A half-full Cup
REGARDING the Rangers, who come out of the trade deadline as they entered it, as the Eastern Conference’s third or fourth best team whose only legitimate shot at advancing to the Stanley Cup final rests with securing the crossover wild-card berth they currently hold.
1) The acquisition of Brendan Smith from the Red Wings may not call for a parade, but Jeff Gorton did well in an understated move in which the general manager improved his team in a targeted area without disassembling his group or paying an exorbitant price in order to do so.
The addition of a fifth lefty to the mix is not ideal, but Smith’s ability to play both sides gives Alain Vigneault flexibility and options. If the 28-year-old meshes with Ryan McDonagh on the Badger Pair in Dan Girardi’s absence, the coach can then move No. 5 to Brady Skjei’s right on the second/third pair upon his return.
And if Nick Holden continues to struggle, Kevin Klein (once healthy) could move into his spot alongside Marc Staal if Vigneault so chooses.
Adam Clendening? Asked and answered. The point is, a capable veteran will be a healthy scratch every night once the defense is at full strength. The remaining 19 games should serve as lab for the coach to determine his best combinations for the playoffs.
Smith is a pending free agent working on the final year of a contract worth an annual cap hit of $2.75 million per season. If he fits, the Rangers likely will attempt to keep him. But it makes no sense to sign him before the expansion draft protected list is due in.
2) The Rangers did not add a dollop of toughness up front, though Gorton on Wednesday was in on a number of discussions regarding forwards, none of which reached fruition. Better to stand pat than empty the cupboard of futures without a sure-shot difference- maker readily attainable, but boy, if the Rangers continue to get pounded the way they were in their last two games by the Capitals and Blue Jackets, their road to the postseason could be ugly. The current group must show much more in the battle zones.
3) But if the Blueshirts are going to live and die on skill — and goaltending — then there is no reason for Pavel Buchnevich to remain in Hartford for much more than the blink of an eye. Again: While the Rangers still have to win enough to clinch a spot, this is a 19-game opportunity for Vigneault to distill his most effective combinations for a tournament run without worrying about moving up in the standings.
It is therefore incumbent upon the organization and the coach to give the talented rookie his best chance of being able contribute in the playoffs. That’s not likely to happen in the AHL, where Buchnevich scored two goals, indlucing the overtime winner, and had an assist at home on Wednesday.
The loss of Jesper Fast for up to three weeks with a shoulder separation he sustained while being freight-trained by Alex Ovechkin on Tuesday, leaves an opening up front that will be impossible to fill in kind. For example, there goes the Rick Nash-Derek Stepan-Fast checking line that Vigneault has gone to in the final minutes of either a tie game or one in which his team is protecting a one-goal lead (and matched against Ovechkin’s unit throughout Tuesday’s contest).
So if a skill guy is stepping in for Fast, then going with Matt Puempel would hardly seem to enable Buchnevich’s upside. Neither does using Brandon Pirri instead of the rookie, for that matter.
4) While the power play’s ongoing dysfunction has hogged the spotlight, the club’s penalty killing also has deteriorated in kind. While the power play has gone 0-for-15 over the last six games, the penaltykilling unit has killed only 9-of-14. Over the last 18 games, the power play is 3-for-48 (6.25 percent) while the penalty kill is 33-for-42 (78.6). Overall, both specialty units are ranked 17th in the NHL. Not great, Bob.
If that continues, the Rangers will be crossing over into a first-round defeat, regardless of the opponent.