If Stepan Stumbles… Let Him.

When a baby takes his first steps he inevitably falls over trying. You don’t stop him trying again. Derek Stepan is going through growing pains as a young Ranger right now and the Rangers need to let him learn on the fly. Let the player make his mistakes and teach him; show him patience and develop him in New York where you have direct influence on his development unlike in the AHL, especially given the current form of the Wolf Pack.

The Rangers have a pretty nice mix of veterans and youngsters on the roster right now and they have the luxury of allowing Stepan to make mistakes on the fly because of the brilliant starts made by Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan and Artem Anisimov.  It’s almost an ideal situation but it will be interesting to see if the Rangers send Stepan down when Prospal, Gaborik and Drury return. Obviously, someone will need to be sacrificed in addition to the likely demotion of Todd White (waived twice already). Some may argue that Stepan will be better served (long term) by playing big minutes in the minors rather than having large portions of a game glued to the bench which has happened recently. That may be true, but until the veterans return there’s no harm with having the youngster ride the pine and watch (and learn) from the best seat in the house. Tortorella has praised his accountability, maturity and ability to absorb his teachings so teach him in NY.

After a stunning start Stepan has stumbled offensively (2 assists in his last 12 games) but he still makes plays and, on the whole, is not a liability when on the ice. It’s important Rangers fans realise that Stepan was never going to score 40 goals as a rookie and would have large patches of ineffectiveness. It’s important to remember the season is still a rebuilding one for the Rangers and it’s an ideal situation to play Stepan in; a season with little expectation. If he doesn’t score for another 10 games let’s not declare him a bust like some fans are already declaring Ryan McDonagh as, on the back of a difficult start in Hartford. The key for all these prospects is patience. What the Rangers need to do is realise what they have in Stepan and throw every resource they have into his development. Have him soak up Mark Messier’s knowledge and experience, get him every possible crutch they have so the youngster has the best opportunity to become the player he could be. Let him take his first steps and let him fall and get back up because Derek Stepan has the intelligence to learn and become a key cog for the Rangers.