The New York Rangers have been
relying on rookie NHL players all season long in different roles and Derek
Stepan, Michael Sauer, and Ryan McDonagh have answered the call at each
turn. The trio has acquitted themselves
so well that they have been continually given increasingly important roles
within the team. At no time this season have
any of the three seemed to have the moment be bigger than them and that bodes
very well for them in this transition from playing in the intensity of the
stretch drive versus the reality of playoff hockey. Tonight begins that test of their current
level of readiness, and the Rangers will need all three to maintain their high
level of the regular season if they have hope of winning this series.
Derek Stepan started the season
as the most heralded of these three rookies and he did not disappoint turning
in a rookie campaign of 21-24 which had him tied for fourth on the team in goals
and fourth alone in points. With that
kind of standing in the main offensive categories and without Ryan Callahan
there will be a considerable burden on Stepan to continue to provide offense
for the club during the series.
As big as the burden will be on
Stepan, Sauer and McDonagh are the ones who will likely have more to say about
the overall outcome of the proceedings. Sauer
had a tremendous overall rookie campaign in which he played his solid defensive
style while adding some physicality and snarl to the tune of a plus 20 rating
for the year. McDonagh did not get the
call until midseason but other than a few hiccup games he played tremendously
well since his debut chipping in one goal, eight assists and playing plus 16
hockey in his 40 games as a rookie.
This pairing has been stellar
since being put together and for much of the second half has been the Rangers
best defensive duo and the combination of their ice time and role to shut down
the second line of the Washington Capitals makes them critical to any success
the Rangers are going to have.
In addition to those three, Mats
Zuccarello will be another rookie the Rangers are hopeful to get contributions
from during the series. Coach John
Tortorella has opted to play Zuccarello in game one over veteran Sean Avery
because of the potential upside of Zuke offensively and avoiding any potential
penalty downside with Avery. Zuccarello
excelled in the shootout in the regular season, but there are none of those in
playoff hockey. He was very good early
in his time with the Rangers, but tailed off late to the point he was on the
fourth line and finally sent down to the minors. He was recalled for the finale and played
well in limited to minutes so it is tough to expect much of an impact from him
in series based on his limited opportunities.
All of these players have played
in big games before in their careers, but nothing truly prepares you for NHL
playoff hockey other than being in the games themselves and that is the
challenge all of these rookies are going to have deal with. The Rangers have said all along that this
year is about building for the future and all four of these players are going
to gain invaluable experience for their futures with each second of playoff
hockey they play right now. The Rangers
want these guys to prepare for the future, but they also have to rely on them
now.
