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Rangers Practice Report: Klein OUT for opener, Vesey and Buchnevich in top six
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
After being held out of practice for the last few days, Kevin Klein will miss the season opener tomorrow against the Islanders at Madison Square Garden after an MRI revealed a back strain.
Klein had been experiencing back spasms but fortunately this injury is not too serious. Alain VIgneaut said it’s “day-to-day” and that “he’ll be back soon.”
Klein has scored nine goals and 17 assists in each of the last two seasons while providing a steady defensive presence and surprisingly improving his possession and passing each year. Read the rest of this entry
Buchnevich has earned a spot on the Rangers’ top line
Bobby Bevilacqua
Pavel Buchnevich, Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad celebrate a goal in a preseason game against the Flyers. Photo courtesy of Bruce Bennett/Getty Images.
The three best forwards during the Rangers preseason all happened to play on the same line. Mika Zibanejad looks like everything Derick Brassard was plus more while Chris Kreider has been playing like a man on a mission, aggressively skating and looking to expand on two consecutive 20 goal seasons. But the biggest surprise has been rookie Pavel Buchnevich.
Buchnevich looks like a lock for the opening night lineup, marking an NHL debut for the 21 year-old after spending parts of the last four seasons in the KHL. Despite the culture shock that comes from moving to North America, as well as adapting to the smaller ice, Buchnevich has looked like a poised NHL veteran and looks ready to contribute with the Rangers.
While it was Harvard grad Jimmy Vesey that won the Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award for the best Rookie at training camp, Buch had to be a close second. It took him until the final preseason game to score his first goal, but he could have had a lot more than that. In terms of creating chances, Buchnevich may have been one of the best at creating chances for others, putting himself in good positions, and getting shots on goal. If it wasn’t for the extraordinary play of some of the goalies that he faced, there probably would have been a few more goals on his stat sheet. He did finish with a goal and two assists in four games.
BREAKING: Rangers make final cuts, seemingly set opening night roster
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The Rangers have announced what seems to be their final roster cuts this afternoon, trimming the roster down to a total of 24 players; consisting of 14 forwards, eight defensemen and two goalies.
Here’s the current roster;
Forwards (14): Pavel Buchnevich, Jesper Fast, Michael Grabner, Kevin Hayes, Josh Jooris, Chris Kreider, Oscar Lindberg, JT Miller, Rick Nash, Brandon Pirri, Derek Stepan, Jimmy Vesey, Mika Zibanejad, Mats Zuccarello Read the rest of this entry
Final battle for roster spots tonight as Rangers battle the Flyers; Jooris back in action
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
This is it; the final preseason game before Alain Vigneault and the Rangers begin their quest for the Stanley Cup on Oct. 13. The roster has been cut down to 29 players (you can read about that HERE) and tonight marks the last opportunity for players to state their case for a roster spot.
Here are the lines for tonight;
Chris Kreider-Mika Zibanejad-Pavel Buchnevich
Jimmy Vesey-Kevin Hayes-Nathan Gerbe
JT Miller-Josh Jooris-Brandon Pirri Read the rest of this entry
Changing the system: Alain Vigneault should roll with four skill lines
Bobby Bevilacqua
Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
Traditionally, a hockey team is structured with 12 forwards composing four different lines; the top two lines are the scoring lines and full of a team’s stars. The third line is more of a two-way line that can chip in scoring and play some defense. And the fourth line is the checking line, your penalty killers and usually not great at scoring.
Most coaches tend to try and structure their lines in this fashion and it’s how hockey has been played for a very long time. But this year, the Rangers need to try something different.
The group of forwards that the Rangers have brought into camp is the most talented group of players that I have seen since I started following the team closely. Buchnevich, Vesey and Zibanejad are some of the talented, young newcomers brought to New York in the offseason, and all of the offseason additions have injected a plethora of speed, skill and scoring prowess into the lineup. Read the rest of this entry
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