Preseason game 2 vs Bruins preview and live conversation
The New York Rangers hope to continue their winning ways in their second preseason game, this one on the road in Boston. It will be a mostly different squad taking the ice as the tune-up for the regular season continues. The intrigue is which players who played last night will be in action tonight and what that means.
We picked up where we left off last season with our live game thread and had a lively conversation. All in all, the outcome of the Rangers’ game was better than the Yankees’ loss to Toronto and the Giants’ defeat by Dallas. Tonight, the main television competition remains Aaron Judge’s pursuit of the Roger Maris home run record.
As in last night’s, there will be a mix of veterans, wannabes, and players destined for the minor leagues. Here’s a guide:
Sure things
This is not a veteran lineup. The only Rangers playing tonight who are guaranteed starting jobs are Vincent Trocheck, Alexis Lafreniere, Adam Fox, Ryan Lindgren, and Jaroslav Halak. The most interesting thing to watch will be the Rangers’ debut for Trocheck, their newest millionaire.
On defense, the Adam Fox-Ryan Lindgren is the only pairing that will be intact going into the regular season. Ranger killer Jaroslav Halak will make his debut for New York playing against Boston where he played for three seasons.
The wannabes
This is where the game gets interesting. Julien Gauthier and Dryden Hunt are both on the bubble and have to be concerned with Jimmy Vesey’s excellent outing on Monday night. Hunt is a favorite of coach Gerard Gallant and Gauthier has to clear waivers to go to Hartford, so this training camp will definitely determine Gauthier’s future in the organization.
Jonny Brodzinski saw some playing time in New York the last two seasons and will end up in Hartford as one of the first call-ups when injuries strike.
The rookies
On defense, Matthew Robertson is vying for the sixth or seventh slot with the varsity so he could be classified as a wannabe. He is waivers exempt so it’s very possible he could end up with the Wolf Pack for a second season.
The same goes for Will Cuylle. The highly touted left winger just concluded his career in the OHL, but has an outside chance of making the big team though he is a left winger, a position that is already overcrowded.
The kids playing tonight who are destined for Hartford include defensemen Hunter Skinner and Ty Emberson.
Hartford-bound
Of the forwards who are inevitably going to end up in the AHL, Gustav Rydahl and Bobby Trivigno will get a second straight game and we will also see center Turner Elson for the first time. The 30-year-old Elson was signed over the summer and has seen NHL action in three games since turning pro in 2012.
On the blueline, Jarred Tinordi did get into some games in New York but spent most of the season in Hartford as a veteran option in case of injury.
In goal, Chinese food enthusiast Louis Domingue will be Hartford bound.
Interesting…
Vitali Kravtsov, Jimmy Vesey, Trivigno, Rydahl, and Carpenter are all getting a second look after playing last night against the Islanders. Kravtsov had a quiet game and getting a second straight game could mean that Gallant is looking for more from him.
Vesey playing again makes a lot of sense after a solid first game. He scored on the power play and killed penalties, a role that he is vying for. Ryan Carpenter will also play again after a so-so debut. He was on the ice for the only Islanders goal and won only three of eight draws. Gustav Rydahl is a dark horse to make the team, but the Swedish veteran had a dynamic game, missing on a breakaway and he didn’t look out of place on the smaller ice surface. Bobby Trivigno is tiny but had an active, physical game that warranted another look.
The bottom line is that the top nine forwards are pretty much set and that leaves ten players vying for the last four slots. Brodzinski, Cuylle, Carpenter, Gauthier, Hunt, Kravtsov, Vesey, Rydahl, Trivigno, and Ryan Reaves are the competitors and all except Reaves will be in the lineup tonight.
One player not in the running is rookie Adam Sykora who was returned to his Slovakian team, HK Nitra.
Projected lineups
Here is the Rangers’ projected lineup. How the lines will be set up is anyone’s guess.
NEW YORK RANGERS PROJECTED LINEUP
26 Jimmy Vesey – 36 Vincent Trocheck -74 Vitali Kravtsov
50 Will Cuylle – 76 Jonny Brodzinski – 12 Julien Gauthier
13 Alexis Lafreniere – 22 Ryan Carpenter – 29 Dryden Hunt
48 Bobby Trivigno- 15 Gustav Rydahl – 28 Turner Elson
55 Ryan Lindgren – 23 Adam Fox
44 Matthew Robertson – 53 Hunter Skinner
5 Jarred Tinordi – 39 Ty Emberson
41 Jaroslav Halak
70 Louis Domingue
BOSTON BRUINS PROJECTED LINEUP
11 Trent Frederic – 13 Charlie Coyle – 12 Craig Smith
10 A.J. Greer – 23 Jack Studnicka – 26 Marc McLaughlin
61 Samuel Asselin – 42 Georgii Merkulov – 62 Oskar Steen
83 Luke Toporowski – 45 Joona Koppanen – Justin Brazeau
27 Hampus Lindholm – 36 Anton Stralman
6 Mike Reilly – 25 Brandon Carlo
79 Michael Callahan – 8 Connor Carrick
1 Jeremy Swayman
85 Kyle Keyser
70 Brandon Bussi
How to watch and the live conversation
The game is scheduled to start at 7 pm and it will be televised nationally on the NHL Network and locally on the MSG Network.
Blue Line Station’s live thread is active now and you can comment and converse with your fellow Ranger fans throughout the game in the comments section below. There are some bugs in the chat and to see new comments you may have to refresh your screen or change the order from newest to oldest to newest again.