This Rangers’ rookie season makes or breaks 2021
One rookie’s performance may be more important to the 2021 New York Rangers than any others’
New York Rangers’ fans are buzzing with anticipation for the season to start Thursday. With a young, exciting team, the present and the future are both reasons for optimism on Broadway. Right now, four of these young players are projected to play their rookie seasons in the NHL. However, one rookie in particular may be positioned to have a bigger team impact than others–and it’s not who you think.
These rookies are important for different reasons
Igor Shesterkin is the Rangers’ number-one goalie, and his position is one of the most involved in the game. By default, his season will make–or break–the Rangers. However, there are fewer questions surrounding the transition from The King to the Czar than the questions about his counterparts given his tremendous track record of success throughout his career–specifically in the KHL–and the small sample size from 2020. While some questions about his durability may exist, Shesterkin is expected to take the starting goalie job and run with it.
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K’Andre Miller winning a job out of camp and slotted to start on the first pair is a tremendous development. This shows how much stock the Rangers’ organization has in Miller, and the amazing strides he’s made since they drafted him as a raw forward-turned-defenseman. He may be the true lockdown defenseman the team hasn’t had since Ryan McDonagh (especially before McDonagh was named captain). A strong case can be made that his first NHL season can be the biggest rookie storyline.
Alexis Lafrenière has all the eyes of Rangers’ faithful and the hockey world on him. Will his play justify him being drafted first overall and being dubbed by some as a generational talent? While those questions are important ones, Lafreniere does join a strong Rangers forward group highlighted by Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, and Mika Zibanejad. Lafrenière will be expected to produce, but he’s not being asked to shoulder the offensive burden as a rookie.
This Rangers rookie will determine this season’s fate
Julien Gauthier came over through a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes. The Rangers gave up a well-regarded defensive prospect in Joey Keane. It was a great swap of prospects that addressed organizational needs for both franchises.
So, not only does Gauthier need to prove the Rangers’ faith in him right for this trade, he’ll have to fill the shoes in an important way of one crucial former New York Ranger–Jesper Fast. While Kaapo Kakko will take Fast’s place on the second line (a great move even if Fast were still here, in my opinion), it’s Gauthier who will be relied on being a reliable penalty killer like Fast. In fact, Gauthier can hopefully turn into a penalty killer similar to Michael Grabner, whose speed made Grabner a highly effective penalty killer and a threat to score short-handed goals.
Additionally, Gauthier will form the youngster third line with Lafrenière and Filip Chytil. This is a very motivated line, with all of them having something to prove this year. There’s a possibility this line gets broken up because Lafrenière gets moved into the top six. But, if this line can be successful and Gauthier can be a Chris Kreider lite that energizes the line with his physical, north-south style of play and his blazing speed, then this eases the burden on the first two lines.
David Quinn can then roll three lines–hopefully four–throughout the year. And in a shortened season, it’s more important than ever to distribute ice time as evenly as possible throughout this sprint. If Gauthier plays well and can score close to 10 goals this season, this does a lot to quell concerns about the Rangers’ bottom six.
Julien Gauthier enters this year without as much fanfare as the other buzzed about rookies, but his play may be more determinant of the Rangers’ overall success in 2021 than others.
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