Entering the first day of free agency it was widely thought that the Rangers would seek to upgrade their offense and add a depth defender.
Instead, the Blueshirts added grit on July 1st while watching several of their own free agents depart for greener pastures.
Here’s what went down on Sunday.
Whether you agree with the suspension or not, Brandon Prust will not be playing in tonight’s Game 4 against the Devils. With the opportunity to build a two game lead, the Rangers will be without one of their warriors and top penalty killers. It’s a blow, but not a blow that can’t be overcome. Unlike with Carl Hagelin, the Rangers have a few options readily available to replace Prust for the one game ban.
Option 1: Brandon Dubinsky
This option is the best option for the Rangers. With Dubi cleared for contact and partaking in optional skates, he is on the cusp of returning to action. It has to be assumed that if Dubi can play, then he will play. Dubi would be a perfect fit to replace Prust, as Dubi can slide in quietly to a fourth line role for this game, and ease back into playoff hockey. Plus, if Dubi comes back, the penalty kill won’t suffer too much with Prust out.
Option 2: Insert Stu Bickel at forward
When Chris Neil took out Brian Boyle with a questionable hit on Saturday night, he took out the Rangers most effective forward. He took out their leading scorer, top defensive forward, and top penalty killer in this series. He took out the only player that has managed to get under the skin of the Senators. It’s a big blow to the Rangers, and not a player easily replaced. The best the Rangers can do is find some sort of lineup option that maximizes the return of Carl Hagelin, and minimizes the departure of Boyle. This is no easy task.
Side note: Is it great for the depth of the team to say that Boyle has been the best forward, or is it a sign of weakness in the top six? Tough call there.
The good news, as mentioned above, is that Hagelin will be returning to the lineup tonight after serving his three game suspension for elbowing and concussing Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson. The addition of Hagelin adds some much needed speed and puck possession to the lineup, which also helps minimize the negative effects of having their top defensive forward out of the lineup.
This leaves the Rangers with a few lineup options to consider for the game, and while none are perfect, they give the Rangers much needed flexibility.
After the Rick Nash deal fell through, the Rangers made a minor move in sending a fifth round pick in this year’s draft to Chicago for defenseman John Scott. The first thing someone will notice about Scott is that he is big, listed at 6’8 and 258 lbs, the dude is a big boy. The undrafted defenseman, who is also capable of playing left wing, played four years at Michigan Tech before catching on with the Houston Aeros.
Scott got his first shot in the NHL with the Minnesota Wild, playing 71 games over two seasons with the Wild, putting together a line of 1-2-3 with 111 PIMS. So clearly, Scott is not an offensive threat. He finished with a -4 rating, but that’s neither here nor there. In 69 games with the Blackhawks over two seasons, he recorded two assists and another 120 PIMs, upping his total to 231 PIMs.
Per Hockeyfights.com, Scott has fought 54 times in the AHL and NHL, and never lost a fight. That’s right, he is a perfect 54-0 in fighting over his career. He’s so good that Floyd Mayweather has already declined the option to fight him. With Brandon Prust hurting, and Mike Sauer out indefinitely, Scott adds some much needed fighting skill on the blue line or the fourth line, wherever he plays.
Perhaps Scott’s most useful attribute is that he is capable of playing defense and wing. Much like Stu Bickel, this gives the Rangers tremendous flexibility in matching up with opponents. The Rangers have a lot of games coming up against physical opponents, and an extra big body to protect the likes of Marian Gaborik (as we saw yesterday, it’s needed) isn’t going to hurt. The ability to dress all of Prust, Rupp, Bickel, and Scott will go a long way to keeping some of the dirtier teams at bay.
The obvious sacrifice with someone like Scott is his play with his gloves on and his stick in his hand. His -0.5 OGVT isn’t all that surprising, as Scott really doesn’t add much offensively. His 0.4 DGVT is still below Steve Eminger (1.1 DGVT), Stu Bickel (0.8 DGVT) and Jeff Woywitka (0.5 DGVT), which again isn’t all that surprising. Scott is a tough guy, and although they have their flaws, they still serve a purpose, especially against teams like Philadelphia, Boston, and New Jersey.
As for his peripherals, his Qualcomp (-.180) is very low, so he has been seeing nothing but bottom lines and bottom pairings this year. Again, this is not unexpected for a player like Scott. What is surprising is his positive relative Corsi (0.3), which is a puck possession metric. A positive relative Corsi means that Scott in fact has had less shots directed at his net (blocked, missed, saved, or goals) than his team has directed at the opposition’s net while he is on the ice. The difference is marginal, but it’s still a positive difference nonetheless.
Combining his Qualcomp and Corsi with his 65.2% offensive zone starts, and you get exactly what you think you’re getting with Scott: a big, tough defenseman who can only play against bottom line forwards. He is a matchup player, someone designed to give the Rangers added flexibility. He is no more than a 7-8 minute player, designed to match up against the other team’s tough guys.
So with Rupp, Prust, and Bickel in the mix, why did the Rangers pick up Scott? The answer may be tough to see, but may have been more obvious last night. Prust didn’t look like he wanted to fight Eric Boulton, and it showed when both of Prust’s gloves were still on when Boulton started throwing punches. Prust left the fight wincing. Rupp hasn’t fought since the 2/7 game against the Devils, and it appears he has been nursing a sore hand as well.
With Sauer out of the lineup, that leaves two injured players and Bickel as the only guys who are healthy enough to throw down without any injury concerns. Against the aforementioned teams, that is going to be a problem. Scott will give someone like Prust the option of fighting, as opposed to the current need to fight. Scott is not going to be an every day player, but he is definitely more cost effective as a scratch ($525,000 cap hit) than Wojtek Wolski.
