Today is the New York Rangers' final game before the NHL breaks for the Olympics, and the team's first game following an underwhelming Artemi Panarin trade. The Rangers are in their Letter 2.0 era, where according to Chris Drury they are retooling and not rebuilding, but the latest roster shakeup is proof that the organization has officially lost the plot.
Rangers set to scratch Brennan Othmann and Scott Morrow vs. Carolina
Brennan Othmann and Scott Morrow are two youngsters who could be playing games in Hartford, but the Rangers have them on the active roster because this is a lost season which will result in the team missing the playoffs for a second consecutive season. The only thing that matters right now is development and learning more about young players and whether or not they can be part of the next wave.
That they are being scratched right before the team is set to be off for a few weeks is absolutley idiotic. Anton Blidh is a journeyman veteran who is an AHL caliber player. He has no business being in the lineup over Othmann, even though the Rangers prospect had underwhelmed.
Vincent Iorio was recently claimed off waivers, and the front office thinks he could be a player for them. Scratching Morrow to give him a shot is shortsighted, and it would have been better to sit someone like Urho Vaakanainen, or just give Will Borgen a rest considering he's been in and out of the lineup due to injury. Tonight's opponent is Carolina, and that the Rangers aren't playing Morrow against his former team, just is a bad look and speaks the how the K'Andre Miller trade hasn't panned out exactly as the front office would have liked. The space to sign Vladislav Gavrikov has been nice, but Morrow being the top prospect in the return feels like a case of the Rangers not fully doing their homework.
You might think this is getting all worked up over something small, but it speaks to the organizational disconnect in which the brain trust says one thing and does another. If we are to really believe that they are retooling and not rebuilding, what good reason is there for taking out two young players right before an extended break? Why rush Iorio into the lineup, and why play someone like Blidh?
After tonight the Rangers are off until February 26th against the Philadelphia Flyers. It will be a much needed rest for the team, and the fans, and hopefully when play resumes there's a cohesive message and direction in place. Fans aren't stupid, and as more time goes on, it feels like the Rangers are doing things on the fly with no set direction.