Perhaps no player better epitomizes the next three weeks of the New York Rangers‘ season than rookie forward Adam Edstrom.
On the surface, that’s a bizarre claim to make, given that the fourth-line winger has played only three NHL games. Yet Edstrom’s return to the lineup after opening his NHL career in memorable fashion in December seems to serve as a metaphor for the Blueshirts club that’s approaching the March 8 trading deadline as an unfinished product, still uncertain about the best way to bolster their roster for a Stanley Cup run this spring.
The 6-foot-7, 234-pound Edstrom is The Great Unknown, a sixth-round draft pick of the previous front-office regime in 2019 who has surprisingly developed into a viable NHL option. With great size, good hands, strong defensive instincts and the ability to kill penalties, the club is encouraged by the potential of the native of Karlstad, Sweden – even if the 23-year-old remains largely a mystery.
The unpredictability that surrounds this huge player is apt, given that the Rangers are still working on their strategy for the deadline. The club could use upgrades in several areas, and it appears Edstrom will be given some runway to see if he can bolster the contributions of the bottom six, an area that has vexed the team for much of this highly successful season that has seen the Blueshirts rise to the top of the Metropolitan Division and stay there.
Laviolette Impressed With Edstrom’s Early Results
Edstrom’s arrival came after the club waived veteran forward Tyler Pitlick on Feb. 13, another bargain-bin free-agent forward signing that didn’t work out. Pitlick’s move off the roster followed the Jan. 25 departure of center Nick Bonino, who did some good things in his short time with the club but ultimately not enough to stick for the whole season.
Coach Peter Laviolette clearly hopes Edstrom can provide a spark to the fourth line by replacing Pitlick, manning the left side of center Barclay Goodrow and right wing Jimmy Vesey, with the versatile Vesey having moved over to accommodate Edstrom.
Early results were a mixed bag, as the trio posted a 41.7 Corsi for percentage in the Rangers’ 2-0 victory over the Calgary Flames on Feb. 12. Laviolette, though, liked what he saw out of the towering winger.
“I thought he was good,” said the coach, who gave Edstrom a shift with less than four minutes left and the Rangers protecting a one-goal lead. “He’s a big guy that just skates so well. His stick is big, and even in practice you could just see him moving up and down the ice. He skates with ease.
“I like his physicality. I like his awareness. He was a player that played good defense (with Hartford of the American Hockey League). He killed penalties. Eventually, we’ll start to work him into different scenarios, but there wasn’t anything in the game that made me feel like he couldn’t play in the last five, six minutes of the game.”
Edstrom’s size and combination of skills are intriguing for a Rangers team that despite its 35-16-3 record, is still seeking dependability and identity for the third and fourth lines. Laviolette has started to get some clarity with a third unit of Will Cuylle, Jonny Brodzinski and Kaapo Kakko that’s been productive of late; now, it looks like Edstrom will be given a chance to lift a unit that the coach prefers to use as a matchup group against opponents’ top six. The Vesey-Goodrow-Pitlick alignment had been effective for solid stretches earlier in the season, but the trio has been way underwater metrics-wise for some time now.
Edstrom could be the answer, or he could be a placeholder. The next three weeks are his golden opportunity, and there’s little doubt the big man knows it. If he continues to surprise an organization that took a flier on him with the 161st selection nearly five years ago, that could help alleviate the Blueshirts’ need for a big winger who can win battles in the corners and drive to the net, allowing general manager Chris Drury to focus resources on other missing elements, such as another center or a crease-clearing defenseman.
Edstrom’s Size, Mix of Skills Could Boost Rangers’ Bottom Six
If Edstrom proves to be a flash in the pan, Drury will have little choice but to start from scratch and scribble “grinding forward” back onto his deadline shopping list, with Edstrom likely to be sent back to the Wolf Pack for more seasoning. Laviolette’s comment about working the rookie “into different scenarios,” though, seems to indicate he’s interested in seeing if he has a hidden gem on his hands. Edstrom’s hulking frame – the kind that often prevents players from succeeding in the NHL because of quickness and skating concerns -and his uncommon variety of skills can’t help but spark some curiosity from his coach, the front office and teammates about what he might be able to add.
Related: Rangers Should Prioritize Top Right Wing Over 3rd-Line Center
“I feel like the nerves are pretty much gone at this point,” said Edstrom, who missed nearly two months after being returned to the minors in December due to an upper-body injury. “I just want to keep on growing into the game and adapting to hockey on the NHL level and it’s just [going] to be better every day.” (From ‘Adam Edstrom Gets Chance In Rangers Lineup After Injury Issues’, New York Post, 2/14/24)
With nine games remaining before the deadline, the Rangers are moving toward a personnel resolution that’s sure to play a major role in their fortunes into the spring; there’s little question that the club needs reinforcements to reach its ceiling as a top championship contender. Drury’s additions will be driven in part by whatever internal solutions might exist – for instance, Brodzinski’s recent ascendance has made the roster less starved for a center than previously thought.
In Edstrom, the Blueshirts appear set to try out another potential fix who possesses some of the characteristics of his team right now – exciting but uncertain, facing a tough path to success but with untapped potential and room to grow. What’s assured is that the GM should be pretty convinced about what he’ll require by March 8.
If it turns out that Drury doesn’t need a big winger, it will probably mean that the Rangers have another compelling young player, one that might be in his size XXL Blueshirt for more than just a short stint.