Will Cuylle's development has been an essential part of the Rangers season. He's starting to come along and turn into a key piece of this New York Rangers forward core, and he's beginning to have the production needed to develop it. Cuylle started the season strong, stringing together several excellent performances, but started to drop off during the team's tailspin late in 2024, and now sits with 15 goals and 14 assists for 29 points through the 55 games the Rangers have played this season.
He is joint third among the Rangers with goals, behind only Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck, and his 29 points see him sit sixth, behind Alexis Lafreniere and Adam Fox. However, Cuylle's recent struggles will become problematic if the Rangers do not address them. Cuylle's streakiness this year will be fixed with more playing time, but that isn't good enough for a team that intends to compete now.
Dry Spell
Cuylle tallied two points against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the last game before the Four Nations break, but that was the first point he had in five games. Before the Columbus game, Cuylle had 3 points in his last 22 games, including a 13-game pointless streak from December 22nd to January 18th. New York can't have this production level from someone they want to get into a more prominent role.
Cuylle's 24 5v5 points are tied with Vincent Trocheck for the 3rd most among the Rangers players, but that alone isn't good enough from the Torontonian. He's been on the ice for 29 goals against compared to 35 goals for at 5v5. Hence, the Rangers know about his defensive capabilities, but his struggles to consistently put the puck in the net has been one of the factors holding him back from playing a more significant role under Peter Laviolette's reign.
Cuylle's need for an elevated role
His goals for relative to his ice time is among the best on the roster. Of the players who have played more than five games and are still on the roster, Cuylle ranks top with 3.04 GF/60. That's better than even Artemi Panarin's 2.98. There may be a conversation about giving Cuylle a place higher on the depth chart to increase his ice time. We know he can score sometimes and won't let the team down defensively.
The issue then lies in creating a more significant role for Cuylle in the top six. With J.T. Miller on board, the top six is congested. Artemi Panarin, Alexis Lafreniere, Vincent Trocheck, Miller, Mika Zibanejad, and Chris Kreider all have claims to be among the top six places. All have a long history of producing in big moments for the Rangers. Who would make way for the incoming Cuylle to be among the top six? You can argue one of Mika or Kreider, but having those contracts in the bottom six is a more significant issue.