New York Rangers forgotten players A-Z: The F’s

In our last piece of forgotten New York Rangers, we discussed a handful of players with last names that start with E. Now, it’s time to move on to the F’s.

These players vary a bit when it comes to their overall skill levels, but at the end of the day, it’s rather clear that not many people remember them for being Rangers. In fact, in some cases, their tenures with Rangers may be the last team that fans think about with them.

These forgotten Blueshirts are a rather interesting bunch. Our first player is a former first-round pick who struggled to live up to the previous hype he had as a prospect. We then will move on to an NHLer who had a very strong career, but just did not last with the Rangers all that long. At this point, he is still very active in the sport as well. Following him is a longtime member of the New York Islanders who interestingly completed his career with the Rangers. Lastly, we will discuss a winger who the Rangers signed after his best days were behind him.

Rico Fata RW

Rico Fata was selected sixth overall in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft by the Calgary Flames. After an impressive career in juniors, many predicted that he would end up being a very good NHLer. However, after playing just 27 games over three seasons with the Flames, they already had seen enough of the then 20-year-old forward. Calgary placed him on waivers and he would be claimed by the Rangers.

The Rangers had hoped to help him get his career back on track. During the 2001-02 season, he would play in 61 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack. In them, he scored 35 goals and recorded 71 points. It was a noticeable increase in production at the AHL level, but he would go pointless in 10 NHL games with the Blueshirts. The following season, he had 14 points in nine games with the Wolf Pack. He also received more NHL time, too, as he played 36 games with the Rangers and had six points.

Yet, in the middle of the 2002-03 season, the Rangers would send him to the Pittsburgh Penguins in an eight-player trade that notably sent Alexei Kovalev back to New York. In Pittsburgh, Fata had some offensive success, as he had a 34-point campaign in 73 games, but he quickly would regress again. His drop in production made him bounce around the league until his NHL career ended during the 2006-07 season.

In 230 games between the Flames, Rangers, Penguins, Atlanta Thrashers and Washington Capitals, Fata had 27 goals, 36 assists and 63 points.

Patrick Flatley RW

Patrick Flatley is justifiably remembered most for his time with the New York Islanders. He played 13 of his 14 NHL seasons with the team. He was never an offensively dominant player, but he was fantastic when it came to his defensive and tenacious play. His hard work ethic was exactly what allowed him to be their captain for his final five years there, too.

In 712 games as an Islander, Flatley had 160 goals, 328 assists, 488 points and 660 penalty minutes. However, the part of his career that many fans may forget is that he actually finished it off with the Rangers.

Flatley signed a one-year contract with the Blueshirts during the 1996-97 season. At this point in time, he was 33 years old and his best offensive days were behind him. Still, during his short time with the Rangers, he did provide pretty decent depth scoring. In 68 games, he scored 10 goals and had 22 points. From here, he would retire from the NHL. It’s still a bit strange that the longtime Islander played his final games with the Rangers.

Alexander Frolov LW

To conclude the F’s, let’s look at Alexander Frolov. He is certainly remembered most for his time with the Los Angeles Kings. During his time there, he was a legitimate top-six winger. He had two 30+ goal seasons and a career-high of 71 points during the 2006-07 season. His final year with the Kings came during the 2009-10 season. In it, he scored 19 goals and recorded 51 points in 81 games. From here, he would sign a one-year, $3 million contract with the Rangers.

The deal seemed like a potential steal in the making. During the 2008-09 season, he scored 32 goals, so there was reason to believe a bounce-back campaign could be in order. However, as a member of the Blueshirts, Frolov offensively contributions dropped off significantly. He also tore his ACL in January and that would end his lone season with the team prematurely. In 43 games as a Ranger, he scored seven goals and had 16 points.

From here, Frolov would leave North America and play back home in Russia until the completion of the 2017-18 season. In 579 career NHL games, he had 175 goals, 222 assists and 397 points. Overall, he was a very talented player who found himself out of the league too soon.

Our next piece on forgotten Rangers will be looking at players with last names that begin with G. Prepare to see that soon!