New York Rangers: Who is Phil Di Giuseppe and what is his upside?

Recently promoted to the New York Rangers from Hartford, Phil Di Giuseppe’s play on the third line against the Kings earned him a star of the game honor. What’s his story?

The New York Rangers signed an unheralded free agent this summer named Phil Di Giuseppe.  A former Carolina Hurricanes prospect, the Canes had waived him after six  years in their organization.  Picked up by the Nashville Predators, he saw little action with Nashville and they chose to not re-sign him and the Rangers pounced.

At one time, the 26 year old left winger was one of the most highly regarded prospects in the Hurricanes’ system.  He had been drafted 38th overall in the second round of the 2012 Entry Draft.

He was one of the top scorers for the University of Michigan and was well known for his work ethic.   He played two season at Michigan before foregoing his senior year and signing with the Hurricanes.   After one full season in Charlotte of the AHL, he was promoted in the 2015-16 season and raised expectations by scoring seven goals and 17 points in 41 games.

Unfortunately, that was his best work in the NHL and he spent the next three seasons bouncing between Charlotte and Raleigh.   Last season, after clearing waivers once, the Hurricanes tried to send him back down to the minors, but Nashville claimed him and his career with Carolina was over.

Di Giuseppe played only three games for the Predators before they sent him to Milwaukee of the AHL where he spent the remainder of the season.  Nashville did not offer him a contract and in July he became a free agent.

With the Wolf Pack

It was much the same story for Di Giuseppe this season.  He cleared waivers in September and was assigned to Hartford.  With the Wolf Pack, he was the top scoring left winger on the team. He scored 14 goals and totaled 26 points in 43 games. At 6 feet 192 pounds, his physical play earned him honors as the most penalized forward on the team with 91 minutes.  Most impressive was his plus/minus figure of +10, again the top mark among forwards on the team.

That work earned him call ups to the Rangers in December and January, but didn’t see any action.   Most recently brought up on February 3, he has played in four games and impressed coach David Quinn with his energy and physicality.

All of that was evident in the win over Los Angeles.  He was the Ranger forward who won the puck battle and got to to Filip Chytil who made the pass that resulted in Kaapo Kakko‘s game winning goal.

Although not credited with any blocked shots, he did take a shot to the Ieg and was listed with a team leading six  hits in 11:41 of ice time.   If there is chemistry between Filip Chytil and Di Giuseppe, it’s probably because they were linemates when Chytil got off to his hot start in Hartford this season.

It was indicative of Quinn’s trust in his third line that he had Chytil, Kakko and Di Giuseppe on the ice when the Kings pulled their goalie and DeAngelo buried the empty net goal.  That was Di Giuseppe’s second assist on the night.  It was his seventh multiple point game in the NHL and one off his career high of three points.  It was also the first time he has done it since the 2017-18 season.

What’s his upside?

Here’s Di Giuseppe’s 2013 scouting report from the Dobber Prospects website:

“Di Giuseppe has fantastic hockey instincts and seems to see plays before they happen. He reads offensive opportunity very well and is an excellent playmaker, and is great along the boards. Di Giuseppe has a sneaky release giving him a shot that’s quick and hard to stop. He is a large power forward who isn’t afraid to drive to the net take a check, and has tons of room to get bigger…Potential second liner who is transitioning well to the pro game. With the right linemates he could surprise.”

Sometimes it takes years for a hockey player to live up to his potential. At 26, Di Giuseppe is still young enough to have an impact on the NHL level.  While he will never be a top six winger, on a team like the Rangers he could find a role moving forward especially if the team deals Chris Kreider at the deadline.

Hopefully, the Rangers will let Chytil, Kakko and Di Giuseppe play together and develop the chemistry to make them a success.  DiGiuseppe is an arbitration eligible restricted free agent after this season making $700k, the league minimum.