The Rangers were vastly outplayed in their 5-3 loss to the Capitals. Whether you go by the eye test or analytics or both, New York lagged substantially to their opponent. The defeat was somewhat similar to that of the loss to the Panthers as the issues apparent there were repeated Tuesday.
Analytics:
A few thoughts:
1)
Poor play by the first two lines. Vince Mercogliano highlighted just how bad the top six performed. Once again, the third line was the team’s best trio and it wasn’t even close.
Will Cuylle-Filip Chytil -Kaapo Kakko continue to excel. Chytil is playing with speed and drive, showing a determination to put the last few years behind him and evidence why he can be considered a top forward. Cuylle has taken a massive step forward in his second year while Kakko tried to rebound from a disappointing 2023-24 campaign. Any talk to separate this unit needs to be squashed now. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.
On the flip side, though, as Mercogliano and others highlighted, the top-six forwards were missing in action. “They were outshot by a combined 19-6 margin, with a 21-5 disadvantage in scoring chances and 11-2 in HD chances. The line featuring Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Reilly Smith posted a 24.41% xGF, while Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafrenière were down at 16.26%.”
The second line on paper, first line in actuality, gets a pass based on performance to date. We can’t say the same about the Zib line. They have struggled a decent portion of the season, evidenced by the numbers.
The numbers continue to dip for that line, which is down to a 41.84% xGF while being outscored, 4-3 − which, in truth, could be worse after Kreider and Zibanejad finished minus-three Tuesday while Smith seemed to get off the ice just before the goals were scored − and outshot, 57-41, across 80:19 time on ice.
Much of the spotlight has to be on Zibanejad. He has looked disinterested, while his game, which never was based on physicality, has become tissue soft. Much, if not all of his attack, has come on the outside, failing to go to the center of the ice and dirtier areas to create chances. Playing on the perimeter rarely leads to high-danger chances. Zibanejad’s issues from last season have carried over to this year and somehow become even more pronounced. If he doesn’t figure it out soon, New York will have a third line center productive only on the man-advantage at $8.5 million per for six more seasons.
2)
Top defensive pair struggled in the loss. Fox and Miller had their worst game of the season while paired together. Miller was by far the worst of the two, showing a lack of urgency and physicality, which has been a problem in the past, especially on one of the goals.
They rated as one of the NHL's best duos and had been the one constant on the Rangers' D corps through the first eight games but finished with a minus-two rating in what was easily their worst performance yet. Miller was especially shaky, with the Rangers outshot, 14-3, and at a 6-0 HD chance disadvantage while he was on the ice at five-on-five.
The easy decision would be go to back to the original pairs. But as seen in the combinations in practice today, coach Peter Laviolette is keeping Miller and Fox together. I agree with this move, as it’s worthwhile to see if this duo can continue to replicate their solid metrics. But Miller has to start playing with some grit and bite. We saw signs in the past, but it’s few and far between. If he is going to be a soft defenseman, that will impact his future contract.
3)
Matt Rempe was in the lineup as expected Tuesday. But a decision on how he will be deployed and used still looms. Sending him down to get ice time after sitting in the press box made sense. But to call him back up after two games mainly to either act as a Tom Wilson deterrent - which didn’t happen - or have basically a staged fight with Dylan McIlrath made little sense.
As Larry Brooks said in the Up in the Blue Seats podcast, something changed from the end of last season until now with how Lavy and maybe the organization view Rempe. Before camp started, we viewed him as lock to be in the lineup. While he didn’t have the best camp nor has he been the difference maker he was at times last season, he also hasn’t seen much ice time. If that is going to be the case, then come up with a clear plan on how to get him back to where he was or where they want him to be and stick with it. Stop going back and forth. As of now, he is likely in the lineup against Ottawa tomorrow.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
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