Will Cuylle’s impact grows as questions persist about Rangers’ top line
NY Post
There is good reason for the Rangers third line receiving more ice time than the first unit in seven of the first nine games of the 2024-25 season.
The proof is in the metrics that Will Cuylle, Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko have simply been a more effective trio than Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad and Reilly Smith. They’ve been a possession machine, almost always in the offensive zone and have still remained defensively sound with zero five-on-five goals against so far.
The team’s depth is all folks will talk about when the Rangers are winning. How beneficial it is to have such a strong third line that can alleviate scoring pressure off the top six.
When the Rangers are losing, however, the imbalance of ice time between the first and third units becomes a cause for concern. If the Rangers can’t rely on their No. 1 center and Co. to produce and perform, is it even a top line?
“Often, I’d say, they draw the tougher matchup,” head coach Peter Laviolette said of the Kreider-Zibanejad-Smith unit before the Rangers’ 5-3 loss to the Capitals in D.C. Tuesday night. “I think they’re looking for more [offensively], but they talk about it a lot, they watch a lot of video, and they’re all kind of students of the game. They want to get better.”
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