- As their season came to an end on Monday night, the New York Rangers have assigned Jonny Brodzinski, Jake Leschyshyn, Libor Hajek, and Louis Domingue to their AHL affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack. Because their services are no longer needed for the year in the NHL, these four will undoubtedly help Hartford compete for the Calder Cup. As things stand currently, Hartford is one win away from knocking out the Providence Bruins, shortly after knocking out the Springfield Thunderbirds in the first round.
[SOURCE LINK]
Rangers Rumors
New York Rangers Linked To Joel Quenneville
With the New York Rangers’ disappointing Game 7 shutout loss in the rearview mirror, speculation about changes to the team’s roster and coaching staff fired up as soon as the horn blew to end the game. Today, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that speculation includes longtime NHL coach Joel Quenneville as a possible replacement behind the bench if the Rangers opt to move on from head coach Gerard Gallant. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski doubled down on ties between the Rangers and Quenneville.
Any move involving Quenneville will be met with a great amount of scrutiny. Quenneville currently requires approval from the commissioners’ office to work any job in the league again due to his involvement in the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks’ response to former video coach Brad Aldrich’s alleged sexual abuse of former player Kyle Beach.
Per the investigation report released by independent legal firm Jenner and Block, multiple witnesses stated Quenneville participated in a meeting to discuss the Aldrich allegations shortly after the Blackhawks advanced to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, where he and other Blackhawks leaders opted to defer action on Aldrich until the end of the playoff run so as to “not cause a distraction” to the team’s on-ice success. Prior to the report coming to light, Quenneville had claimed publically he had no previous knowledge of the allegations against Aldrich.
Dreger confirmed that Quenneville has not yet been cleared by the league to return to coaching and said that an official interview request from the Rangers would “likely encourage commissioner approval.”
Quenneville last coached in 2021-22 with the Florida Panthers, posting a 7-0-0 record before resigning and being conditionally held out of NHL work by the commissioner’s office.
Maxim Barbashev, Ryder Korczak Join Hartford Wolf Pack
As junior seasons end, top prospects will get a short opportunity to get their feet wet professionally before the offseason begins. Today, the Hartford Wolf Pack announced an amateur tryout agreement for Maxim Barbashev, that will keep him with the team through the Calder Cup Playoffs.
He’ll be joined by Ryder Korczak, who has been assigned back to the Wolf Pack from the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Barbashev, selected 161st overall by the New York Rangers in 2022, has played the last three seasons with the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL. This season he posted 32 goals and 65 points in 67 games, but could not overcome the Halifax Mooseheads in the second round.
Not yet signed to an entry-level contract with the Rangers, this will be his first opportunity at the pro level. The 19-year-old forward is the younger brother of Vegas Golden Knights deadline acquisition Ivan Barbashev.
Korczak, meanwhile, is returning to a Hartford team that he played five games for earlier this season. After going scoreless in that short stint, the 2021 third-round pick returned to Moose Jaw and dominated, racking up 69 points in 48 regular season games.
He has already signed his ELC with the Rangers, and will likely spend all of next season in Hartford.
The 20-year-old center also has ties to the Vegas organization—his brother Kaedan Korczak was a second-round pick by the Golden Knights in 2019 and played ten games this season.
Nigel Dawes Announces Retirement From Hockey
NHL veteran Nigel Dawes has announced his retirement after an 18-year professional career spanning the NHL, AHL, KHL, and DEL.
Drafted 149th overall in the 2003 NHL Draft by the New York Rangers, Dawes showed offensive promise in some NHL stints. In 2009-10 with the Calgary Flames, Dawes had a career-high 32 points in 66 games but spent most of the following season in the minors, with his smaller stature discouraging teams from giving him a full-time role.
In 2011, Dawes made the jump overseas for more playing opportunities, a move that revitalized his career. Dawes spent seven seasons with Barys Astana of the KHL, cementing himself as a franchise icon with multiple point-per-game seasons. He even earned citizenship via naturalization in Kazakhstan, making multiple World Championships and Olympic appearances for the country after suiting up for Canada internationally during his junior days.
Dawes, now 38, potted 13 goals and 11 assists for 24 points in 36 games with the DEL’s Adler Mannheim this season, although his last game of the year came in early January. Injuries sidelined him for the remainder of his final season.
Dawes ranks fifth in KHL scoring since its inception in 2008-09, and he’s the highest-scoring import player in league history after amassing 505 points in 543 games between 2011 and 2021.
He finishes his NHL career with 39 goals, 45 assists, and 84 points in 212 games split between the Rangers, Flames, Phoenix Coyotes, Atlanta Thrashers, and Montreal Canadiens.
PHR Playoff Primer: New Jersey Devils vs. New York Rangers
With the start of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs just a few days away, PHR makes its first foray into playoff series analysis with our 2023 Playoff Primers. Where does each team stand in their series, and what storylines could dominate on and off the ice? We begin our look with the Metropolitan Division matchup between the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers.
There was a time in the 1990’s where it seemed like the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils would meet in the playoffs every spring. Now in 2023, they meet in the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The last time the two teams met it was a dramatic back and forth six game Eastern Conference Finals series that ended with an Adam Henrique overtime goal to catapult the Devils into the Stanley Cup Finals.
What a difference a decade plus makes. The Devils haven’t won a series since that dramatic overtime victory, while the Rangers have won a lot of playoff hockey but haven’t been able to capture hockey’s ultimate prize. The battle of the Hudson River has always been a bitter rivalry, but it’s been a while since so much has been on the line for both teams.
The Devils and Rangers enter the playoffs poised to make a deep run, but only one will be able to escape the first round. This matchup may not be the most anticipated series in the first round, but it does seem like the series most likely to produce fireworks. The Devils believe they are destined for greatness, and they probably are, but will that happen this year, or will the Rangers make another deep playoff run?
Regular Season Performance
New Jersey Devils: 52-22-8, 112 points, +65 goal differential
New York Rangers: 47-22-13, 107 points, +58 goal differential.
Head-To-Head
November 28, 2022: New York 3, New Jersey 5
December 12, 2022: New York 4, New Jersey 3 (OT)
January 7, 2023: New Jersey 4, New York 3 (OT)
March 30, 2023: New Jersey 2, New York 1
New Jersey takes the season series 3-0-1
Team Storylines
The Devils and Rangers franchises have had so much in common over the years, and even still do to some degree. Both franchises loaded up for these playoffs, can score in bunches and expect to go deep in the playoffs. But that is where the similarities end. They are built differently, have different experience, and have different strengths and weaknesses.
New Jersey plays with a ton of speed and skill, they push the pace and come at you in waves. But they are small. New York on the other hand plays big, they come at you with force and can crash over top of you. But they play slow in comparison. In a seven-game series it’s hard to predict who will bend first, will New York wear New Jersey down with their physicality? Or will the Devils tire out the Rangers with their pace? Advantage New Jersey.
On the backend, both teams boast strong blue lines. They both have shutdown defenseman, puck movers, point producers, speed, skill, and grit. The Rangers defense can do it all, they are one of the most elite units in the league, if not the most elite. They can’t move the puck quite as good as the Devils unit can, but they are much more physical. And in the playoff’s physicality can sometimes mean getting that extra inch of space to make a play, or providing that big hit that completely changes a series, just ask Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Advantage New York.
In goal, the comparisons dry up. New York boasts arguably the best goaltender in the world in Igor Shesterkin. But, after having a historic season last year, Shesterkin has looked human for much of this year. He has been up and down, evidenced by his drop in save percentage from .935 last year to .916 this season. For the Rangers to beat the Devils in a seven-game series, Shesterkin will need to play at a Vezina award winning level. Over in the Devils net Vitek Vanecek has given the Devils something they were desperately looking for, league average goaltending. Vanecek’s save percentage this year was .911 which was just a tick above his career average coming into this season. While Vanecek has never had an experience like this before and will have to deal with nerves, Shesterkin looked very human in last year’s playoffs and for long stretches of this past regular season. Despite his up and down play this year, one would have to believe that the goaltending advantage belongs to New York.
I mentioned star power earlier and both teams boast a ton of it up front and on the back end. The stars aren’t all home grown either, both teams have made significant trades over the last 12 months to bring in major pieces that they hope can give them that final push. The Rangers brought in Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko at the trade deadline, and while neither player his lit up the scoresheet, they have both provided secondary scoring. Kane has produced 12 points in 19 games since joining the Rangers, while Tarasenko has 21 points in 31 games. On the Devils side, they acquired arguably the biggest piece at the deadline in Timo Meier. Meier has also struggled to fit in but seems to be finally finding his footing. The former San Jose Shark has 14 points in 21 games since joining the Devils.
Ironically, the line that could set these teams apart might be a group of homegrown talent for the New York Rangers. Alexis Lafrenière, Filip Chytil, and Kaapo Kakko were dynamite together in the playoffs last season, particularly in the first round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins. They were a difference maker on a nightly basis. This season all three players have hovered around the 40-point mark during the regular season. If the trio can dial it back to 2022 and produce anything close to last year’s playoff magic it could be the difference between a Rangers series win, or a Devils series win.
Prediction
It’s hard to predict who will win a series when the teams are this evenly matched. When a matchup like this does occur, you must imagine that it will come down to whichever team can get their goaltender on a heater. Last year the Rangers outlasted Pittsburgh because the Penguins had to rely on their third string goaltender. This year they’ll have to hope that Shesterkin can return to his Vezina winning form to get past the Devils.
The other element that comes into play is experience. New York has a ton of experienced playoff performers, and the Devils are green. In a toss-up, this could be the piece that pushes one team past the other.
The prediction: Rangers win in seven games.
Rangers Unlikely To Sign Jayden Grubbe
June 1st is an important date for quite a few drafted prospects. Simply put, pretty much any CHL-drafted player who was drafted two years ago has until June 1st to sign an entry-level deal or have their rights relinquished. It appears that the Rangers will be going the latter route with Jayden Grubbe as Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports (Twitter link) that they’ve informed teams that they’re unlikely to sign the 20-year-old.
Grubbe was a third-round pick by New York in 2021 (65th overall) following an injury- and pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign that limited him to just five games with Red Deer of the WHL. The hope was that as a big center – he stands 6’3 – he’d slowly develop into an impactful middleman and quality centers with size are typically hard to come by.
However, Grubbe didn’t exactly light things up last season, notching 14 goals and 21 assists in 68 games. For a drafted player in his post-draft season, those numbers are a bit on the low side. To his credit, Grubbe nearly doubled those totals this year, tallying 18 goals and 49 assists to finish second on the Rebels in scoring. He has been quite productive in the playoffs so far, notching a goal and nine assists in their five-game victory over Calgary.
With the Rangers notifying teams early of their intentions, they’re hoping that there will be interest from a few teams that will enable them to pick up a late-round pick to flip his rights. It wouldn’t be the best return on a high third-round selection but at this point, anything they can get is better than losing Grubbe’s rights for nothing. If no one picks up and signs Grubbe, he will re-enter the draft in June.
Hartford Wolf Pack Sign Taryn Boyko
- Finishing off a five-season career in the WHL, goaltender Talyn Boyko has signed an amateur tryout agreement with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL. Drafted 112th overall by the New York Rangers in the 2021 NHL Draft, Boyko, unfortunately, produced subpar numbers split between the Tri-City Americans and the Kelowna Rockets. Playing in 142 career games in major junior, he carried a record of 56-67-9, and a total SV% of .899. He did get some playoff starts as well, leading the Rockets to the WHL playoffs in 2022, losing 4-1 to the Seattle Thunderbirds in the opening round.
[SOURCE LINK]
Killorn, Fox, Friedman Earn Fines
The NHL Department of Player Safety announced a pair of fines on Thursday afternoon, stemming from last night’s incidents in the Tampa Bay Lightning-New York Rangers game. Alex Killorn owes $5,000 for his slash on Igor Shesterkin, while Adam Fox will pay $5,000 for slashing Corey Perry.
While they might be called slashes by the league, both were actually spears. Killorn came flying in to poke at a puck in the crease while Shesterkin was sitting in the net, causing a massive brawl as the Rangers attempted to protect their netminder. Fox speared Perry in the gut, sending him sprawling to the ice.
Neither one was likely to draw a suspension, but will certainly put some more gasoline on a pretty intense rivalry. While a playoff matchup between the two clubs may be difficult this year, plays like this won’t be forgotten.
The league also issued a $2,000 fine to Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Mark Friedman for embellishment. That means it was his second citation of the year for diving, as the fines escalate and start with a warning. The first incident came during a December 28 game against Detroit, while the latest was in Sunday’s match against the Flyers.
Injury Notes: Kane, Harpur, Buchnevich
Before their game, tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Andrew Crane of the New York Post reports that trade deadline acquisition Patrick Kane will be a “game-time” decision. On Tuesday, Kane took a maintenance day but participated in an individual practice this morning.
At the beginning of this season, it was clear that Kane was not playing at the same speed as in previous seasons. There were many pundits noting an apparent hip injury, but Kane was simply not living up to expectations even on a last-place Chicago Blackhawks team. But on an expiring contract, and his team in the basement, Kane was set to be one of the most sought-after deadline acquisitions.
He made his interest in the Rangers known, but after their acquisition of Vladimir Tarasenko from the St.Louis Blues, Kane being traded at all was now in question. The veteran phenom re-sparked the Rangers’ interest, scoring three goals and seven assists in his last four games in Chicago.
Although he got off to a slow start in New York, he has refound his form primarily playing on the second line, scoring ten points in 16 games. If he is still dealing with a nagging hip, it will be vital for the Rangers to give him the rests he needs, as Kane has been an incredible playoff performer in the past.
Other injury notes:
- In the same report, Crane also mentions that the only other player on the ice with Kane at practice was defenseman Ben Harpur. Shortly after the season began, the Rangers signed Harpur to a 1-year, $750K contract. Primarily playing as a depth defenseman, Harpur has skated in 40 games for the Rangers this year, posting six points and a 0 +/-. Almost three months to the date that he signed this year’s contract with New York, the team signed him to a 2-year, $1.575MM extension.
- Although this is a season to forget for the organization, Lou Korac of NHL.com announces that Pavel Buchnevich will return to the Blues tomorrow night when they take on the Rangers. Buchnevich has been a bright spot on a struggling St.Louis team this year, scoring 25 goals and 41 assists, good for second on the team in scoring. Buchnevich has found himself on the injured reserve a handful of times this year, missing a total of 19 games so far for the Blues.
Rangers Likely To Bridge Or Trade Lafreniere?
With a looming cap crunch for the Rangers, they will be hard-pressed to re-sign their pending restricted free agents to market-value contracts and round out the rest of their roster. To that end, Arthur Staple of The Athletic suggests (subscription link) that they may need to focus on bridge deals with defenseman K’Andre Miller and Alexis Lafreniere or even consider the possibility of moving Lafreniere this offseason. New York has more than $71MM in commitments to 14 players for next season per CapFriendly and a long-term deal for Miller would eat up a bulk of their cap space alone. It’s a problem they can ignore for now with the team aiming for a long postseason run but GM Chris Drury is going to have his work cut out for him to keep his core intact this summer.
- The Rangers have re-assigned prospect Adam Edstrom to the minors, per an announcement from AHL Hartford. The 22-year-old forward more than doubled his point output from a year ago, collecting nine goals and ten assists in 42 games with SHL Rogle. With their playoff run now over, Edstrom will now get his first taste of playing in North America.