Well-rounded centermen are few and far between in the NHL for justifiable reasons — their position requires a lengthy list of job requirements. Yet, any team capable of winning the Stanley Cup has substantial forward depth. The New York Rangers now have an altered center group after Ryan Strome and Kevin Rooney were not offered new contracts from management. The addition of Vincent Trocheck will also change the look of the lines by solidifying the top two center positions.
Mika Zibanejad and Filip Chytil were noticeable centers last season; the former plays in the top-six, while the latter tends to be a bottom-six center. Zibanejad is coming off a career season, while Chytil concluded his 2021-22 campaign a point shy of his career-best.
Tyler Motte, Andrew Copp, Barclay Goodrow, and Johnny Brodzinski all have experience as centers. The club closed out their 2021-22 season with Rooney or Goodrow as the regular centers who shuffled within the last two lines. Now that the Rangers have lost Copp’s services and potentially Motte’s as well, rounding out the bottom two lines is on the front office’s to-do list. And, of course, in the event of injuries, the Rangers need additional center options.
The coaching staff favors the versatility to shuffle lines, yet the team struggled in the faceoff dot last season. One could make the argument that developing a reliable faceoff center should be a priority this season. Management has time to make another acquisition as they get a clearer look at their roster before training camp, but for now, this group will be tested once again to see if they can help lift the team to a Stanley Cup.
Zibanejad & Trocheck’s Numbers
The Rangers’ three-round playoff run in 2022 helped highlight the holes that needed to be addressed. Inconsistencies from veterans, continued faceoff woes, difficulties building onto a lead, and other shortcomings prevented them from advancing to the Stanley Cup Final. Fortunately, Trocheck’s presence should help in a few of those areas.
In the second round, the Rangers faced Trocheck’s former team, the Carolina Hurricanes. In the regular season, he collected 21 goals and 30 assists in 82 games. And during the postseason, he tallied six goals and four assists in 14 games.
Related: Rangers’ Trocheck Signing Likely Seals Chytil’s Fate
Zibanejad, on the other hand, reached a new height in his career — an 81-point season — as he…
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