The Rangers placed Juuso Parssinen on waivers yesterday, likely marking the end of his short stay with the Rangers. When he was extended and the Rangers signed both Taylor Raddysh and Conor Sheary, the usual panic around playing the kids took center stage. In October, I wrote that none of these spare Rangers forwards would take significant playing time from the kids long term. With one on waivers, the Rangers have decisions ahead of them regarding all three, and these decisions may come in short order.
The easiest decision among the spare Rangers forwards is with Parssinen. Chris Drury may not even need to make a decision if he gets claimed. There are already rumblings that both Vancouver and San Jose might be interested, which would certainly save both Drury and Mike Sullivan from themselves if they ever get that urge to recall him.
The remaining spare Rangers forwards need to step up
With Parssinen gone, the remaining spare Rangers forwards–Raddysh and Sheary–need to start contributing a bit more to show they should still be with the Rangers if and when kids like Gabe Perreault start sticking with the roster. As it stands today, the answer is pretty clear, though it may require a bit more than surface level analysis.
It’s easy to pick on Conor Sheary, and while I do agree with the premise of Brandon’s post regarding trust, I think the focus should have been elsewhere. Sheary has been a fine foot soldier. He’s giving 100% every shift and is doing a lot of the little things right. He’s driving play on offense–though lacking some quality chances–and has been solid defensively limiting quality against. That’s his role. If the Rangers were actually scoring goals, no one would be complaining about nepotism or Sheary.
That big red bar for actual goals is part Sheary, but part the Rangers as a team. They can’t score. Even Raddysh’s once team leading five goals are in the red on that stat. The Rangers simply can’t score, and that problem is with JT Miller, Vincent Trocheck, Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Alexis Lafreniere, and Will Cuylle. When the top half of the lineup can’t score, the bottom half suffers too.
On Raddysh, his metrics are by far the worst among the remaining spare Rangers forwards. He’s propped up by a 22.7% shooting rate, more than double his career average of 10.7%. But Raddysh hasn’t scored in November, and has only scored a goal in three games. His hot start is cooling rapidly, and he’s not doing anything away from the puck to separate himself from Sheary. They are both equals in suppressing shot quality, but Sheary has the clear edge everywhere else.
The decision is clear: Sheary at a league minimum salary offers more right now, especially as Raddysh–with a $1.5 million cap hit and an extra year remaining–cools faster than a polar vortex. That may change, but if there is a need to make a decision in the next couple of days, Sheary should be the one that stays. If just for the cap hit difference.
The Rangers are bad because of the top six
It’s easy to put blame on guys like Sheary, Parssinen, and Raddysh for the Rangers struggles. But that’s pretty unfair. This trio of spare Rangers forwards isn’t supposed to be carrying the team. The spare Rangers forwards are supposed to complement the top-six and provide tertiary scoring. At no point should Raddysh have been leading the team in scoring.
As the Rangers continue to struggle, it’s clear they need more youth, skill, and speed in the lineup. Brett Berard should stick, and Perreault will be back soon. Their roster spots will come at the expense of these spare Rangers forwards, but they aren’t saviors either. Calling up two kids won’t change anything if the top-six isn’t scoring. That’s the current problem.
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