As the New York Rangers found a way to overcome the Detroit Red Wings, the Blueshirts did so with yet another goal from forward Jimmy Vesey. In the postgame interviews, a joke was made towards Vesey that he seems only to score game-winners. For someone who has been in the NHL for as long as Vesey has, it would have to be a good amount to make it that notable.
So, a quick look at his career total tells you he is not wrong. This was Vesey’s 522ng game of his career. His game-winner tonight means he has 88 goals in his NHL career, 66 of which came as a member of the New York Rangers. Vesey’s got 25 career game winning goals. This is 28.4% of his goals being game winners throughout his career. That’s a staggering amount for someone who isn’t considered a star player.
For the Rangers alone, Vesey has scored 66 goals. He has 20 game-winners for the Blueshirts. That is 30%. Almost a third of his goals are game-winners. That’s an incredible feat for someone who has been predominantly a middle-sixer or lower for the majority of his career. It’s the kind of performance that reminds you why he was so coveted when he came to the Rangers originally.
For those who may not remember the Vesey sweepstakes or are new to hockey, the Boston native won the Hobey Baker and wanted to choose his home in the hockey world. The Nashville Predators drafted him in the third round of the 2012 draft. Good value, but Vesey chose to come to Broadway and made the right decision for his future in the sport. You can see he is a player that turns up in big moments.
How a player with this ability to produce when things are going poorly is in the bottom six of the Rangers, I do not know, but it’s clear that the Rangers made the right decision to bring back Vesey, who was probably looking at playing his hockey in Europe without the Rangers offer. Both sides benefit from this arrangement, and the Blueshirts winger deserves even more praise than he is already getting.