Several of the Rangers are back on the ice skating “informally”, due to constraints placed on preseason length by the CBA. The prospects tourney in Traverse City, MI kicks off in two weeks, and the Rangers open their camp up a couple of days later.

Hockey is well and truly in the air…

Today we continue the Ranger Countdown series with a player many probably don’t really consider a legitimate prospect any more. Chris Chappell spent much of last year on the sidelines, and will be looking to get his pro career back on track.

Player Profile
The Rangers signed the 6-4 212 pound Chappell as a free agent back in 2009, hoping to cash in on a late bloomer. Playing as a 20 year old for the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL, he exploded with 38 goals and 38 assists in 68 games, a 42 point improvement on his previous career highs.

He lead the team in goals and points that year, and it wasn’t exactly loaded. Six of Chappell’s team mates were, or have since been drafted, the highest a third round pick by the Florida Panthers – 80th overall.

In his first year as a pro, 11 games for Charlotte and 6 games for Hartford, losing time as a healthy scratch and ultimately a season ending injury which kept him out for the bulk of the year.

For the coming season, the goal has to be simply to fight his way into the Wolf Pack line-up, a prospect that may come later in the year after a stint with the new ECHL affiliate, the Greenville Road Warriors.

If he can have a little success, particularly offensively, then he may jump back onto the Rangers’ radar, but at this stage he’s primarily a longshot to make it to the NHL.

2009-10 Statistics
Team: Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)
Stats: 0 goals, 0 assists and 5 penalty minutes in 6 games

Team: Charlotte Checkers (ECHL)
Stats: 1 goal, 3 assists and 2 penalty minutes in 11 games

Prediction
Team: Greenville Road Warriors
Stats: 12 goals, 28 assists and 46 penalty minutes in 68 games

Fun Fact
Chris Chappell had 16 fights in his junior career, including one in 2007 against fellow Ranger prospect, Justin Soryal