The New York Rangers are off to a fast start, but they can’t let wins mask defects in their game that will surely catch up to them.
With an 11-2-1 record and a point streak of ten games (9-0-1), the New York Rangers entered their bye week first place in the Metropolitan Division, second in the conference, and fourth in the National Hockey League.
The wins, though, have hidden some areas the Blueshsirts need to look at their play in different areas so that the journey to the Stanley Cup Playoffs continues to be on track.
Winning Ways
The Rangers struggled early with five-on-five scoring but continued to win hockey games. How? Well, they are in the top five of the NHL in these three categories;
-The Power Play is second in the league scoring at 33.3%. Chris Kreider leads the team with six PPGs.
-Penalty Killing has improved throughout the early part of the season.
They are sixth in the league at 86.7% clip.
-Face-off wins have dramatically improved over the last several years. The Rangers have won 56% of the draws they have taken. Vincent Trocheck is leading the team at the dot, winning 64.4% of the face-offs he takes.
So What’s the Problem?
The Rangers have three glaring issues that they need to fix so they don’t eventually get caught in the quicksand that will slowly pull them down from the top of the standings.
One lousy thing turns to two, then three, and before you know it, the Blueshirts are trying to stop the bleeding of a four-game losing streak.
Issue #1
This team lives or dies with Mika Zibanejad.
Zibanejad has struggled to find scoring this season, recording eight assists and 10 points in 14 games. Zibanejad’s work ethic can never be questioned, but his ability to overpass the puck instead of shooting has become a factor this year.
He lacks the confidence to shoot the puck at even strength, choosing more time than not to pass it to his buddy Chris Kreider instead of taking quality shots on goal.
Kreider is the only one scoring top-line goals. The season began with Kappo Kaakko on the right side. Blake Wheeler has taken that spot over Kakko, but the results have disappointed.
Zibanejad is a leader on this squad, and in time, he will find his game. It’s better to slump now than later in the season when the team needs him most.
Issue #2
What to do with Kappo Kakko?
Kakko has had to deal with high expectations since he was drafted by the Rangers (2nd overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft and has had to live in the shadows of the number one pick that year, Jack Hughes.
Kakko has succeeded with the ‘Kids’ line, playing with Alexis Lafreniere and Filip Chytil for the past two seasons. Now, it looks as if Kakko needs to catch up with the improved play of both Chytil and Lafreniere.
Kakko was on the top line, but Peter Laviolette decided a change was needed after ten games and swapped Kakko and Blake Wheeler.
He is in his fifth season in New York, netting 45 goals and 100 points, but he has yet to be the player the Rangers thought they drafted.
There will come a time when the organization has to decide what to do with Kakko in the long term. He can skate back to the top line, but his lack of point production could be why the team needs to move on from him come the trade deadline this season.
Issue #3
Zac Jones
Jones made the club this season as the seventh defenseman but was forced into full-time duty when Adam Fox went down with a lower-body injury.
That forced the coaching staff to shuffle the defensive pairings, putting Jones with Braden Schneider.
The duo has struggled despite only playing 13-25 minutes per game. Jones had anticipated a full-time roster spot last season, but things didn’t work out as he expected, and he played most of the year in Hartford.
This season, his play has been inconsistent at a time when the coaching staff is relying on him to play big minutes. He tends to put himself out of position often, yet he also displays speed and scoring prowess that the team would like to see more often.
Fox will most likely be out of the lineup for the foreseeable future, so Jones will have to take advantage of this opportunity, and the team hopes it will be a winning formula.
The salary cap is not a friend of the Rangers right now, so calling up another rookie defenseman may be challenging. Jones will have to find a way to continue to improve on the ice, or he could see himself wearing a Rangers sweater in his last games.
Winning is always a good thing, but as we witnessed the last playoffs against the New Jersey Devils, adjustments always need to be made.
Laviolette and his coaching staff must remain vigilant about not being satisfied with winning now. The endgame is winning in April, May, and early June.
Improvements need to be made every shift, period, and game. Zibaanejad will be fine; Jones should be able to hold it together until Fox returns.
Kakko is the wild card. He can not afford to fall any lower on the roster, or he could be the odd man out.
Follow Frank on X at @RangerProud
