The New York Rangers are facing a significant problem this preseason, with the inability to hold leads in late parts of the game. This can be ironed out before these games start to actually count in the regular season, unlike some other failing features of this franchise.
One of those failures, who was a part of this preseason for a brief time before his re-assignment back to Hartford, was goaltender Dylan Garand. With backup goaltender Jonathan Quick approaching a new decade of his life and the twilight of his career, the hope is that Garand can be the next man up.
Let's talk about what has gone wrong for the prospect and why Hartford can help him fix his issues.
Garand's lackluster performance
In the last brutal third-period collapse against the New York Islanders on September 25, Garand saw some action after Quick held it down in the first two periods of play. In 17:46 of ice time, Garand saw 10 shots and allowed three to go past him, aiding the Islanders to a 5-4 victory.
It went just about as bad as that stat line suggests, as the young prospect seemed off his game. After being an absolute stud in Hartford, the idea of him maybe seeing time if Quick gets injured or needs some extra rest is now on the backburner.
But there is some time left this preseason for him to maybe get another rep in. With the fourth of six preseason games coming up on Monday night, once again against the Islanders, there might be an opportunity for him to get another shot before heading back to the AHL.
One more year in Hartford
Last season, Garand was exceptional with a 20-10-9 record in 39 starts. He held a save percentage of .913 and posted a 2.73 goals against average. With that in mind, it was a great idea for him to see some preseason action at the NHL level, with some NHL competition in front of him.
Because it did not go so great the first time around, another opportunity would be good for him when the games don't count. Plus, giving him a chance to redeem himself only gives him momentum down in Hartford, where he can use one more season to try and develop himself into Igor Shesterkin's backup.