New York Rangers: Some needed progress for the Wolf Pack
While the New York Rangers made a splash with the dawn of free agency they have also quietly gone about improving their top AHL farm club in Hartford.
While embarking on a rebuild of the New York Rangers, the team hierarchy also knew they had to perform similar surgery on their top farm club. The Hartford Wolf Pack finished last in the Atlantic Division for the second time in four years and have missed the Calder Cup playoffs for four straight seasons.
Even worse, as a development team for the Rangers, Hartford was a disaster. Instead of establishing a feeder system and preparing prospects for the Rangers’ style of play, there was no shared vision between the Wolf Pack and the Blueshirts. It was never more evident than this past season when defenseman Libor Hajek struggled at the AHL level, but excelled when he was promoted to the big leagues.
Chris Drury’s mission
Chris Drury was named general manager of the Wolf Pack two summers ago and was tasked with the challenge of fixing it. You cannot accuse Drury of moving quickly. It took him two years to fire the coaching staff he had inherited (though he played a part in the decision to hired Keith McCambridge).
Drury is still looking for a coaching staff that will embrace the David Quinn philosophy of coaching so that the impressive crop of prospects will be integrated into the NHL seamlessly. There’s no word on how the search is going, but in the meantime, he had gone about strengthening the team.
What most fans don’t know is that there are rules regarding AHL roster. Considered a developmental league, no team can load up with veterans. Of the 18 skaters who dress for a game, 13 have to be players in development with a limit on the number of games they have played as professionals. 12 have to have played in fewer than 260 pro games and one must have played in fewer than 320. Professional games include the AHL, NHL and European elite leagues.
That means an AHL team can have five veteran players on the roster and that’s where the Wolf Pack made some moves.
Free agent signings
It didn’t make headlines, but the Wolf Pack signed three AHL veterans, including two with some NHL experience. The trio have good reputations and should have an immediate impact on the quality of the team.
Harry Zolnierczyk, Left Wing – Of the three signed on Monday, Zolnierczyk has the most NHL experience. He has played 84 games in brief stints in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Anaheim, Nashville and with the Islanders.
The 31-year old is coming off his best pro season with the Springfield Thunderbirds where he had 51 points in 72 games. He has played in 426 AHL games for seven teams.
Vincent LoVerde, Defense – LoVerde has played the last seven years in the AHL after graduating from Miami University of Ohio in 2011. He played last season with the Toronto Marlies where he had three goals and 11 assists in 68 games. He was important member of the Marlies’ defense in the playoffs and had six assists in 13 playoff games.
The 30-year old has been on two Calder Cup championship teams, the Manchester Monarchs in 2015 and the Marlies in 2018. He has been named an All-Star twice in his career.
Tom McCollum, Goalie – McColum is a 29-year old former first round draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings. He has spent almost his entire career in the AHL, making it to Detroit for only three games, the last in 2014-15.
McCollum played last season in Milwaukee where he was 12-10-10 with a 2.72 goals against average and a save percentage of .899. He has appeared in 315 AHL games for four different teams and won a Calder Cup with Grand Rapids in 2013.
With top goaltending prospect Igor Shesterkin destined to be the first string netminder in Hartford, McCollum will back him up and help him get acclimated to North American hockey. It will also allow the Rangers to most likely let prospect Adam Huska get a lot of playing time with Maine in the ECHL.
Drury has made a lot of moves, rebuilding the team that finished last this season.
The Hartford roster
Adding the trio of experienced AHL veterans will help the Wolf Pack that will be turning over much of its roster. Gone from the 2018-19 team are goalies Brandon Halverson, Dustin Tokarski, Chris Nell and Marek Mazanec. They are replaced by Shesterkin, McCollum and Huska.
On defense, the team lost John Gilmore, Rob O’Gara, Chris Bigras and Julius Bergman, all to free agency. They will be replaced by LoVerde, Joey Keane, Tarmo Reunanen, Yegor Rykov and possibly Adam Fox and Brendan Smith.
There are a number of new forwards who will be playing in Hartford this season. Jake Elmer and Patrick Newell were undrafted free agents signed by the Rangers. Elmer. 20, had a breakout offensive season in the WHL with 81 points in 68 games. Newell, 23, is a right wing who played with St. Cloud State last season, the top ranked NCAA team in the country. Newell was a Hobey Baker finalist and led St. Cloud State in scoring.
Hartford signed a trio of free agents forwards to AHL contracts at the end of the season. Lewis Zerter-Gossage, Ryan Dmowski and Nick Jones all took part in the Rangers’ Prospect Training Camp in June.
Right winger Zerter-Gossage, 23, was the team captain and top scorer for Harvard this season. Dmowski is a 22-year old left winger who graduated from U.Mass-Lowell. The Connecticut native had 23 points in 37 games, his best collegiate output. Nick Jones, is a center who just finished two excellent seasons at North Dakota. The 23-year old showed off his stuff at the prospect camp.
Nick Jones with the ridiculous 🖐 🖐 #NYRPDC pic.twitter.com/MBAJrjI2V8
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) June 28, 2019
Will we see any of these players on the ice at Madison Square Garden? It’s likely that some prospects will start the season in the AHL before moving up. Turning over the roster and improving the team will help, but that’s why the most important decision remains to be made and that is finding the right coach.
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