{"id":180431,"date":"2026-03-31T02:40:29","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T02:40:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/180431\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T02:40:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T02:40:29","slug":"in-a-lost-season-the-rangers-have-at-least-uncovered-some-intriguing-bottom-six-depth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/180431\/","title":{"rendered":"In a lost season, the Rangers have at least uncovered some intriguing bottom-six depth"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK \u2014 Any visions the New York Rangers have of executing a quick retool<\/a> are pure fantasy until they find a way to acquire high-end talent. That will require a couple of years of loading up \u2014 and hitting \u2014 on draft picks, starting with a selection that\u2019s likely to land in the top five this June, and some savvy maneuvering via trade and other avenues.<\/p>\n

Smaller developmental wins may feel hollow in that context, but that doesn\u2019t mean they should be dismissed. And if there are any silver linings to glean from the final weeks of this lost season, it\u2019s that the Rangers may have uncovered a few worthwhile depth pieces.<\/p>\n

That was on display again in Sunday\u2019s 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers, which marked New York\u2019s 11th victory in 36 tries at Madison Square Garden. They\u2019ll need three more in their final five games at MSG to surpass the 2003-04 Rangers\u2019 total of 13 home-ice wins and avoid setting a new franchise low for the modern era. (That includes any full season since 1974-75, which is when the NHL expanded to an 80-game schedule.)<\/p>\n

Adam S\u00fdkora aided that effort by netting the go-ahead goal with 14:50 left in regulation. He charged the slot and redirected a pass from Adam Fox to break a scoreless tie, then raced with the same vigor to embrace his teammates.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard not to like that guy,\u201d coach Mike Sullivan said with a grin. \u201cThe energy that he exudes \u2014 I don\u2019t think he\u2019s ever had a bad day in his life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 21-year-old rookie has been a spark plug through his first three NHL games, but he isn\u2019t alone. S\u00fdkora is one of a handful of young players who are making an impression down the stretch and vying for roles in future seasons.<\/p>\n

Matthew Robertson and newly signed prospect Drew Fortescue<\/a> have bolstered an otherwise thin left-handed defensemen corps, while 23-year-old goalie Dylan Garand is playing well enough to garner consideration<\/a> as Igor Shesterkin\u2019s backup moving forward.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s the forwards where multiple options are emerging. None outside of Gabe Perreault addresses the need for top-of-the-lineup upside, but a handful of youngsters are looking like viable bottom-six candidates.<\/p>\n

Tye Kartye has led the charge lately, with the Seattle Kraken\u2019s decision to put the hard-working winger on waivers last month turning into New York\u2019s gain, while S\u00fdkora and Jaroslav Chmela\u0159 have both opened eyes since being recalled from AHL Hartford. Add in center Noah Laba, who returned Sunday after missing the previous five games with a lower-body injury, as well as Adam Edstr\u00f6m and injured wingers Brett Berard and Matt Rempe \u2014 the latter of whom is unlikely to play again this season due to complications with his injured left thumb \u2014 and you have the makings of healthy competition.<\/p>\n

Most will be best-served in fourth-line roles, which could leave only two or three long-term spots. But for an organization that\u2019s seen its depth disintegrate, an influx of usable prospects at any position is a welcome change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re all great kids, too,\u201d Fox said. \u201cI mean, I\u2019m not that old \u2014 yet \u2014 but you remember when you were coming in. They\u2019ve been helping us win games, too, which is obviously the most important thing. But they\u2019re bringing a great energy, too. It brings a spark to the locker room. I think it\u2019s given us a little push, a little jolt, and you want to play well for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rangers (30-35-9) dressed a total of seven rookies for Sunday\u2019s game \u2014 Chmela\u0159, Laba, Perreault, S\u00fdkora, Fortescue, Robertson and Garand \u2014 which was the most since May 8, 2021. Three, in particular, stood out in the win over the two-time defending champion Panthers.<\/p>\n

Adam S\u00fdkora<\/p>\n

S\u00fdkora spun off a hit from Luke Kunin late in the first period, then shoved the Florida veteran from behind. Next thing he knew, the jovial Slovak was in the middle of his first fight \u2014 not just in the NHL, but at any level.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to drop the gloves,\u201d said S\u00fdkora, smiling wide. \u201cI\u2019ve still got to watch it. I don\u2019t know what happened there, but I just try to bring everything every day. Sometimes these things happen, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

S\u00fdkora comes across as the type who wouldn\u2019t hurt a fly, but with his relentless playstyle, \u201cyou\u2019re probably going to draw the ire of your opponent every now and then,\u201d as Sullivan put it.<\/p>\n

His first fighting major meant he served the opening 4:25 of the second period in the penalty box, where the 2022 second-round pick stood fidgeting the entire time. That energy remained bottled up for most of a period in which he received only two shifts, but he didn\u2019t sulk over the diminished ice time. Instead, S\u00fdkora seized his opportunity when his TOI ticked up in the third.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just try (not) to overthink things,\u201d he said. \u201cI know I was sitting in the penalty box, and I was kind of sitting a little bit on the bench. It was like penalty kills, power play, so I\u2019m just trying to be engaged, help those guys, be alive on the bench still, and just don\u2019t think too much. Just enjoy every moment with these guys, with this team, and that\u2019s what\u2019s going in my head through the time when I\u2019m sitting there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Adam<\/p>\n

\n Adam S\u00fdkora became the second Rangers rookie after Noah Laba to score in consecutive games this season. (Bruce Bennett \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

S\u00fdkora\u2019s second goal in as many games<\/a> served as further evidence of his improving offensive skill set, but he knows as well as any that his path to NHL sustainability will hinge on maintaining what Sullivan described as \u201chis enthusiasm.\u201d The 5-foot-11, 193-pounder\u2019s motor is always revved to the max, giving him the look of an effective checking winger who will win puck battles and make hustle plays all over the ice.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s quickly making him a fan favorite \u2014 and a popular teammate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if you guys can see it, but his energy is unmatched,\u201d veteran Conor Sheary said. \u201cHe is constantly up on his feet, he\u2019s banging his stick. With all these young guys \u2014 but especially him \u2014 he just brings an energy that\u2019s contagious. He\u2019s fun to be around, fun to play with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jaroslav Chmela\u0159<\/p>\n

S\u00fdkora, Sheary and Fox accounted for the Rangers\u2019 goals, while Shesterkin was excellent with 26 saves on 27 shots faced, 15 of which came in the first period. But one of the first players Sullivan wanted to talk about after the win was Chmela\u0159.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought Jaro was one of our better forwards tonight, with his skating and how he was on pucks \u2014 and his execution with the puck,\u201d Sullivan said.<\/p>\n

The coach pointed to a couple of plays that caught his eye. One came early in the game, when Chmela\u0159 used his long reach to disrupt an attempted pass from Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling and tipped it to himself for a prime scoring chance from the slot. Another came off the rush when the 22-year-old spun around a defender and had the wherewithal to set up Laba at the far post.<\/p>\n

The 2021 fifth-round pick leads all of New York\u2019s regular skaters with a 57.05 percent expected goals-for rate through 14 games played this month, according to Natural Stat Trick, and is clearly earning more trust.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Jaro\u2019s getting better with every game he plays,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cHe\u2019s a big man, as you guys know, but his foot speed is getting better. How quickly he\u2019s processing the game is getting better, so he anticipates better. Things of that nature. I just think the speed of the game at which he\u2019s playing is so much better than it was at training camp, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 6-4, 226-pounder appears to be passing Edstr\u00f6m, who was a healthy scratch for the second straight game, and Rempe in the big winger pecking order and setting himself up with a good chance to make the team out of camp next fall.<\/p>\n

\"Florida's<\/p>\n

\n Jaroslav Chmela\u0159 is quickly earning more trust and might be the leading big winger candidate for ice time next season. (Bruce Bennett \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Noah Laba<\/p>\n

After centering the third line for most of the season, Laba re-entered in the 4C spot that\u2019s been a revolving door since veteran Sam Carrick was traded to the Buffalo Sabres<\/a> earlier this month. His trio with Chmela\u0159 and veteran Jonny Brodzinski was New York\u2019s best on Sunday, earning four of the team\u2019s five high-danger scoring chances at five-on-five while producing an 88.91 percent xGF rate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought that line was excellent all night long,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cWe tried to play four lines consistently throughout the course of the game. It gives you a chance to get some of the minutes down of some of our core guys that sometimes those minutes, they mount and they add up. And I think if we\u2019re able to do that, we get a better version of those guys, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laba was in the middle of that effort, finishing with an assist and a team-high four shots in 13:20 TOI. The 2022 fourth-round pick said he \u201cfelt good\u201d coming off the injury and immediately popped with his speed down the middle. He attacked the net and got into dangerous scoring positions on a few noticeable occasions, adding to the overall effectiveness of his line.<\/p>\n

The 22-year-old\u2019s ceiling could be limited, particularly on the offensive side of the puck with 22 points through 66 games, but he\u2019s shown attributes that should give him staying power \u2014 most notably a max skating speed that ranks in the 87th percentile league-wide, according to NHL Edge. He\u2019d bring plenty of value as a long-term 4C and penalty-killer, but the Rangers believe 3C remains a plausible outcome.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest thing that he adds to our lineup is his size and speed,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cHe\u2019s pretty good in the faceoff circle. He can kill penalties, but he can skate. His north-south game, I think, is good.\u201d<\/p>\n