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Rangers captain Jacob Trouba laid it out fairly neatly final week whereas speaking to reporters at coaching camp. The Blueshirts are working all of it again with the majority of final 12 months’s closing 4 group and this season is probably going “the final crack for this core,” as Trouba phrased it.
He’s proper, in fact. However earlier than we see what that potential closing probability appears like, the Rangers have work to do on the ice, naturally – Preseason video games have already got began and the Rangers beat the Bruins, 3-2, Sunday night time, helped by a Filip Chytil objective – and gamers are grinding by way of camp practices.
There’s nonetheless a couple of inquiries to reply within the preseason, too. A few of them will likely be settled by the point the 2024-25 common season begins on Oct. 9 in Pittsburgh. However we’d want regular-season knowledge for others, together with larger, thematic ones akin to whether or not the Blueshirts can reply to the stress that retains mounting after a robust core fell wanting the Stanley Cup once more.
Right here’s a have a look at six questions swirling across the Rangers within the preseason:
Fil-ing it to the rim?
Damage wrecked Chytil’s 2023-24 season and he performed in solely 10 video games, although he returned after a prolonged absence to seem in six playoff video games. What’s going to he be this season? Sunday night time was promising – he had a objective and an help and 6 photographs on objective. Final 12 months, Chytil didn’t rating as soon as. The 25-year-old has been deemed wholesome, so he may add a scoring increase to the Rangers, particularly if he can proceed the leap that began in 2022-23, when he had 22 objectives and 23 assists.
Winging it
The Rangers have to discover a common proper wing on their prime line to associate with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. Who’s it going to be? In case you look again at latest commerce deadlines, the Rangers all the time appear to be tinkering right here. Reilly Smith, who was acquired from the Penguins for draft picks, is a robust candidate to start out with Zibanejad and Kreider this season. Reilly, 33, is a 13-year vet who brings Stanley Cup chops – he scored 26 objectives for the champion Vegas Golden Knights in 2022-23. He had 40 factors (13 objectives) for Pittsburgh final 12 months. Kaapo Kakko’s ascension hit a bump final season, however he’s solely 23 and is likely to be an possibility with a breakthrough camp. Alexis Lafrenière is coming off his finest season taking part in on a line wealthy with chemistry alongside Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck. Might he swap traces?
Zac Jones and the sixth
Zac Jones was a reliable seventh defenseman final season, skating in 31 video games and delivering two objectives and 7 assists and a plus/minus of 1. Now, the 23-year-old former third-round decide is maybe poised to have a extra common position because the sixth defenseman. He could possibly be challenged by Chad Ruhwedel, a 33-year-old who appeared in 5 video games for the Rangers final 12 months after a commerce and brings elements of 12 seasons of NHL expertise to the ice. If Jones will get the job, he may group with Trouba on the third pair behind the highest duo of Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren and the seemingly second combo of Ok’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider.
What’s the (new) take care of Igor?
Igor Shesterkin, the goalie who’s central to any Ranger success, is getting into the final 12 months of his contract. He’d love to remain, saying as a lot to reporters at coaching camp. However till a brand new deal is hammered out, there will likely be lingering questions and even Shesterkin acknowledged, “You by no means know what can occur.” Getting one thing carried out earlier than the beginning of the common season wouldn’t solely make each events completely happy, it might restrict the noise round his future because the Rangers hunt a Cup. No noise is nice information. Do now we have to even level out how essential Shesterkin has been to the runs to the Japanese Convention Remaining in two of the final three seasons?
Laf graph
In terms of Lafrenière, all indicators are pointing up after his terrific ‘23-’24 season, which included profession highs in objectives (28), assists (29) and factors (57). He added eight objectives in 16 playoff video games, too, tied with Trocheck and Kreider for the group lead. And Lafrenière scored some fairly entertaining objectives all 12 months. Can he push it even additional and attain (possibly shatter?) all these lofty expectations that got here with being the primary general decide in 2020? That might be an enormous Blueshirt increase. It’s all gushing, no grousing about Lafrenière now. And he solely turns 23 subsequent month.
NHL jam
This will not be one thing they’ll reply outright in coaching camp, however the Rangers should show sufficient physicality over the course of this season to fight the scale and snarl of groups such because the Florida Panthers, who knocked them out within the Japanese Convention Remaining final 12 months. Fan fave Matt Rempe, the rugged, monumental ahead, likely figures into that effort, however the Rangers would possibly want to indicate extra sharp edges this season. Sandpaper, anybody?
