Believing on B'way
Vesey responding to demotions by showing Rangers what he’s made of
David Quinn has sent the message to Jimmy Vesey in different ways, but now he’s getting the desired result.
Last month, it was by scratching the Rangers left wing for a game against the Penguins. Last week, it was by dropping the 25-year-old to the fourth line for four games.
The goal? Getting Vesey to be the player Quinn believes he can be, and reminding him of it when needed.
“He’s a really good player and sometimes [he’s] gotta convince himself of that,” Quinn said Monday before the Rangers flew to Winnipeg for Tuesday’s game against the Jets. “Sometimes you may think, ‘Well, then why are you putting him on the fourth line?’ When you do those things, you gotta take the time to explain it and walk him through it. That’s been done. I just love the way he’s responded.”
The latest example came Sunday night, when Vesey — back playing with Kevin Hayes and Jesper Fast on the second line — turned in what Quinn described as an “unbelievable goal” in the Rangers’ 4-1 win over the Maple Leafs. Vesey started the breakout from the Rangers’ own end, sending the puck to Ryan Strome, who found Chris Kreider coming out of the penalty box. Kreider then sent a pass back across to Vesey, who snapped a shot top shelf to give the Rangers the lead for good, 2-1.
“Not many guys in the league can score that type of goal,” Quinn said. “So I think he’s playing with some confidence. I think there’s a lot of good in his game right now.”
Vesey had scored just twice in his past 26 games before Sunday. He still has the fourth-most goals on the team with 12, but had cooled off from his hot start and lost some of the identity he had established earlier in the season.
The Harvard product had been benched late in the Rangers’ Jan. 31 win over the Devils and then demoted to the fourth the next time out against the Lightning. He stayed there for three-plus games until Quinn moved him up to play with Hayes and Fast on the second line during Thursday’s shootout win over the Bruins. He set up Hayes for a goal in that game before getting one for himself Sunday night.
“I think he’s back to playing probably as well as he was earlier in the year or even better,” Quinn said. “I really like his game right now. I think he’s playing with an edge to his game without being crazy. I think he’s playing with a pace. There’s a hardness around pucks.”
The Rangers have been heavily dependent on their first line providing the scoring of late, with Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Mats Zuccarello responsible for 46 points (20 goals, 26 assists) in the past 11 games. But Quinn is hoping a goal like the one Vesey scored Sunday night can serve as a springboard for the third-year pro as the Rangers begin a four-game road trip Tuesday.
And while uncertainty will continue to surround the Rangers with the trade deadline looming — by the time they play at the Garden again on Feb. 21, it will be four days away — they will keep trying to remain focused on improving what they can control on the ice.
“I don’t think our last five games, our record (2-2-1) has been indicative of the way we’ve played,” Quinn said. “But we’re certainly happy with the development we’ve made, the progress we’ve made. We’re continuing to stick to the process we’re all committed to. We think we can win through that and we’re not going to waver.”