Weighing pros, cons of Rangers signing Conor Sheary to PTO
It isn’t exactly Sidney Crosby reuniting with Mike Sullivan on Broadway. But the fact that the New York Rangers apparently are bringing Conor Sheary — who won two Stanley Cup championships with Sullivan in Pittsburgh — to training camp does carry some significance.
This means at least one lineup regular Sullivan coached over the past 10 years with the Penguins, will, at least, join him in training camp, if not be on the Rangers opening-night roster. Sheary played his best hockey under Sullivan, including a 23-goal, 53-point season in 2016-17. And you’d have to think that Sullivan has a soft spot for anyone who helped put a couple rings on his fingers.
The flip side is that the veteran forward is 33 and just had the final season of his three-year, $6 million contract bought out by the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Sheary PTO agreement isn’t massive news, like if Sid or Evgeni Malkin or Bryan Rust or Kris Letang joined the new Rangers coach for one final rodeo. Then again, the Rangers couldn’t afford any of those other options anyway.
So, Conor Sheary it is. Though if handled the right way, this should be a positive addition — certainly in the short term, maybe in the long term — for the Rangers.
Related: Matt Rempe, Gabe Perreault go from players to counselors at Rangers Summer Camp
Pros, cons of Rangers signing Conor Sheary to PTO
Here’s a breakdown of the good and not-so-good aspects of Sheary signing a PTO with the Rangers.
Pros
Let’s start with the obvious. There’s no financial commitment for the Rangers to bring Sheary in to camp on a PTO. They can give him a look during the preseason and see what he has left after 10 NHL seasons. If he shows enough, the Rangers can sign him to a contract for the NHL minimum to play in their bottom-six forward group. Or perhaps he lands a two-way contract and begins the season with Hartford of the American Hockey League.
Sheary had 61 points (20 goals, 41 assists) to lead Syracuse of the AHL in scoring last season. It’s clear that he can still produce at a decent level in the AHL — and it certainly doesn’t hurt to have a two-time Cup winner help mentor your young prospects in the minor leagues.
Down in the AHL, he’d also be a veteran option should there be an injury or two in the Rangers’ forward group — a bit of a safety net. If he plays well enough to earn a spot on the Rangers roster, then you add another veteran, one with 593 games of NHL experience.
That’s all for the long term. What makes the Sheary PTO a win in the short term is that he will come in to compete and push younger forwards like Gabe Perreault, Brennan Othmann, Brett Berard and Juuso Parssinen for a roster spot — and do so free of charge. That’s good for all involved. If none — or some — of the kids aren’t ready for full-time NHL duty, Sheary is an affordable option to buy the Rangers time until Perreault, Othmann and Co. prove worthy.
Perhaps most important, Sheary’s familiarity with Sullivan, his play style and personality, could help the coach’s transition with new players and a new team. It’s always good to have a disciple, if you will, to help spread your word. Sheary could be that for Sullivan, whether he’s around all season, for just a few weeks in training camp, or anything in between.
Defenseman Derrick Pouliot, who was signed this summer and is ticketed to play in Hartford, played parts of three seasons under Sullivan in Pittsburgh but doesn’t have the pedigree Sheary does. Sheary could be an important conduit between new team and coach this Fall.
Cons
Sheary played five NHL games with the Lightning last season, only one after Nov. 30, and didn’t record a point. The season before, Sheary scored four goals and managed 15 points in 57 games with Tampa Bay while playing through injuries to his hand and thumb.
In other words, he has the look of a player on the distinct downside of his NHL career, even though from 2020-23 he averaged 16 goals per season with the Washington Capitals.
Sheary does not exactly fit the mold of the type player the Rangers are looking to build with moving forward. He’s older and smaller (5-foot-8, 182 pounds). The Rangers are looking to get younger, bigger and faster.
But he’s always been a hungry overachiever. Coaches like having a player like that on the roster.
However, Sullivan can’t let personal history get in the way of progress — current and future — when it comes to Sheary. The biggest con of bringing Sheary in would be if Sullivan wedges him onto the roster regardless of how the kids play in the preseason.
Since Sullivan hasn’t spoken publicly about Sheary, it’s impossible to tell where he stands on the signing. It could just be a favor to a player he likes, get him a look and maybe the Rangers or some other team sees something left in him. But in no way should Sheary stand in the way of Perreault, Othmann, Berard or Parssinen’s progress.
It’s difficult to believe Sullivan would allow that to happen. That would be a counterproductive move — which makes this PTO signing a no-brainer for the Rangers.
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