Blueshirts staples Ryan Lindgren and Jimmy Vesey are gone, traded to the Colorado Avalanche. They're being replaced by young center Juuso Pärssinen and veteran defenseman Calvin de Haan, who arrived from Colorado and jumped right onto the ice for Sunday's morning skate at the MSG Training Center.
"It's always tough to see change," Rangers Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. "But that being said, the focus shifts to [Sunday's 7 p.m.] game and getting the two new players we received up to speed."
At least one more trade is coming before Friday's 3 p.m. deadline, with veteran forward Reilly Smith being held out of Sunday's game for what the team deemed "roster management purposes." But New York is counting on Pärssinen, de Haan and forward prospect Brett Berard − who was recalled Saturday after Chris Kreider was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury − to step in and plug the resulting holes.
Pärssinen is the most intriguing piece to come back in the trade because he's still young enough at 24 to believe there's untapped potential.
"I can bring some size, some physicality. I know I can play with the puck, and on both sides of the puck ... You’ve just got to play (well) every day. You can’t have high highs and low lows. I was a little bit shocked, but then when you heard it's the Rangers, it's a pretty legendary organization. It feels pretty special today to put on the jersey."Juuso Pärssinen
He was playing some wing with the Avalanche but has spent much of his three-year career and time at lower levels in the middle. Laviolette intends to give him that chance and has him slotted in as the third-line center between rookie Brennan Othmann and veteran Jonny Brodzinski.
"[Pärssinen] wants to play center," Laviolette said. "Thinking back to his Nashville days, he was playing with some pretty good players. I coached against him and watched some games recently with a couple of their top-end players. It’s a great opportunity for him to come in and show what he can do. He's young, he's big, he's strong, and so that's a good pickup for us."
The Rangers' lineup, particularly in the bottom six and defense, is heading on diverging path, with unproven players in multiple spots but intrigue regarding how the youth will handle their newfound responsibilities.
The locker room is taking on a much different feel, as well. Lindgren and Vesey were as popular as any teammates in recent years, and they now join Filip Chytil, Barclay Goodrow, Kaapo Kakko and Jacob Trouba as players who have been ousted following a multi-year run of success with minimal turnover.