The New York Rangers have gotten off to a great start to the season, boasting an 8-2-0 record and leading the way in the Metropolitan Division. However, things took a turn for the worse in their most recent game against the Carolina Hurricanes. Both Adam Fox and Filip Chytil left the game with injuries, and now, the Rangers will be without both players for the foreseeable future.
Fox was placed on long-term injury reserve (LTIR) and will miss a minimum of ten games, while Chytil was placed on injured reserve (IR) and will miss at least a week. Now having to deal with injuries to two key players, the Rangers are going to have to overcome this adversity and the rest of the players will need to step up.
Defense Must Remain Solid
The Rangers have been playing a much better defensive game under Peter Laviolette. They have a structured system and they have played it well through the first ten games of the season. Now, with Fox out long-term, the rest of the defense is going to have to step up their games and play even better than they are now. One player to watch is K’Andre Miller. He has been very good to start the season, and now he’s going to have to play more minutes and might get more power-play time with Fox out. Miller has been good offensively this season with seven points in ten games. However, the Rangers are going to need him to step up his defensive game over the next ten games at least. He’s been good in the defensive zone, but he and the rest of the defensive core will have to be better without Fox there to make up for their mistakes.
One player who is going to get an opportunity to play more consistently is Zac Jones. He has played in only one game this season, and it was not a good game for him. The Rangers kept Jones with the team because they did not want to lose him to waivers and they believe he has a high upside. He is known more for his offensive game, but he can play solid defense when he needs to. With Fox out, this is a chance for Jones to show why he deserves to be an everyday NHL player and if he plays well, maybe he will earn a spot with the team when Fox comes back from injury.
More Ice Time For Trocheck
With Chytil injured, Vincent Trocheck is now going to step into the second-line center role and play with Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere. He hasn’t had the best offensive start to the season, with only one goal and four points in ten games played. With an increased role and playing with more talented players, Trocheck should be able to find his offensive game again and the Rangers are going to need him to. Even though Chytil hasn’t scored a goal yet, he was playing great hockey on the second line. Now, it’s up to Trocheck to step up his game and play like he did last season when he scored 22 goals and 64 points in 82 games played.
Related: Rangers’ Offensive Struggles Despite Strong Start
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With Trocheck moving up in the lineup, it means the bottom-six is also going to have to pick up their games and contribute more offensively. They need Blake Wheeler to start producing and Will Cuylle will also have to start scoring more, as they have only combined for two goals this season (both from Cuylle). The fourth line, while not known for their offense, will need to start generating more chances. They have rarely gotten any chances this season and with the team missing a key offensive player, the rest of the forwards will need to step up.
Impact on The Power Play
The Rangers’ power play has been deadly to start the season. They currently rank third in the league with a percentage of 32.4, only behind the Vancouver Canucks and New Jersey Devils. With the injury to Fox, they have lost their power-play quarterback and it seems as if Erik Gustafsson will get the first crack at taking Fox’s spot. While Gustafsson has been good on the power play throughout his career, he’s not the kind of player Fox is. He doesn’t have the patience like him, nor does he have the vision and passing ability. The power-play has tons of talent, but it might see a decline in success without Fox in the lineup.
It’s not going to be easy for the Rangers without Fox and Chytil for the foreseeable future. Luckily, they have gotten off to a strong start and have shown that they can battle to win games even if they don’t look like they are the better team. It’s going to be a tough November for the Rangers, and they are going to need the rest of the team to up their games if they want to stay where they are in the standings when these players return.