Ramblings: Rangers Take Two, Chytil Heating Up, McAvoy to Miss Start of Season (June 4)

Ian Gooding

2022-06-04

The Tampa Bay Lightning have finally lost two playoff games in a row, the first time that has happened for them since being swept by the Blue Jackets in 2019. That's 18 times since then that the Bolts have lost a playoff game, only to win the following game.

The underdog Rangers, though, are staying true to their Twitter hashtag and showing no quit. Also living up to the Rangers fans' chant, Igor Shesterkin is better than any goalie remaining in the playoffs. With a 29-save performance, Shesterkin has now reeled off 11 consecutive quality starts. He has not allowed more than three goals in any of those games, and he has allowed just two goals in each of his last four games – all wins. A hot goalie used to mean everything for a team on a playoff run. Maybe it still does.  

Andrei Vasilevskiy was tagged with a really bad start in Game 1. He performed better in Game 2, although 25 saves on 28 shots wasn't quite enough for a quality start. He caught fire at the end of the Toronto series and carried that momentum into the Florida series, but he's having issues with a Rangers team that is playing with all sorts of confidence.

Adam Fox assisted on two of the Rangers goals, giving him two points in each of his last four games along with a seven-game point streak. Fox also has at least one point in each of his nine home games during the playoffs, which is a prop for you to remember the next time the Rangers play at home. Also related: the Rangers have eight consecutive wins at home.

Jacob Trouba continued his fine play, recording two hits and six blocked shots in Game 2. Trouba leads the playoffs with 39 blocked shots, while only Evander Kane has more hits during the playoffs than Trouba (58). Don't forget about Trouba in multicategory leagues next season.

Kaapo Kakko showed some nice mitts on this goal, his first in 13 playoff games. Kakko is benefitting from time on the Kid Line, as he currently has a three-game point streak.

Kakko's Kid Line linemate Filip Chytil recorded the second assist on this goal.  

Speaking of Chytil, the 2022 playoffs have shown us the best of him. The 2017 first-round pick entered Game 2 with five goals over his last three games playing on the aforementioned recently-formed Kid Line with fellow first-round picks Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere. These three players have all been burdened with the high expectations of being first-round picks – particularly the latter two as higher first-round picks. Because the Rangers already have many more established options on their forward lines, icetime has been an issue for all three. Kakko was the only one of the three to average more than 15 minutes per game during this past regular season.

Chytil is certainly helping his cause for additional playing time. Yet if the Rangers can't find a way to better fit him in, he is at least building his trade value. For example, here in Vancouver, Chytil's name has popped up in rumors as part of a package for J.T. Miller. Acquiring the former Ranger would be a major step in the team's quest for a Stanley Cup.

Canucks fans can't be totally blamed if they're not sold on Chytil. After all, he has posted the following point totals over the last four seasons: 23, 23, 22, 22. It's understood that his games played totals have been 75, 60, 42, and 67 – not really full seasons, but still not enough for fantasy teams (1% rostered in Yahoo). Even though he has been more noticeable during the playoffs, Chytil's first 12 playoff games consisted of two goals and an assist. In other words, he's never had a full-season pace of more than 43 points over his four full NHL seasons. The recency effect is something to be aware of.

If Chytil isn't traded, there could still be a top-6 opportunity for him with the Rangers next season. Ryan Strome is set to become a UFA, so the Rangers might have to move on from him. If Lafreniere and Kakko can become anything close to the future stars they were expected to be, the Rangers could have a productive scoring line for years. Chytil is only 22, so there's still plenty of time to build on that.

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The Boston Bruins haven't had a very long offseason, yet it has already managed to go from bad to worse.  

Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk were 1-2 in terms of total power-play icetime and power-play points among Bruins defensemen last season. McAvoy in particular is a major loss, as he is their best defenseman. He far and away led Bruins defensemen in points (56) and all Bruins players in icetime (24:40). Assuming he recovers in time from his own surgery, Mike Reilly should benefit early on in terms of potential power-play time. Trade deadline acquisition Hampus Lindholm could also be used on the power play, although he was brought on to be more of a shutdown defender.

As for the Bruins, they might have a difficult time catching up in the standings with all of McAvoy, Grzelcyk, and Brad Marchand expected to miss the start of the season. Also, Patrice Bergeron's status for next season is still unknown. There was a major gap between the playoff teams and non-playoff teams in the Eastern Conference this season, so perhaps this creates a little more parity as teams like Buffalo, Detroit, and Ottawa attempt to take the next step in their rebuilds.

I'll use a similar formula to project McAvoy's remaining production as I used for Marchand yesterday. If McAvoy returns on schedule in early December, he will miss approximately 20 games. Assuming a full season, he would play 62 games. If he maintains his current production, McAvoy would be projected for around 44 points. Knocking off a game missed here or there for other reasons and a dip from potentially reduced scoring options, we could round down to about 40 points.

With that potential production, McAvoy would be drafted outside of my Top 100. Draft him sometime after that when remaining defensemen start to thin out (similar to what I mentioned with Tom Wilson yesterday). Then when you can move him to IR, grab someone like Lindholm or Reilly. Or if you have McAvoy on your keeper team, consider adding Lindholm or Reilly as a handcuff.

Congratulations to Carey Price, the winner of the 2022 Masterton Trophy. Price battled his way back into the Montreal lineup late in the season after undergoing offseason knee surgery and spending time in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program. Hopefully he is doing well and is back in the Canadiens lineup next season.

Follow me on Twitter @Ian_Gooding for more fantasy hockey.

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