If I were coach of the New York Rangers next season …

Play the man, not the puck

I didn’t have a preference for a defensive coach. Todd Reirden or Gord Murphy would have done. Reirden was in charge of the defense for the 2018 Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals. Murphy did solid work for the AHL Hartford Wolf Pack before replacing Lindy Ruff on an interim basis for the Qualifying Round after Ruff agreed to coach the Devils next season.

Again, either would have done, but the Rangers just went out and hired Jacques Martin, formerly of the Pittsburgh Penguins.  But the name on the bench won’t matter much unless the ineptitude on the ice ends. To say the Rangers were not good in their own end would be an understatement. They flat out stunk.

The Rangers were a lousy at possession, with the league’s fourth-lowest Corsi-for (46.6%).  Only seven teams allowed more goals than the 220 New York permitted (and just two of those clubs, the Florida Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs, made the Qualifying Round).

The Blueshirts allowed 688 high-danger scoring chances, third-most in the NHL behind the Winnipeg Jets (756) and Chicago Blackhawks (728). Opponents converted on only 78 of those opportunities — a tribute to the Rangers’ goaltending. New York had the league’s seventh-best high-danger save percentage at 84.21%, all statistics courtesy of naturalstattrick.com.

If the Rangers are to improve defensively, they have to play the man at their blue line.

Too often, they yield the line to opponents, backing in and, many times, screening their goaltender. They’d be better off standing up opponents at their line, force opponents to dump and chase. Why allow opponents easy access to set up when goalie Igor Shesterkin has shown he can move the puck? Backing in makes zero sense. Don’t just take my word. Watch how the New York Islanders protect their blue line.

Next up, a few quick fixes.