Rangers coach removes hot rookie from potent power play in puzzling choice
Though Mike Sullivan contended that “nothing’s etched in stone,” it appears that the New York Rangers coach is moving Gabe Perreault off of the top power-play unit, just as the rookie is breaking out and flourishing offensively.
With captain J.T. Miller healthy and set to return from an upper-body injury, Sullivan replaced Perreault with the veteran on PP1 at practice Friday in Minnesota. If he indeed is back in the lineup for the game Saturday against the Wild, Miller likely rejoins the top unit with Mika Zibanejad, Alexis Lafreniere, Vincent Trocheck, and Adam Fox.
“Well, our power play has had a fair amount of success throughout the last few months, and we know we have options on it. J.T. has been a big part of the success that this power play has enjoyed. I mean, it’s top 10 in the League,” Sullivan explained after practice.
Now, it is true that the Rangers power play generally has been quite good this season. It’s currently eighth in the League at 24.1 percent. And, really, the most important member of the top unit is Fox. New York has close to a 30 percent success rate with Fox in the lineup quarterbacking PP1, as opposed to just 19 percent in the 27 games he missed this season due to a pair of injuries.
Miller is tied for third on the Rangers with four power-play goals this season, and has 72 PPGs in the NHL. Plus, you know, he is the captain of this team, a respected veteran, and one of its highest-paid players, making $8 million per season.
On the flip side, Perreault is finally asserting himself as a rising young star on the Rangers. The 20-year-old winger has 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 32 games this season, including two power-play goals and four power-play points.
More importantly, he, Zibanejad, and Lafreniere have serious chemistry since the Olympic break, fueling New York’s 5-1-2 surge the past eight games. That’s both at 5v5 and playing together on the top power-play unit. New York is 5-for-9 on the power play during its current three-game winning streak.
They’re actually making the Rangers fun to watch again. And since the rest of this season is about building up the young kids amid the organizational retool, why not let Perreault keep rolling in his comfort zone, at least until he shows — if he shows — he’s not up to it?
“The options that we have, I think, are obvious, but when you start talking about left shot, right shots, putting players in positions where we can set them up for success,” Sullivan explained. “We have certain combinations that we think help us. Gabe has got some looks there … So nothing’s etched in stone. But, you know, we know what our options are.”
Rangers coach trying to help Gabe Perreault ‘grow and develop his game’
Certainly, Lafreniere could school Perreault about being a first-round pick by the Rangers and waiting (and waiting …) for his turn on PP1. So, there are no givens here. Lafreniere, now 24 and in his sixth NHL season, finally is a top-unit regular since the Rangers traded Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 4.
Perreault remains on the top line at even strength, but playing with the likes of Conor Sheary and Taylor Raddysh — no disrespect intended — on the second power-play unit.
Sullivan was asked if he thinks this change disrupts Perreault’s impressive progress of late.
“No. Because I don’t think he would look at it as a demotion,” Sullivan answered. “Gabe is playing extremely well right now, so we’ll continue to work with him to try to continue to help him grow and develop his game, and we’ll put him in situations where we think it sets him up for success.”
Perreault is on a three-game point streak (six points; two goals, four assists), recording multi-point outings in each. He has nine points (four goals, five assists) in his past nine games.
