Tampa, Fla. – The Rangers were not at their best in the 14-game stretch, but they have undertaken significant work in this crucial area.
The team sat atop the Metropolitan Division when it headed towards Pittsburgh for a Saturday matinee against the Penguins, followed by a Sunday afternoon date with the Islanders at the Garden.
Artemi Panarin’s 88 points, along with goaltending excellence from Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick, were major contributors to the success of the top-ranked goaltending and outstanding special teams unit. The Rangers are now taking steps towards post-faceoff changes.
With a Saturday faceoff win percentage of 52.8%, they have entered fifth place in the NHL. Though it may not be attributed to superstition, they are better off where they are than where they were.
Since the 2009-10 season, the Blueshirts haven’t ranked higher than 14th in the league in faceoffs, and apart from the 2012-13 season, when they were below 50% in all statistical categories, they have posted an incredible 1,410 wins and 1,410 losses.
In the second part of the Madison Square Garden showdown against the St. Louis Blues, Rangers center Jack Roslovic (96) faced off.
Rangers coach Peter Laviolette stated, “Everyone wants to start with a win, and facing off is the starting point.” “It’s like anything: if you have the puck or control it and it’s in your favor, good things can happen.”
Or as Mika Zibanejad put it, “We can start with a win; we don’t have to force it.”
Vincent Trocheck leads the NHL centers in fifth place among centers with a 59.3% win rate on faceoffs and less than 500 draws, according to StatMuse.
Vincent Trocheck (#82) of the Carolina Hurricanes will face off against Jesperi Kotkaniemi in a faceoff against the Rangers.
In Monday’s 3-1 victory over the Devils, Trocheck has won 12 out of 16 draws (75%).
In Raleigh, N.C., the following night, he won just 8 out of 19 (42%), but the biggest one came – the last one that secured a 1-0 victory over the Hurricanes in second place.
“A big part of possession play, especially when you have a top player,” Trocheck said. “Playing with Ruti [Panarin], I want to get as many pucks in his hands as possible, so starting with a win is huge.”
On the broadcast, the Rangers have won 27 draws against the Lightning in their 6-3 loss, losing 29, with a 48.2% win rate.
If they see those numbers for all 82 games per night, it will be better than what they have achieved in any season from 2018-19 to 2021-22.
The Rangers were aware of their past shortcomings and attempted to address them when assembling their coaching staff under Laviolette. Michael Peca, described by Laviolette as a “specialist in faceoffs” in his 14-year playing career with the NHL, was given the responsibility of leadership.
“He was fantastic… even in games [he] talked through with [us],” Peca said about the Laviolette. “If he sees something, he can point it out to help us.”
The Rangers have several forwards who excel in faceoffs.
Barkley Goodrow at 54.8% and Jonny Brodzinski at 50.5%. Zibanejad is just below at 49.4, and Kevin Rooney is right under that at 48.5%.
These three, plus Trocheck, have been the lion’s share of the draws this season, but others have performed well in a smaller sample size, including Blake Wheeler (61.3), Kapo Kakko (54.5), and Jimmy Vesey (50.0).
“Trocheck leads because of his numbers, but other guys have stepped up, and we’re trying to work with everyone,” Laviolette said. “We’re trying to work with the wingers who are jumping in there and helping, then after the faceoff, we’re trying to figure out what we can do.”
There’s no award for faceoff wins or losses until a team claims possession, and a lot happens between the drop of the puck and the end of the battle between two centers.
Zibanejad said, “We have good centers, but it’s definitely 50/50 to win on the wings and [defensemen] are helping too.” “I don’t think there’s much of an advantage to winning a lot, and we’re doing well as a team fighting around the center.”
New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93) and defenseman Braden Schneider (4) await their first faceoff against the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL Hockey Club’s first episode of the season.
Before the 2021-22 season, the Rangers invited retired linesman Pierre Racicot to a training camp and discussed innovative ways to solve their faceoff mess and provided advice on their positions, roles, and what to expect from players. Assist the players.
Racicot’s theoretical assistance helped as the Blueshirts went from NHL 44.5% to Gerard Gallant’s first season at 48.1%.
“I thought it was in terms of understanding where the linesmen are, where the linesmen are going to take the puck and what they’re looking for in terms of setting up a center [from the faceoff], it helped me a lot,” Zibanejad said. “The way to talk to the linesman. It’s something that’s still in my game, and when I go into the faceoff circle, I think about it.”
