Chris Drury's plan was clear, and then the Patrick Kane drama unfolded.

The Kaapo Kakko injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Rangers. With Kakko out at least a month, the Rangers are now back to having Barclay Goodrow in the top-six. All due respect to Goodrow, who has had a solid season, the Rangers are better and deeper when he’s not in he top-six. The Rangers need to act now to solidify their top-six.

The biggest concern for the Rangers is their even strength play, and losing one of their better play drivers isn’t going to help matters. Kakko worked well with Ryan Strome and Artemiy Panarin because of his ability to cycle and create space for the others. He’s also tremendously skilled with the puck, which separates him from the others that have been on that line. That duo has had their best results with Kakko.

The Rangers were already very top heavy, and the Kakko injury exacerbates this issue. The second line aside, the injury forces players up in the lineup that should likely play lower down. Goodrow up to the second line, Dryden Hunt up to the third line, and Greg McKegg still in the lineup. While that last one is a sore subject –just play Morgan Barron– it illustrates the depth issues the Rangers have.

Depth matters in the playoffs, as you need your bottom six to score.

Depth scoring matters when the teams get better and defense are able to hone in on the top guys. This is where tertiary scoring matters. The Rangers will need to have guys on the third line that can put the puck in the net more than they get scored on. Right now, per HSM, the Rangers don’t get those goals from the bottom six.

Reilly Smith seems like a nice answer, but Vegas is sure to play some kind of cap shenanigans with the Mark Stone injury. With that option possibly gone, the right type of wingers available aren’t overly pretty. Phil Kessel has been floated a lot, as has Artturi Lehkonen. The latter is the better choice, but is likely to be more expensive on the trade front. Claude Giroux would be a great fit too, but it’s unlikely Philly trades him to the Rangers.

The Kakko injury doesn’t create a dire situation, but it is getting pretty close to it. The good news is the Rangers played their best game of the season right before their two week break, and did it without Kakko (or Adam Fox) in the lineup. That bodes well, but they need to do it consistently. We can talk about the inconsistent forecheck and backcheck and their inability to cycle properly, and those are issues, but that doesn’t fix roster holes. Drury needs to act.

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