After a couple of weeks of speculation and research the New York Rangers finally unveiled their Traverse City roster. Personally I am pretty happy that I was able to find some of the tryout guys early and provide you all with some information on them. There are still some names out there that are currently New York Rangers property that have not been talked about as much, since they are the dark horses of the organization.
Calle Andersson – The older brother of Calgary Flames draft pick Rasmus Andersson has had an interesting early start to his career. Calle was a 4th round pick by the Rangers in 2012, and the 6’2 right handed two-way defenseman is finally coming to North America this season. He bounced around in Sweden a lot early in his career, and his play suffered. Last year he started the season with EV Zug of the Swiss League, and looked like his career was going downhill fast. He wasn’t playing well and he wasn’t putting points up. His NHL hopes were looking bleak. That all changed when he was traded to HC Lugano, the team that Calle’s father (and former Ranger 4th round pick) Peter Andersson is an assistant coach for. Calle’s season immediately turned around as he went on to score 17 points in 30 games in what truly was a tale of two seasons.
Andersson’s decision to come to North America is a big one. The Rangers now have another right handed two way defenseman developing in Hartford, a bit of a rarity in the NHL. Andersson has the hockey IQ to succeed at this level, so now We get to see if Andersson’s game is best suited for North American ice. Traverse City is his first experience on North American ice, and he will be matching up against top prospects like Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha.
Petr Zamorsky- He may not be big, but the right-handed Czech defenseman can put up the points and play with an edge. He has a booming shot, accurate pass, and is a nice skater. His 5’11 frame also catches other players by surprise, since he throws the body quite often. He definitely looks to make an impact with a huge hit along the boards or with a big goal. He has the energy that I love to see as a fan, so I am really excited to see how he progressed last season and see him in Hartford this season. Zamorsky was on the Traverse City team last year, so he not only comes with professional European experience but is also a tournament veteran.
Here is a big hit he threw.
Keegan Iverson- Keegan is a really interesting player to me. While I preferred Chase De Leo two drafts ago, I still tried to see the Iverson pick in a good light. While he doesn’t possess a lot of scoring ability, Iverson has NHL size and loves to use his body around the net and along the boards. While many were expecting a better season from him last year, it just wasn’t the case. Some attribute that to the coaching staff not giving him the top-six ice time, but at the same time I think if he played well enough he would’ve forced his way into it. I am pretty torn about my views on him so I hope with a good showing at Traverse City he can start the season off on a good note.
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