The Rangers travel to Boston tonight to play their second preseason game in as many nights. Not along for the ride are most of last night’s line-up, along with star winger Artemi Panarin and forward Sammy Blais and Barclay Goodrow.
Not playing Panarin is probably more about giving others a chance, rather than any concern with the veteran Russian winger. Panarin likely needs very little time to get into his groove, though surely getting him some playing time with his new linemates would be a positive.
In the case of Blais and Goodrow, it’s more about taking things cautiously as they both return from significant injuries last season. Blais missed all but 14 games last year with a torn ACL, and while h’es been practicing with no obvious discomfort, they would rather help get him a bit closer to game shape before they throw him the mix. Likewise Goodrow is coming off a broken ankle in last year’s playoffs, and they simply want to give him as much time as possible. Goodrow himself has said he’d be playing if this was a regular season game, so it appears it’s just an abundance of caution.
Five forwards who played last nigth will get another spin against Boston. Jimmy Vesey, Gustav Rydahl, Bobby Trivigno, Ryan Carpenter and Vitali Kravtsov all will get another chance to impress tonight. In the case of Vesey, he needs to continue to perform well to earn a contract and a spot on the team, while the likes of Rydahl and Carpenter, it’s about playing for the fourth line spot. With Trivigno, he gets a chance to set the stage for a later season call-up, something Rydahl will also be keeping in mind if he can’t get past Carpenter at the beginning of the year.
Giving Kravtsov another shot after a so-so outing against the Islanders, gives him a chance to perhaps settle his nerves a bit and get back to his game. With new linemates tonight, and with four of the team’s top six forwards also not in the mix, Kravtsov is likely to get a lot of ice time to make a better impression.
10 Things to Watch for Tonight:
- Can Vitali Kravtsov bounce back with a better performance
- Dryden Hunt head to head with Jimmy Vesey for a forward spot
- Was Ty Emberson just a throw-in on the Patrik Nemeth trade
- Gutav Rydahl v Ryan Carpenter 2.0
- Is Jaroslav Halak too old, or does he still have it
- First time to see Vincent Trocheck in Blue
- How confident is Lafreniere after last year’s playoffs
- The best man in camp: Dryden Hunt
- Can Matthew Robertson make a serious push
- Julien Gauthier‘s signature move
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