Shaking Up Lines May Spark Rangers’ Scoring

That the Rangers are in first place in the Atlantic Division is no surprise whatsoever. They entered this season as a favorite to win the Stanley Cup, adding free agents Scott Gomez and Chris Drury to their already star-studded lineup while most of the Eastern Conference’s playoff teams lost key players to free agency. But the path the Rangers have taken to the top of the Atlantic is most improbable, and doesn’t bode well for their chances of hoisting the Cup this coming June.Following their 2–1 victory over the Lightning on Wednesday night, the Rangers slipped to last place overall in goals-per-game (2.09). Looking back at the last decade’s Stanley Cup winners, every single team has finished in the top half of the league in goals scored, with the worst of them (yes, the much-maligned Devils, in 2003) finishing 14th overall.To find a team that won the Stanley Cup without finishing in the top half of the league in goals-per-game, one needs look back to the 1982–83 season, when the Islanders won the Cup for the fourth consecutive time despite finishing 15th overall in goals scored. And to find a team finishing last in goals but winning the Cup, one must look all the way back to the 1937–38 Chicago Blackhawks.The razor-thin margins by which the Rangers have been winning put exorbitant pressure on their defense — and on star netminder Henrik Lundqvist — and so it’s mission critical that head coach Tom Renney finds the right combination of forwards and get his team’s offense back on track.Approximately two weeks ago, Renney put young Brandon Dubinsky on a line with Jaromir Jagr, and it initially appeared as though the move might pay nice dividends. But with only four points (two goals, two assists) in 22 games, it’s clear that Dubinsky is no replacement for the departed Michael Nylander. And Jagr’s scoring totals (six even-strength points in 22 games) signal that his enormous talents are being wasted.Another huge concern is that Renney hasn’t found the right line-mates to complement Gomez and Drury. Gomez, currently skating with Brendan Shanahan and Sean Avery, has looked lost through much of his first 22 games on Broadway, surprisingly unable to utilize his tremendous speed. And Drury, with only three goals thus far, has demonstrated an inability to finish.On Wednesday night, fourth-liners Petr Prucha and Marcel Hossa were the Blueshirts’ most consistent scoring threats, working in tandem down low with surprising effectiveness. This offers a clue as to what Renney should do moving forward.While Dubinsky’s effort alongside Jagr has been good, the deplorable results make it clear he’s not the answer. Instead, Jagr should be on a line with Prucha (a natural center) and Hossa, two players who are far better suited to get the most out of Jagr. As a rookie, Prucha scored 30 goals converting Jagr’s feeds; it would be worthwhile to attempt to rekindle that chemistry.Gomez’s results have been unquestionably bad, especially when placed alongside Jagr, and Drury’s not much better; perhaps it would be worthwhile for Renney to try putting them together. Martin Straka (broken finger) has recently been cleared for contact, and the speedy Czech would likely fit quite nicely on the left side of a lightning-fast trio capable of deadly counterattacking.The checking line has been more than adequate, Blair Betts slotting in well between Ryan Hollweg and Colton Orr. And though it could hardly be considered the “fourth” line, a trio of Avery, Shanahan, and Dubinsky would provide a diversified scoring threat that would make it incredibly difficult for opposing teams to line-match against the Blueshirts.Yes, the Rangers’ commitment to defense has been excellent, from Jagr on down. Yes, Henrik Lundqvist has improbably improved after finishing as a Vezina Trophy finalist in each of his first two seasons. But following in the 1938 Blackhawks’ footsteps would be a fool’s errand. The Rangers need to score more, and with the talent they’ve got, it’s simply a matter of Renney finding the right combination.Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.

Shaking Up Lines May Spark Rangers’ Scoring

Shaking Up Lines May Spark Rangers’ Scoring

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