Carolina Hurricanes Division Rivals: New York Rangers Have Stanley Cup Hopes
By Zeke Lukow
Leading up to the season we are going to have a Metropolitan Division Season projection series. We will be starting with the last place team and finish with the Carolina Hurricanes. Today we will be covering the New York Rangers
Head Coach: Alain Vigneault (3rd year with the team)
2014-2015 Record: 53-22-7
2014-2015 Result: 1st in the Metro, 1st Overall (lost in Eastern Conference Finals)
The Rangers GM, Glen Sather, added significant pieces to the team during the preseason and at the trade deadline. The additions of Kevin Hayes and Dan Boyle improved the performance of the team. Boyle added a layer of defense and possession that the Rangers needed. Boyle was second on the team in CF% with a 52.8%.
Kevin Hayes signed with the Rangers out of Boston College and was able to immediately contribute. During his rookie year, Hayes was able to score 45 points (17g, 28a) which was good enough for fifth best in the league for rookies.
The Rangers couldn’t have had a better season than they did in 2014-2015, they won the Metro and the President’s Trophy. New York was led by 60 point scorers Rick Nash (42g, 27a) and Derick Brassard (19g, 41a) to the league’s third best GF%.
As if the offense wasn’t good enough to win games last year, the goaltending also performed at a high level. They had the third best SV% as a team last year with a .923, only .003 behind the season leaders Montreal.
The loss of Mats Zuccarello really hurt the Rangers offense in the playoffs. Without a top five offensive player they were unable to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals for a second straight year. Unfortunately for the Rangers and their fans, they were bested by a red hot Lightning team in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Key Additions: Antti Raanta (Trade) and Emerson Etem (Trade)
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Raanta and Etem were acquired on the same day during the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Etem was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks and will add physicality to the Rangers team. He did not have a lot of regular season productivity, but his physical play makes him a great fit for playoff hockey. He was able to tally 3 goals in the playoffs this year.
Antti Raanta was brought in to replace former backup goalie Cam Talbot. Raanta had a great year with the Blackhawks, but lost the backup role to Scott Darling. Raanta started 14 games during the 2014-2015 season and was able to earn the second best GAA of 1.89 and second best SV% of .918. Raanta will prove to be a capable back up to Lundqvist.
Key Losses: Carl Hagelin (Trade) and Cam Talbot (Trade)
Carl Hagelin was dealt in the Etem trade, and was primarily a contingency trade. Though Hagelin is a dynamic player with scoring ability, the Rangers were unable to keep him next year and resign their key pieces. Hagelin played all 82 games and scored 35 points (17g, 18a),his production numbers will be missed next year. To put this into perspective, Hagelin would have had the fourth most points on the Hurricanes.
The Cam Talbot trade was a little underwhelming for Rangers fans, but it was a perfect handling of the situation. Cam Talbot was destined to leave the team after the 2015-2016 season, so dealing him with one year left allowed the team to find a backup with more longevity. Talbot was one of the best backups in the league last year. He had a better GAA and a better SV% than Lundqvist.
Depth Chart:
Rick Nash – Derek Stepan – Mats Zuccarello
Chris Kreider – Derick Brassard – J.T. Miller
Emerson Etem – Kevin Hayes – Jesper Fast
Dominic Moore – Jarrett Stoll – Viktor Stalberg
Ryan McDonagh – Dan Girardi
Marc Staal – Keith Yandle
Kevin Klein – Dan Boyle
Henrik Lundqvist
Antti Raanta
2015-2016 Outlook
The Rangers were able to make up for the pieces that they lost during the off season. Raanta will be able to take some workload off of Lundqvist and hopefully keep him healthy. Etem should be able to come in and contribute as a bottom six forward and be successful.
The New York Rangers always have one of the best goaltending units in the league, and this year will be no different. Lundqvist should be able to stay healthy and improve upon his performance from last year. Lundqvist and Raanta are expected to be one of the top goaltending units in the league.
One of the best things about the Rangers is that they don’t have to rely on defense. They will also have a top level offense. Rick Nash recorded 69 points last year, and there are no reasons to think he is going to slow down.
Carolina Hurricanes
The New York Rangers had the third best Goals For% with a 56.6%, in comparison the Carolina Hurricanes had a 43.5%. This means that 56.6% of all goals scored in Rangers games, were goals for the Rangers.
The offense was strong and featured 4 players with over 50 points, whereas the Hurricanes only had one (Eric Staal). What made the Rangers so dangerous and successful last year was this combination of a potent offense and great goaltending. The goalies were able to take pressure off of the offense, because they could win games with only scoring one goal.
The only issue with this number is that their Corsi For% was 49.5% which was good for 20th best in the league. This shows that their possession numbers weren’t fantastic, but they were able to still score enough goals to win. I expect this trend to continue with the Rangers, they have never been a highly offensive team, and often the first team to score three goals win games.
I expect the Rangers to be able to continue their success next year. They have gone deep in the playoffs the past couple of years, and without losing key players it is hard to think that they wouldn’t reach this level of performance again.
Raanta will also play more games, allowing Lundqvist to be able to stay fresh for the playoffs. The Rangers are expected to come in first in the Metropolitan Division for the 2015-2016 season. There is a good chance that they can repeat as the President’s Trophy as well. The Rangers should also be expected to go deep in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and should at least make the Eastern Conference Finals.