Following the conclusion of action on Tuesday night, the New York Rangers have drawn the Washington Capitals. With the game tied late in the third period and the Philadelphia Flyers needing a regulation win to have a chance at the Eastern Conference’s final wild card slot, they withdrew their goalie. T.J. Oshie, a veteran Capitals player, hit the empty net to set up a meeting with the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers.
As all participating teams await the revelation of the Stanley Cup Playoffs schedule, let’s look at three Rangers forwards that will need to be game changers in the postseason.
Rangers that need to be x-factors
The Rangers haven’t carried the Stanley Cup high over their heads in nearly 30 years, since the 1994 Playoffs. Every Rangers fan is aware of Mark Messier’s pledge to keep their Eastern Conference Final series against the New Jersey Devils alive in Game 6. They also recall grinder Stephane Matteau’s double-overtime goal in Game 7 that propelled them to the Stanley Cup Final.
Yes, every Cup winner relies on their stars to shine in the playoffs, but you can’t win it all unless people like Matteau turn it on when the pressure is on.
This season’s Rangers offensive will be led by Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck, and Adam Fox. However, unless several more players reach a new level, this could be another disappointing spring.
Here are three players the Blueshirts must step up and be x-factors:
Kaapo Kakko (RW; 61 GP, 13G, 6A, 19 PTS, +6, 91 SOG, 13:17 TOI)
Following the trade deadline, the second-overall pick in the 2019 draft was playing some of his best hockey. From March 9th to April 3rd, he scored eight points (six goals, two assists) in 14 games while largely playing on the third line with recently acquired center Alexander Wennberg. During that time, he averaged.52 points per game, which is where the Rangers will need him in the playoffs.
The 23-year-old winger has 0 points and a -3 rating in his previous six appearances as the season comes to a close.
Overall, his line alongside Wennberg and rookie Will Cuylle has been strong defensively and adept at maintaining possession in the attacking zone. However, they will need to improve their performance in order to sustain a long playoff run.
Kakko began his fifth NHL season on the top line, having scored 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) in 2022-23. His offensive problems led to his rapid replacement by 37-year-old veteran Blake Wheeler (who is sidelined for the season).
Things only got worse after he sustained a serious lower-body injury that forced him to miss more than a month of activity. However, once the playoffs begin, all stats are reset to zero, and Kakko can put another difficult year behind him with a solid performance in the playoffs.
Jack Roslovic (RW, 19 GP, 3G, 5A, 8 PTS, -1, 31 SOG, 13:27 TOI)
The 27-year-old pending unrestricted free agent (UFA) appears to have responded to a late-season healthy scratch. With the Rangers needing to win their final two regular-season games to win the Metro, East, and Presidents’ Trophy, he stepped forward.
He scored a goal on six shots in helping the Blueshirts defeat the New York Islanders and the Ottawa Senators, including the game-winner on Monday. Despite his limited ice time, the quick winger assisted both Zibanejad and Kreider in generating a lot of excellent 5-on-5 scoring opportunities, which has been one of this team’s few flaws.
“I think we started well and then had a little lull,” Roslovic explained. “I believe we are ramping up at the proper time… It’s just a great moment to help again.”
Roslovic has averaged 0.42 points per game throughout his stint with the Blueshirts. If he can raise that average for the playoffs, New York will have two very strong lines in their hunt for Lord Stanley’s trophy.
Alexander Wennberg (C, 19 GP, 1G, 4A, 5 PTS, -1, 10 SOG, 15:22 TOI)
When it comes to this 29-year-old pending UFA, his defensive play, particularly on the penalty kill, has been outstanding. However, the Rangers will require far more than he currently has. To advance in the Stanley Cup playoffs, you need to average 26 points each game.
The biggest difficulty for Wennberg is that everyone knows that when he’s in the offensive zone with the puck on his stick, he’s going to pass 95% of the time. In his 19 games with the Blueshirts, he has taken only.52 shots per game.
This wouldn’t be an issue if he were one of the NHL’s all-time great passers, such as Adam Oates, but even the Hall of Fame center averaged 1.78 shots per game over his 19-year career.
Bottom line, if he can keep opponents guessing by shooting more in the playoffs, Wennberg has the potential to be the team’s most important x-factor until June.
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