he gets so it would be foolish to worry too much about his slight size now and, after all, being small hasn’t done the likes of Johnny Gaudreau any harm has it?
Hughes will more than likely take a few years to fully mature and develop into the stud we all think and hope he will become, but given that the Blueshirts are currently in a rebuild that wouldn’t faze the Rangers’ front office.
You need elite centers to have half a chance to succeed in the NHL, look at Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Hughes certainly fits that bill potential-wise and he would be this team’s franchise center for the next 15 or so years.
New York General Manager Jeff Gorton would have to add other pieces around Hughes, like an elite winger such as Artemi Panarin or Jeff Skinner, because you can’t become a contender with just a superstar center alone. Just look at the Edmonton Oilers.
Whatever happens on Friday, June 21, whoever the Rangers pick with the No.2 selection, they will be gaining a once-in-a-lifetime generational talent locked, loaded and ready to fire this rebuild to the promised land and on the road for a Stanley Cup.
Jack Hughes or Kaapo Kakko, the New York Rangers really are in a win-win situation when it comes to the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.