Will Cuylle’s drop-off in production not a concern to Rangers coach
It’s been a career year for New York Rangers forward Will Cuylle in his second full season in the NHL. Cuylle, who turned 23 on Wednesday, has already surpassed his career-high 23 points with 27 this season, and matched his 13-goal output as a rookie with 30 games remaining.
That said, Cuylle has seen a dip in production over the past two months after getting off to a blazing start. Cuylle opened the season with eight points and a plus-10 rating through nine games in October, and followed that with 12 points in November.
Since then, however, Cuylle has registered just seven points in his past 29 games, and just two goals in 22 games. But Rangers coach Peter Laviolette is not concerned about the drop-off in production.
“I think [Cuylle] is playing good,” Laviolette said Wednesday. “I think throughout the course of the season there’s always ups and downs with regard to production. He’s still a guy that, for me, goes out and plays hard every game. He can be physical, he’s always tops in hits, tries to implement his presence out on the ice and still generates chances.”
In Cuylle’s defense, he was producing at his best when he was on a line with two forwards who are no longer on the team, Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil. The trio was among the best in the League at one point, leading in plus/minus and dominating at 5v5.
But when the Rangers hit the skids in November/December, Kakko was traded to the Seattle Kraken. And when the Rangers landed J.T. Miller in a huge trade with the Vancouver Canucks last week, Chytil was the centerpiece in the return.
Related: Rangers trade targets to round out bottom 6, including Brandon Tanev, Nick Bjugstad
Will Cuylle’s new role brings ‘more responsibility,’ albeit less production
Even before Chytil was traded, Cuylle had taken on a different role in the top six, becoming more of a shut-down player. In the past two games, he’s been on a line with Reilly Smith and Vincent Trocheck.
The line is often tasked with matching up against other team’s top players, which could provide an explanation for Cuylle’s drop-off in points, along with getting acclimated to playing with new linemates in a new role.
Even so, Cuylle has stepped up in a large way in his sophomore season and has quickly become a key cog in the Rangers lineup. His development and maturity from year one to year two is very noticeable, something Laviolette spoke about at length.
“I think from an offensive production you see it go up a little bit,” Laviolette explained. “He’s used on the penalty kill. It’s a little bit different this year, he’s gotten more power-play time. So that changes from game to game. I think the year that he had last year, and the next step for him evolving as a player, he continues to take on more responsibility. Whether that’s moving up to play against some tougher lines, penalty kill, power play. He’s still bringing what he can with regard to his offense and his physicality.”
Perhaps his best display of physicality came in New York’s most recent game, a 4-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday.
Cuylle laid a bone-crushing hit on veteran defenseman Alex Pietrangelo in the third period, and immediately dropped the gloves with Nicolas Hague afterward. Cuylle is fourth in the NHL with 192 hits.
Offensive production is always important, but with plays like this, Cuylle proves his all-around value. The Rangers need grit and physicality, and have gotten a huge boost from Miller since his return to New York. But Cuylle is one player who’s always had that element to his game.
Perhaps the addition of Miller will rub off on Cuylle more than the rest, leading him to develop into an all-around player of Miller’s caliber sooner than later.
More About:New York Rangers News