The New York Rangers wrapped up their preseason with a loss to the New York Islanders and finished with four wins and two losses over their six preseason games. While many might say that you shouldn’t look too closely into what happens during the preseason, there are some players who have looked good and others who disappointed. In this piece, we are going to go over some of the final takeaways from the Rangers’ preseason as they get ready to start the regular season in Pittsburgh against the Penguins.
Filip Chytil Looks Ready to Go This Season
One of the more impressive players for the Rangers during the preseason was Filip Chytil. He was one of the players that was going to be interesting to watch as he is coming off a season where he was dealing with a serious injury and played a combined 16 games between the regular season and playoffs last year. Based on how he played during the preseason, it looks like Chytil is ready to go and will look to give it his all during the regular season and beyond.
Chytil scored a few goals and looked assertive in his play. He was not afraid to take a hit and used his speed to his advantage and it allowed him to create scoring chances for himself and his teammates. He looked like the player he was before he got injured last season and that is a great sign for the Rangers as his presence was missed during the playoffs last year. If he can stay healthy this season, he could be the X-factor in what helps the Rangers finally win a Stanley Cup.
Igor Shesterkin Is Already On Top of His Game
Igor Shesterkin is going to be a major topic of discussion for the Rangers for a multitude of reasons this season. The main reason is that he is entering the final year of his contract and so far, he has not signed an extension with the team. Another reason why he will be watched closely is because it will be interesting to see how he plays to start the season and how it goes throughout the season. If he plays like he has in the preseason, it seems as if it could be another Vezina Trophy-worthy season for Shesterkin.
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Shesterkin played extremely well in his few preseason appearances and he looks as if he is ready to dominate this season. He also has more incentive to play well because if he does, he can demand even more money from the Rangers and he can prove why he is the backbone of this team and the main reason why the Rangers will win a Stanley Cup. He will be one of the most interesting players to watch in the entire NHL this season and it will be interesting to see how his contract situation plays out.
Brennan Othmann Still Not Ready For the NHL
This training camp was a great opportunity for Brennan Othmann to show why he deserves and is ready for a full-time shot in the NHL. He only played three games with the Rangers last season and never truly got the chance to show what he can do. However, as the preseason went along, Othmann never truly stood out and didn’t show why he belonged on the roster. He had a very good game against the Boston Bruins, but other than that he was kind of invisible.
In the final preseason game, he got the chance to play on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere due to an injury to Artemi Panarin. Even with this chance, he was not noticeable in the game and now, he has officially been sent back down to the American Hockey League (AHL) and will start the season with the Hartford Wolf Pack. It is very possible that he will be called up during the season due to injuries, but he failed to stand out and show why he should be with the Rangers to start the season. He is going to have to work his way back up and that starts with having a strong start in the AHL.
The preseason isn’t the be-all, end-all when it comes to what to expect from a team going into a season, but it does allow you to see what certain players can do and how they can thrive with opportunities they might not usually get. For the Rangers, this is a Stanley Cup or bust season and some players stood out more than others. While there are more players that looked both good and bad this preseason, these three stood out the most and now that the preseason is over, the Rangers and the players can focus on starting the regular season as strong as possible.
