The Rangers do strike me as a team who, at once, could be hurt OR benefited by the break.
On the one hand, we were so hot, had come together and had so much momentum when things paused. Killing that momentum and having to start in a do or die, best of 5 puts us in a tough spot where a lot kids will be leaned on to perform in a situation they’ve never experienced.
On the other hand, we were the youngest team in the league last year. But on top of that, two of our more veteran players - Panarin and Trouba - were new to the team. Also new were Fox, Kakko, Lindgren, Gauthier and players who weren’t “new” but had less than a full year with the club were Chytil, Lemieux, DeAngelo, Strome. Add Shesterkin towards the end of the year. That’s a lot of adjustment for a team’s locker room, identity and chemistry. But it was coming together beautifully. Take a break and now these guys aren’t coming together as strangers anymore. There’s no “getting to know” each other. There’s no questions. These guys can take all the kinship and success they were coming together to have at the end of the year and build off of it.
We talked about Kakko benefitting from time off to synthesize everything and how practicing everyday and being with the team everyday is good, but sometimes that time away allow it to soak in and when you come back you’re no longer the new kid, you’re part of the group and you can apply all you’ve learned. I don’t know that ANY team has come together as much as NYR or can so clearly point to their progress and say they have a bright, bright future as this group this year. Now they’re getting back together, not as new teammates and strangers and uncertain rookies, but as a group of friends, comrades, family.
This group has a buzz about them. A swagger. They know how good they were to end the season. They know they were better than their record. They know they’ve got a bright future. They know. There’s something special brewing.
And unrelated to the point of the post, that’s why I’m loath to move Buchnevich or DeAngelo and happy enough to bring back Strome. I think we need one top four LHD, and 1-2 vets for the bottoms six/4th line. Otherwise, I wouldn’t touch anything right now. We’ve got too much mojo.
